Environmental condition, cultural worldview, and environmental perceptions in China

Figures & data

Figure 1. Grid and group in CCT (See Kahan 2012).

Figure 2. Hypothesized relationships of environmental condition and cultural worldview with environmental perceptions.

Figure 3. Measuring cultural worldview.

Table 1. Descriptive statistics.

	N	Minimum	Maximum	Mean	Std. Deviation
Perceived severity of environmental problems
Air pollution	4500	1.00	6.00	3.58	1.71
Water pollution	4463	1.00	6.00	3.54	1.66
Industrial wastes pollution	3788	1.00	6.00	3.09	1.72
Household wastes pollution	4350	1.00	6.00	3.64	1.57
Lack green space	3195	1.00	6.00	3.24	1.67
Lack forest	3100	1.00	6.00	2.79	1.71
Lack fresh water	3350	1.00	6.00	2.98	1.75
Food contamination	3605	1.00	6.00	3.68	1.79
Explanatory variables:
Egalitarianism-hierarchy (Grid)	4834	14.00	49.00	34.20	4.49
Individualism-Communitarianism (Group)	4931	7.00	22.00	14.70	2.27
Age	5003	18.00	96.00	47.65	16.03
Education	5001	1	14	5.04	3.08
Household income in 2012	5003	0	2000000	57184.96	70732.50
PM10	5003	66.00	146.40	103.09	19.90
Discharged wastewater	5003	22000.00	779320.00	254304.95	162297.95
Discharged industrial wastes	5003	1179.62	32827.43	8642.01	6463.03
Household waste disposal rate	5003	37.20	98.05	77.30	17.51
Green coverage rate	5003	27.64	45.11	37.91	3.72
Forest coverage rate	5003	4.54	63.07	31.4661	15.93
Food contamination index^3
Water resources per capita	5003	142.68	13976.62	1627.61	1673.57
Fertilizer application amount	5003	8.48	648.73	214.17	157.61
SO2	5003	10.20	114.60	43.90	20.96
NO2	5003	26.80	92.40	46.61	13.56

Table 2. Pairwise comparisons using Tukey’s test.

Types of Cultural Worldview		Food Contamination	Household Wastes Pollution	Air Pollution	Water Pollution	Lack of Green Space	Industrial Wastes Pollution	Lack of Freshwater	Destruction of Forest
(1) Hierarchical Individualism	(2) Hierarchical Communitarianism	−0.49***	−0.10	−0.51***	−0.33***	−0.19	−0.31**	−0.07	−0.01
	(3) Egalitarian Individualism	−0.39***	−0.13	−0.38***	−0.21	−0.25*	−0.21	−0.10	−0.18
	(4) Egalitarian Communitarianism	−0.90***	−0.36***	−0.63***	−0.42***	−0.51***	−0.47***	−0.27**	−0.22
(2)	(1)	.49***	0.10	.51***	.33***	0.19	.31**	0.07	0.01
	(3)	0.10	−0.03	0.13	0.13	−0.06	0.10	−0.03	−0.17
	(4)	−0.40***	−0.26***	−0.12	−0.09	−0.33**	−0.17	−0.20	−0.21
(3)	(1)	.39***	0.13	.38***	.21	.25*	0.21	0.10	0.18
	(2)	−0.10	0.03	−0.13	−0.13	0.06	−0.10	0.03	0.17
	(4)	−0.50***	−0.24*	−0.25*	−0.22	−0.27**	−0.26**	−0.17	−0.04

Note: ***p < 0.001, **p < 0.01, *p < 0.05.

Table 3. Regression of perceived severity of environmental problems on cultural worldview, environmental condition, and demographics.

