Unpacking Psychological Antecedents of Low-Carbon Behavior: What Differentiates Champions, Skeptics, Talkers and Walkers across Young Adults?

Djula Borozan () and Sanja Pfeifer
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Djula Borozan: Faculty of Economics and Business in Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
Sanja Pfeifer: Faculty of Economics and Business in Osijek, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, 31000 Osijek, Croatia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 21, 1-18

Abstract: This study explores low-carbon behavior (LCB), considering a number of psychological predictors deemed important according to the theory of planned behavior and the norm-activation model. Four distinct clusters were identified by conducting a cluster analysis of data collected from an online survey of young people in Croatia in 2022, revealing both consistent and inconsistent patterns of LCB. The study highlights the complexity of factors influencing LCB and utilizes a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis to identify specific configurations of psychological variables that contribute to high and not-high levels of LCB within each cluster. The results validate the significance of established psychological determinants in explaining variations in low-carbon intentions and behaviors among young people, challenging the assumption of intention as the single best determinant of LCB and underscoring the presence of multiple causal complexities and equifinalities. Furthermore, the study demonstrates the asymmetric effects of different psychological conditions on high and not-high levels of LCB, suggesting that consistent and inconsistent LCBs cannot simply be viewed as opposite poles of the same continuum and that a variety of pathways can be explored to enhance carbon reduction activities.

Keywords: psychological predictors; theory of planned behavior; norm activation mode; multiple pathways; fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis; young adults (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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