Environmental Awareness and Air Quality: The Mediating Role of Environmental Protective Behaviors

Abstract

The purpose of this study is twofold: First, it tests the role of students’ environmental awareness and climate change awareness in their environmental protective behavior and environment quality (EQ). Second, it tests the mediating role of environmental protective behaviors in the association between environment behavior, climate change behavior, and environment quality. Moreover, this study utilizes climate-friendly behaviors and pro-environmental behaviors to reflect environmental protective behaviors. The stratified random sampling technique was applied to collect data through a questionnaire from a sample of 403 graduate students enrolled in Higher Education Commission-recognized private and public universities of Pakistan. This study applied partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to empirically estimate the results. This study found that climate change awareness significantly and positively affects climate-friendly behavior, environmental quality, and pro-environmental behavior. Similarly, environmental awareness significantly and positively affects environmental quality and pro-environmental behavior. Moreover, pro-environmental behavior significantly affects environmental quality. Indirect results indicate that pro-environmental behavior significantly mediates between climate change awareness and environmental quality, and between environmental awareness and environmental quality. The findings of this study suggest the importance of enhancing awareness of climate- and climate change-related issues among students to save the environment. Higher education institutions should design subjects and courses that will raise environmental and climate change awareness, and expose students to climate- and environment-friendly education.

The Relationship between Environmental Awareness, Habitat Quality, and Community Residents’ Pro-Environmental Behavior—Mediated Effects Model Analysis Based on Social Capital

“…Similarly, environmental awareness has a very important role in influencing the pro-environmental behavior of community residents. Individuals with higher levels of environmental concern are more inclined toward pro-environmental behavior [ 20 , 21 ]. That is to say, if residents have a higher level of environmental concern, their willingness to engage in pro-environmental behavior will be stronger [ 22 ].…”

“…First, the quality of environmental hygiene can have an impact on residents’ pro-environmental behavior. Specifically, in the process of living, residents will regard the environmental health condition of the community as an external environmental signal, and based on the interpretation of this signal, they will formulate community behavior rules, i.e., whether or not the behavior is acceptable, and make their self-behavior choices accordingly [ 21 ]. Likewise, the convenience, comfort, and safety of the infrastructure can influence the willingness and motivation of residents to participate in environmental actions.…”

The impact of environmental taxes on economic benefits and technology innovation input of heavily polluting industries in China

“…Moreover, Atif et al (2022) suggested that technology innovation input can play a moderating role in reducing the negative environmental consequences associated with the consumption of natural resources by analyzing subsamples from developing countries (Zhu et al, 2020b). Kousar et al (2022) used square structural equation modeling to show the mediating role of environmental protection behavior in society, as well as the significant and positive effects of environmental awareness on environmental quality and pro-environmental behavior. Ma et al (2022) also proposed that technological innovation can reduce CO 2 emissions.…”

The Willingness and Technology Preferences of Farmers and Their Influencing Factors for Soil Remediation

“…Owing to rapid industrialization, urbanization, population growth, and a lack of environmental awareness, environmental degradation and pollution problems have emerged [1,2] among which soil heavy metal pollution has become a global environmental dilemma [3,4]. It has been reported that approximately 20% of soil in the world is contaminated, with over 10 million contaminated sites covering more than 20 million hectares of land, more than 50% of which are contaminated with harmful heavy metals [5].…”