	Food Contamination	Household Wastes Pollution	Air Pollution	Water Pollution	Lack of Green Space	Industrial Wastes Pollution	Lack of Freshwater	Destruction of Forest
Intercept (γ00)	3.42***(.18)	3.60***(.13)	3.49**(.16)	3.37***(.13)	3.07***(.18)	3.01***(.16)	3.04***(.20)	2.67***(.18)
Egalitarianism-Hierarchy (grid) scale	−0.21***(.04)	−0.07(.04)	−0.08*(.04)	−0.06(.03)	−0.14***(.03)	−0.07*(.03)	−0.12**(.04)	−0.16***(.04)
Individualism-Communitarianism (group) scale	.19***(.05)	.07(.04)	.12***(.03)	.12**(.03)	.08*(.03)	.12***(.03)	.03(.03)	.09(.05)
Food contamination index	.09(.13)
Grid*Food contamination index	−0.01(.03)
Group*Food contamination index	.08*(.04)
Household waste disposal rate		−0.09(.09)
Grid*Household waste disposal rate		−0.00(.04)
Group*Household waste disposal rate		−0.04(.04)
PM10			.04(.16)
Grid*PM10			−0.04 (.03)
Group*PM10			.07(.03)
Discharged wastewater				.13 (.10)
Grid*Discharged wastewater				.08*(.08)
Group*Discharged wastewater				.03(.03)
Green coverage rate					−0.02(.83)
Grid*Green coverage rate					.01(.02)
Group*Green coverage rate					.01(.03)
Discharged industrial wastes						.01(.01)
Grid*Discharged industrial wastes						−0.01(.03)
Group*Discharged industrial wastes						.00(.03)
Water resources per capita							−0.07(.15)
Grid*Water resources per capita							.08***(.02)
Group*Water resources per capita							.01(.03)
Forest coverage rate								−0.09(.10)
Grid*Forest coverage rate								.06(.04)
Group*Forest coverage rate								.01(.05)
Age	.04(.03)	−0.02 (.03)	.03(.03)	.00(.03)	−0.01(.03)	−0.01(.03)	−0.03(.03)	−0.09*(.04)
Gender(female)	.10*(.04)	.01(.07)	.03(.05)	.10**(.05)	.07(.06)	−0.02(.06)	−0.06(.08)	.05(.06)
Education	.17***(.04)	.09*(.04)	.23***(.03)	.14***(.03)	.09*(.04)	.14***(.03)	.08(.04)	.08*(.04)
Household income	.01(.03)	.01(.03)	.03(.03)	.02(.03)	0.02(.03)	−0.02(.03)	−0.03(.03)	−0.03(.04)
Variance(0)	.39***	.14***	.54***	.26***	.34***	.39***	.56***	.28***

Note: ***p < 0.001, **p < 0.01, *p < 0.05, Roust standard errors are in parentheses.

Table

Demographics	Frequencies	Percentage (%)	China Population (%)	Chi-square	Residuals for Goodness of fit test
Gender
Male	2524	50.4	51.2	.60	−0.55
Female	2439	49.6	48.8		.56
Age
18-29	762	15.23	29.5	708.4*	−18.58
30-39	888	17.75	19.4		−2.65
40-49	1121	22.41	20.7		2.65
50-59	978	19.55	14.4		9.60
Above 60	1254	25.06	16.0		16.03
Education
Never attended school	574	11.5	5.00	1099.9*	20.48
Elementary school	1100	22.0	28.7		−8.85
Middle school	1465	29.3	41.7		−13.59
High school	996	19.9	15.0		8.97
Three-year college	441	8.8	5.5		10.01
Bachelor’s degree	387	7.7	3.7		14.85
Graduate school	38	.80	.40		4.03

Note: *p < 0.05.

