Thinking globally and acting locally? Geographical dimension of environmental concern as predictors of pro-environmental behaviors

Using the structural equation modeling, the present study anlayzed the results of a survey of environmental attitudes conducted in Seoul, Korea to examine the extent to which perceptions of environmental issues at different geographical levels (local and global) influence pro-environmental behavior in everyday life. Concern about global environmental issues influenced pro-environmental behavior both directly and indirectly. As the theory of planned behavior suggests, behavioral intention to protect the environment mediated the relationship. In line with the endowment effect theory, people were more likely to engage in pro-environmental behavior when they were more content with the quality of environment in the neighborhood. However, the influence of the perception of local environmental conditions on pro-environmental behavior was mainly indirect via emotional attachment to a local community. Overall, ordinary people's perception of global environmental issues was a stronger predictor of individual pro-environmental behavior than was their perception of local environmental conditions, suggesting that "Think globally, act locally" is not merely a slogan for environmentalism, but also a description of what people are actually doing in everyday life. Theses findings therefore suggest that highlighting global environmental problems rather than focusing on local environmental problems would indeed be an effective communicative strategy to promote proenvironmental behavior in everyday life.