Studies of pro-environmental behavior have been so many in developed countries, but it is just a few in developing countries. Since the pro-environmental behavior is the key of the successful environment conservation, it is necessary to study about pro-environmental behavior at young generations. One of the studies of pro-environmental behavior is the study done by a collaborative environment researcher groups from Malaysia and Indonesia. One of the researchers from Indonesia is Dr. Amirudin from Universitas Diponegoro who get involved in this research which examine a number of students of the training centre in Malaysia to figure out how environmental commitment, environmental consciousness, green lifestyle, and green self-efficacy influencing pro-environmental behavior. This research has been reported in an article titled “An Investigation of Pro-Environmental Behavior and Sustainable Development in Malaysia” (2020).
In this article, it is stated that there are four steps that influence the successful pro-environmental behavior. The factors are environmental commitment, environmental consciousness, green lifestyle, and green self-efficacy. It is stated in the article that pro-environmental behavior is a set of behaviors practiced by individuals that seek to take measures actions to promote positive changes in the environment and limit the effects of human negligence. This definition implies that in order to save environment in stable and sustainable condition, human beings need to have awareness that is implemented in daily behavior to always care about the surrounding environment. The pro-environmental behavior can be adopted to and by everyone when it becomes daily routine. Pro-environmental behavior in simple way can be applied in several behaviors such as recycling, conserving water, saving electricity, reusing, using public transportation, using bicycle or walking, providing properly disposing of non-recyclable waste, using less paper for printing, and consuming green products. It is also explained in the article about four steps that influence toward the successful pro-environmental behavior, i.e. environmental commitment, environmental consciousness, green lifestyle, green self-efficacy.
Environmental commitment might be understood as a willingness or intention to commit to do something related to environment conservation. Beside that, pro-environmental behavior needs environmental consciousness that involves human’s cognitive or knowledge to do pro-environmental behavior. When commitment and consciousness have been inculcated in human being’s mind, the next step to make pro-environmental behavior be succeed is green lifestyle. Green lifestyle is a form of engagement of individual or community to do activities related to pro-environment. The top level of pro-environmental behavior step is green self-efficacy, which might be recognized as self-belief that commiting ourselves into pro-environmental behavior is the true one and makes us proud of giving the best for the nature.
The result of this research shows that the students in a training center as the research object already have environmental consciousness that influence their pro-environmental behavior. They also implement their pro-environmental behavior in daily life. Through survey study, their answers show a positive relation between environmental commitment, environmental consciousness, green lifestyle, and green self-efficacy toward pro-environmental behavior.
Link: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/17/7083