Table

Concepts	Chinese		English
	Questions	Answers	Questions	Answers
Status of women	男人以事业为重, 女人以家庭为重	1. 完全不同意; 2. 比较不同意; 3. 无所谓同意不同意; 4. 比较同意; 5. 完全同意	Men put career first, women put family first.	1; Disagree strongly; 2. Disagree moderately; 3. Neither agree nor disagree; 4. Agree moderately; 5. Agree strongly
	男性能力天生比女性强		Men are naturally more capable than women.
	干得好不如嫁得好		Better to marry well than to do well.
	在经济不景气时, 应该先解雇女性员工		In a bad economy, women should be laid off first.
Traditional sexual morality	您认为婚前性行为对不对?	1: 总是不对的; 2. 大多数情况下是不对的; 3. 说不上对与不对; 4. 有时是对的; 5. 完全是对的	Do you think premarital sex is right^a?	1: Always right; 2: Sometimes right; 3: Neither right nor wrong; 4; Often wrong; 5: Always wrong
	您认为婚外性行为对不对?		Do you think extramarital sex is right^a?
	您认为同性间的性行为对不对?		Do you think homosexual behavior is right^a?
Role of government	如果有人在公共场所发布批评政府的言论, 政府不应该干涉°您同意吗?	1: 完全不同意; 2. 比较不同意; 3. 无所谓同意不同意; 4. 比较同意; 5. 完全同意	Government should not intervene if someone makes critical remarks in public^a.	1: Agree strongly 2. Agree moderately; 3. Neither agree nor disagree; 4. Disagree moderately; 5. Disagree strongly;
	生多少孩子是个人的事, 政府不应该干涉°您同意吗?		How many children to have is a personal issue, government should not intervene^a.
	在哪里工作和生活是个人的自由, 政府不应该干涉°您同意吗?		Where to work and live is a personal freedom, government should not intervene^a.
Fairness of income distribution	现在有的人挣的钱多, 有的人挣的少, 但这是公平的	1.同意; 0. 不同意	Some people earn more than others, but it’s fair^a.	1: Disagree; 0: Agree
	您认为目前我国社会成员之间的收入差距如何?	1.合理, 可以接受; 2. 不合理, 但可以接受; 3. 不合理, 不能接受	What do you think about the current income gap in our society?	1: It is fair and acceptable; 2: It is unfair but acceptable; 3: It is unfair and not acceptable
	您认为当前社会下列状况的严重程度如何:社会财富分配不公, 贫富悬殊过大	1.非常不严重; 2. 比较不严重; 3. 一般; 4. 比较严重; 5. 非常严重	How severe do you think of the following situation in the current society: Social wealth distribution is unfair, the gap between the rich and the poor is too large.	1: Not severe; 2. Not very severe 3. Neutral; 4. Severe; 5. Very severe
Independence	您和亲人、朋友之间的接触和联系的情况怎么样?	1.非常不密切; 2. 不密切; 3. 一般; 4. 密切; 5. 非常密切	How is your connection and relationship with your family and friends	1: Not close; 2. Not very close 3. Just ordinary; 4. Close; 5. Very close
	过去一年, 您是否经常在空闲时间从事以下活动:与不住在一起的亲戚聚会	1.每天; 2. 一周数次; 3. 一月数次; 4. 一年数次或更少; 5. 从不	How often do you have gathering with your relatives^a?	1. never; 2. several times per year or less; 3. several times per month; 4. several times per week; 5. every day
	过去一年, 您是否经常在空闲时间从事以下活动:与朋友聚会		How often do you have gathering with your friends^a?

^a The item is reverse coded in the study to be consistent with other items measuring the same concept.

Table

Items	Scales	Status of women	Moral traditionality of sex	Role of government	Fairness of income distribution	Independence
Men put career first, women put family first.	1; Disagree strongly; 2. Disagree moderately; 3. Neither agree nor disagree; 4. Agree moderately; 5. Agree strongly	.63
Men are naturally more capable than women.		.77
Better to marry well than to do well.		.52
In a bad economy, women should be laid off first.		.46
Do you think premarital sex is right?	1: Always right; 2: Sometimes right; 3: Neither right nor wrong; 4; Often wrong; 5: Always wrong		.66
Do you think extramarital sex is right?			.64
Do you think homosexual behavior is right?			.58
Government should not intervene if someone makes critical remarks in public.	1: Agree strongly 2. Agree moderately; 3. Neither agree nor disagree; 4. Disagree moderately; 5. Disagree strongly;			.60
How many children to have is a personal issue, government should not intervene.				.46
Where to work and live is a personal freedom, government should not intervene.				.40
Some people earn more and others earn less, but it’s fair.	1: Disagree; 0: Agree				.31
What do you think about the current income gap in our society?	1: It is fair and acceptable; 2: It is unfair but acceptable; 3: It is unfair and not acceptable				.72
How severe do you think of the following situation in the current society: Social wealth distribution is unfair, the gap between the rich and the poor is too large.	1: Not severe; 2. Not very severe; 3. Neutral; 4. Severe; 5. Very severe				.32
How is your connection and relationship with your family and friends	1: Not close; 2. Not very close; 3. Just ordinary; 4. Close; 5. Very close					.35
How often do you have gathering with your relatives?	1. never; 2. several times per year or less; 3. several times per month; 4. several times per week; 5. every day					.62
How often do you have gathering with your friends?						.75

