Predictors of pro-environmental behavior: Moderating role of knowledge sharing and mediatory role of perceived environmental responsibility

Abstract

The climate crisis is accelerating at an unprecedented rate which can be overcome by depicting pro-environmental behaviors in personal, household, and industrial consumption areas. Grounded on the social ideal theory, the current study aims to examine the direct as well as the indirect impact of Environmental Knowledge (EK) and Environmental Concern (EC) on citizens’ Pro-Environmental Behavior (PEB) while studying Perceived Environmental Responsibility (PER) as a mediator. Moreover, the moderating role of Knowledge Sharing (KS) has also been investigated between EK and PEB. Surveying 581 citizens of twin cities, i.e. Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Pakistan, at two different times. Results depicted that citizens’ EK and EC positively and significantly impact their PEB directly as well as through an underlying mechanism of PER. Moreover, the interactive effect of KS with EK has been found to enhance citizens’ PEB. Overall, this research brings multiple theoretical and policy implications with future research directions.

Keywords:

• pro-environmental behavior
• environmental knowledge
• knowledge sharing
• perceived environmental responsibility
• social ideal theory

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

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