Psychological and behavioural approaches to understanding and governing sustainable mobility

Abstract

This paper introduces and explores the psychological and social factors that both contribute to and inhibit behaviour change vis-à-vis sustainable (tourist) mobility. It is based on papers presented at the Freiburg 2012 workshop. Specifically, it reviews climate change attitudes and perceptions, the psychological benefits of tourism mobilities, addictive elements of mobility and social norming effects, the attitude–behaviour gap (i.e. cognitive dissonance between understandings of, and responses to, climate change), the psychology of modal shifts, the psychology of travel speed/time and psychological explanations for the perceived importance of long distance travel. It notes that anthropogenic climate change is an inescapable reality and that tourism's share of greenhouse gas emissions appears set to rise substantially. There is little prospect of technical solutions adequately addressing this problem. The paper concludes that, while a comprehensive understanding of tourist psychology is necessary to inform policy-makers, it alone will be insufficient to achieve emission reductions, and bring tourism to a climatically sustainable pathway, if treated in isolation. Radical change in the structures of provision is also necessary. That change may take the form of infrastructure planning, including financial and economic infrastructure (e.g. taxation regimes and emission trading schemes) for sustainable mobility.

心理和行为的方法来理解和治理可持续性流动性

该文章介绍和探讨了都贡献和抑制可持续性（旅游者）流动性带来的行为改变的心理和社会因素。这是基于在2012弗赖堡会议上的文章的。特别是，文章审阅了气候变化的态度和看法，旅游流动性的心理益处，流动性和社会规范化效果的上瘾的要素，态度-行为缺口（例如，对气候改变的理解和反应之间的认知失调），模式转变的心理学，旅行速度/时间的心理学，和对长途旅行认知的重要性的心理的解释。研究认识到人为气候改变是一个无法回避的事实，旅游业的温室气体（GHG）排放量的份额出现大幅上涨。对能充分解决该问题的技术方案是微乎其微。该文章总结，当旅游者心理的深入理解对告知政策制订者来说是必需的，单单是理解旅游者心理对达到排放减低，并将旅游带到一个气候可持续性方向是不足够的。供应结构中彻底的改变也是需要的。该改变可能使用基础规划的方式，包括对可持续性流动性的财政的和经济基础建设（例如税收和排放贸易项目）。

Keywords:

• climate change
• tourism
• transportation
• sustainable mobility
• psychology
• behaviour

关键词:

• 气候变化
• 旅游
• 交通
• 可持续性流动性
• 心理
• 行为

Acknowledgements

The convenors of the Freiburg 2012 workshop (3–6 July 2012) gratefully acknowledge Tim Freytag (Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, Germany), Eke Eijgelaar (NHTV Breda) and other members of the Scientific Advisory Committee, Bas Amelung (Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands), Jean-Paul Ceron (Limoges University, France), Janet Dickinson (Bournemouth University, United Kingdom), Ghislain Dubois (TEC Conseil, France), Michael Hall (Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, Germany), Jeroen Nawijn (NHTV CSTT, Breda, The Netherlands), Daniel Scott (University of Waterloo, Canada), Gert Spaargaren (Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands), John Urry (Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies, Germany), all of whom contributed to the success of Freiburg 2012.

Notes

1. Announcement: Freiburg 2014 Second biennial workshop 1–4 July 2014: The second biennial Freiburg workshop will take place on 1–4 July 2014. It will again be hosted by the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (Germany) and will take place in the hamlet of Kirchzarten, less than 10 kilometres from Freiburg im Breisgau, the gateway to the German Black Forest. Freiburg, a sustainable transportation showcase, is centrally located within Europe and readily accessed from across Europe by rail. Building upon the psychological and behavioural approaches to understanding sustainable mobility that were explored in the inaugural workshop, Freiburg 2014 will expand the focus of discussions to also address structural (industry, government policy, infrastructure, technical) measures (and philosophies) that are urgently needed to achieve radical tourism emissions reduction. The workshop will accommodate a mixed delegation including academics (and postgraduate research students), government/policy-makers and industry decision-makers. The conference venue will again be the Hotel Fortuna (http://www.hotel-fortuna-kirchzarten.de/), where early accommodation bookings are strongly encouraged. For further information, please contact James Higham ([email protected]) or Scott Cohen ([email protected]).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

James Higham

James Higham holds the position of professor at the Department of Tourism, University of Otago (New Zealand).

Scott A. Cohen

Scott Cohen is a senior lecturer at University of Surrey (United Kingdom).

Paul Peeters

Paul Peeters is an associate professor at NHTV Breda University for Applied Sciences (The Netherlands).

Stefan Gössling

Stefan Gössling is a professor at Lund University and Linnaeus University (Sweden) and Freiburg Institute of Advanced Studies (Germany).

The authors co-hosted the Freiburg 2012 workshop (3–5 July 2012) in Freiburg im Breisgau in southern Germany to discuss psychological and behavioural approaches to understanding and governing sustainable mobility.