Table

	Food Contamination			Household Wastes Pollution			Air Pollution			Water Pollution			Lack of Green Space			Industrial Wastes Pollution			Lack of Freshwater			Destruction of Forest
Intercept (γ00)	3.61***(.13)	3.61***(.13)	3.57***(.12)	3.62***(.08)	3.62***(.08)	3.64***(.14)	3.51***(.15)	3.51***(.15)	3.49***(.16)	3.47***(.11)	3.47***(.11)	3.47***(.14)	3.19***(.12)	3.19***(.12)	3.20***(.12)	3.01**(.13)	3.01**(.13)	3.01***(.13)	2.75***(.11)	2.75***(.11)	2.98***(.14)	2.77***(.10)	2.77***(.10)	2.77***(.11)
Egalitarianism-hierarchy (Grid)	−0.27***(.03)			−0.10*(.03)			−0.13***(.04)			−0.09*(.04)			-.17***(.03)			−0.12**(.05)			−0.18***(.03)			−0.17***(.04)
Individualism-Communitarianism (Group)		.21***(.05)			.09*(.04)			.15***(.03)			.12**(.04)			.10*(.04)			.13**(.05)			.10*(.05)			.07*(.06)
Food contamination index			−0.09(.14)
Household wastes disposal rate						−0.08(.09)
PM10									−0.09(.28)
Discharged wastewater												.14(.12)
Green coverage rate															−0.03(.10)
Discharged industrial wastes																		.01(.11)
Water resources per capita																					−0.07(.15)
Forest coverage rate																								−0.09(.10)
Variance(0)	.43***	.43***	.45***	.15***	.15***	.14***	.62***	.62***	.66***	.32***	.32***	.31***	.36***	.36***	.38***	.42***	.42***	.43***	.29***	.29***	.56***	.27***	.27***	.27***

Note: ***p < 0.001 **p < 0.01 *p < 0.05, Roust standard errors are in parentheses.

Table

	Food Contamination	Household Wastes Pollution	Air Pollution	Water Pollution	Lack of Green Space	Industrial Wastes Pollution	Lack of Freshwater	Destruction of Forest
Intercept (γ00)	3.34***(.15)	3.63***(.10)	3.42***(.15)	3.34***(.11)	3.09***(.15)	2.96***(.16)	3.06***(.17)	2.68***(.15)
Egalitarianism-Hierarchy (grid) scale	−0.18***(.03)	−0.09*(.03)	−0.08**(.03)	−0.05(.04)	−0.14***(.03)	−0.05(.04)	−0.11***(.03)	−0.13***(.04)
Individualism-Communitarianism (group) scale	.17***(.04)	.05(.04)	.11***(.02)	.10*(.04)	.07*(.03)	.08**(.03)	.03(.03)	.05(.05)
Food contamination index	−0.07(.08)
Grid*Food contamination index	−0.01(.02)
Group*Food contamination index	.08*(.04)
Household waste disposal rate		−0.02(.08)
Grid*Household waste disposal rate		.01(.03)
Group*Household waste disposal rate		−0.07(.04)
PM10			.06(.15)
Grid*PM10			−0.03 (.03)
Group*PM10			.06(.02)
Discharged wastewater				.16(.08)
Grid*Discharged wastewater				.07(.04)
Group*Discharged wastewater				.03(.03)
Green coverage rate					−0.02(.10)
Grid*Green coverage rate					−0.00(.02)
Group*Green coverage rate					.01(.03)
Discharged industrial wastes						.03(.12)
Grid*Discharged industrial wastes						−0.00(.03)
Group*Discharged industrial wastes						.02(.03)
Water resources per capita							−0.03(.13)
Grid*Water resources per capita							.08***(.01)
Group*Water resources per capita							.02(.02)
Forest coverage rate								−0.05(.09)
Grid*Forest coverage rate								.03(.03)
Group*Forest coverage rate								.03(.05)
Age	.04(.02)	−0.02 (.03)	.03(.04)	.00(.03)	−0.01(.03)	−0.10**(.03)	−0.03(.04)	−0.06(.04)
Gender(female)	.13*(.05)	.00(.05)	.03(.05)	.10**(.05)	.06(.05)	−0.00(.05)	−0.04(.05)	.05(.06)
Education	.22***(.03)	.12*(.04)	.23***(.04)	.14***(.03)	.11*(.05)	.12***(.03)	.06(.03)	.06(.04)
Household income	.01(.02)	.04(.03)	.03(.02)	.02(.03)	−0.01(.03)	.01(.03)	−0.03(.04)	−0.01(.04)
Variance (0)	.37***	.11***	.54***	.26***	.34***	.45***	.58***	.27***

Note: ***p < 0.001 **p < 0.01 *p < 0.05, Roust standard errors are in parentheses.

