Exploring the Moderating Role of Environmental Education in Promoting a Clean Environment

Lianfeng Ma (), Pomi Shahbaz, Shamsheer ul Haq and Ismet Boz
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Lianfeng Ma: School of Finance and Economics, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710061, China
Pomi Shahbaz: Department of Economics, Division of Management and Administrative Science, University of Education, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
Shamsheer ul Haq: Department of Economics, Division of Management and Administrative Science, University of Education, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
Ismet Boz: Department of Agricultural Economics, Ondkuz Mayis University, Samsun 55139, Turkey

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 10, 1-19

Abstract: Environmental education plays a significant role in improving environmental knowledge and shaping the eco-friendly lifestyles of young people. Young people’s daily actions and habits will determine the future of the Earth as a planet. The literature regarding youths’ environmental knowledge, climate change awareness, environmental attitude, and their impact on pro-environmental intentions and sustainable household consumption practices is very scarce. Therefore, this study explored the relationship between environmental knowledge, climate change awareness, environmental attitude, and the pro-environmental intentions of university students. The study also assessed the moderating effect of environmental education on pro-environmental behavior and sustainable household consumption practices, providing a comparative analysis of students with and without environmental education, which is unique in the literature. The data were collected from 2137 Chinese university students selected through a purposive and random sampling method through survey questionnaires. Descriptive statistics and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) were used to analyze the collected data. The findings revealed that environmental knowledge, climate change awareness, and environmental attitudes of the students positively affected their pro-environmental intentions. Moreover, pro-environmental intentions also positively affected the adoption of sustainable practices. The result also showed that the impact of pro-environmental intentions on sustainable consumption practices was greater for those whose education included environmental courses than for those whose education did not. Therefore, it is suggested that environment-related courses be incorporated into the study plans of each discipline as a compulsory subject for promoting green intentions and shaping eco-friendly lifestyles for environmental sustainability.

Keywords: environmental education; eco-friendly lifestyles; pro-environment behavior; climate change awareness; environmental knowledge; PLS-SEM (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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