Eco-Anxiety and Trust in Science in Spain: Two Paths to Connect Climate Change Perceptions and General Willingness for Environmental Behavior

María Luisa Vecina, María Alonso-Ferres, Laura López-García and Cintia Díaz-Silveira ()
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María Luisa Vecina: Psychology Faculty, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Campus de Somosaguas, 28223 Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain
María Alonso-Ferres: Psychology Faculty, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Campus de Somosaguas, 28223 Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain
Laura López-García: Psychology Department, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Campus de Alcorcón, 28922 Madrid, Spain
Cintia Díaz-Silveira: Psychology Department, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Campus de Alcorcón, 28922 Madrid, Spain

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 8, 1-17

Abstract: This article aims to better understand the mechanisms that connect climate change perceptions and general willingness to engage in pro-environmental behavior using Spanish cross-sectional data (N = 403) that included 102 members of environmental organizations. To do this, we first developed and validated the General Willingness for Environmental Behavior Scale (GWEBS), which includes the classical approach of voluntarily doing new actions but also actions implying not doing things (degrowth) and actions forced by social constraints. The exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis showed a good fit for the one-factor structure, which had adequate validity based on their relationship with other variables. Additionally, the GWEBS distinguished between women and men, left- and right-oriented people, and people who belonged to pro-environmental groups and people who did not. In the second place, we tested the parallel mediator role of eco-anxiety and trust in science in the relationship between climate change perceptions and the GWEBS. The results showed that eco-anxiety fully mediated and trust in science partially mediated such a relationship, making them crucial in terms of mobilizing the intention to act according to perceptions. This study contributes to understanding the psychological mechanisms that eventually drive pro-environmental behaviors and provides a clear direction for future research.

Keywords: eco-anxiety; trust in science; climate change perception; environmental behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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