Table

	Food Contamination	Household Wastes Pollution	Air Pollution	Water Pollution	Lack of Green Space	Industrial Wastes Pollution	Lack of Freshwater	Destruction of Forest
Intercept (γ00)	3.38***(.17)	3.63***(.13)	3.46***(.17)	3.37***(.12)	3.11***(.19)	3.03***(.15)	3.10***(.19)	2.52***(.15)
Egalitarianism-Hierarchy (grid) scale	−0.22***(.04)	−0.07(.04)	−0.08*(.04)	−0.06(.04)	−0.14***(.03)	−0.05(.05)	−0.12***(.04)	−0.08*(.04)
Individualism-Communitarianism (group) scale	.20***(.05)	.07(.04)	.13***(.04)	.12*(.04)	.08*(.04)	.12*(.05)	.03(.04)	.07(.06)
Reversed grid*group	.02(.04)	−0.00(.03)	−0.02(.03)	−0.00(.03)	−0.01(.02)	.01(.02)	−0.01(.03)	−0.01(.04)
Food contamination index	−0.11(.09)
Grid*Food contamination index	−0.01(.03)
Group*Food contamination index	.09*(.04)
Reversed grid*group*Food contamination index	.05(.03)
Household waste disposal rate		−0.07(.09)
grid*Household waste disposal rate		−0.01(.04)
group*Household waste disposal rate		−0.04(.04)
Reversed grid*group*Household waste disposal rate		.01 (.03)
PM10			.05(.15)
Grid*PM10			−0.04(.03)
Group*PM10			.06(.04)
Reversed grid*group*PM10			.01(.02)
Discharged wastewater				.14(.09)
Grid*Discharged wastewater				.08(.04)
Group*Discharged wastewater				.03(.06)
Reversed grid*group*Discharged wastewater				−0.01(.02)
Green coverage rate					.00(.11)
Grid*Green coverage rate					.01(.02)
Group*Green coverage rate					.01(.03)
Reversed grid*group*Green coverage rate					−0.02(.02)
Discharged industrial wastes						.02(.11)
Grid*Discharged industrial wastes						−0.01(.04)
Group*Discharged industrial wastes						−0.00(.06)
Reversed grid*group*Discharged industrial wastes						−0.00(.03)
Water resources per capita							−0.03(.13)
Grid*Water resources per capita							.07**(.02)
Group*Water resources per capita							.02(.03)
Reversed grid*group*Water resources per capita							−0.05*(.02)
Forest coverage rate								−0.09(.11)
Grid*Forest coverage rate								.08(.04)
Group*Forest coverage rate								−0.03(.03)
Reversed grid*group*Forest coverage rate
Age	.04(.04)	−0.03(.03)	−0.01(.04)	.00(.03)	−0.03(.04)	−0.12*(.06)	−0.03(.05)	−0.13**(.05)
Gender(female)	.11(.05)	−0.01(.07)	.07(.04)	.10*(.05)	.05(.07)	−0.04(.04)	−0.07(.07)	−0.02(.06)
Education	.19***(.04)	.10(.05)	.14***(.04)	.14***(.04)	.08(.05)	.11*(.05)	.06(.05)	−0.04(.05)
Household income	.02(.03)	.03(.03)	.02(.02)	.02(.03)	−0.03(.04)	.03(.04)	−0.06(.05)	−0.00(.04)
Variance (0)	.40***	.14***	.57***	.29***	.38***	.41***	.58***	.32***

Note: ***p < 0.001 **p < 0.01 *p < 0.05, Roust standard errors are in parentheses.

Kahan, D. M. 2012. “Cultural Cognition as a Conception of the Cultural Theory of Risk.” In Handbook of Risk Theory, edited by S. Roeser, R. Hillerbrand, and P. Sandin, 725–759. New Haven, CT: Yale University.

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