Who will leave Greener Footprints? Materialistic Values, Motivation and Pro-environmental Behaviors among College Students

By : Sairaj Milind Patki

Page No: 121-129

Abstract
According to the Trends in Global CO2 Emissions 2015 Report, India contributed 6.5% to global emissions. Moreover, unlike the trend of reducing emissions since the 1990s seen in most Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, a 7.4% increase was recorded in India. Conservation activities and more specifically pro-environmental behaviors to counter this phenomenon however haven’t shown a promising increase. The youth of the country has the potential to change this scenario for the better. The study investigated the relationship between materialistic values, motivation and actual pro-environmental behaviors of college students. Identified regulation was found to be positively correlated with general ecological behaviors among those low on materialistic values, while external regulation and amotivation were found to be positively correlated with general ecological behaviors among those high on materialistic values. The findings may have important implications for future pro-environment interventions, conservation training programs and even policy-making in the long run.

Author :
Sairaj M. Patki : Asst. Professor – Department of Social Sciences, School of Liberal Education, FLAME University, Lavale, Pune.