Environmentalism Among Older Adults: Investigating Predictors of Pro-Environmental Behavior in Later Life

<p>Human actions are largely responsible for degradation of the natural environment, and environmental threats due to climate change are increasingly prevalent. Despite the immediate need to conserve the natural environment, the role of older adults in pro-environmental initiatives has largely been ignored. I conducted two studies to understand pathways for promoting pro-environmental behavior among older adults, with the goal of shedding light on older adults’ engagement in environmental action. In the first study, I investigated the indirect effect of age on pro-environmental behavior, through personal values and environmental concern, among a general sample (N=292). I considered the role of flow (i.e., experiences of total absorption in the activity at hand) and control beliefs as potential sources of individual differences. Findings regarding a linear association between age and pro-environmental behavior were mixed. However, a tendency to experience flow in daily life was associated with pro-environmental behavior directly and indirectly, through endorsement of self-transcendence values and environmental concern for the biosphere. Although environmental concern for egoistic reasons was also positively associated with pro-environmental behavior, age was indirectly, negatively associated with egoistic environmental concern. The indirect association between age and egoistic environmental concern was partially explained by lower endorsement of self-enhancement values with increasing age. In the second study, I built upon a larger Experience Sampling Method (ESM) project conducted among a sample of older adults (N=165) actively involved in formal prosocial commitments. Specifically, I assessed whether flow, by virtue of intrinsic experiential rewards, facilitates sustained engagement in pro-environmental activity among older adults. Whereas higher intensity of flow was associated with a greater likelihood of continued involvement in formal prosocial activity from one momentary time point to the next, this relationship was weaker among those whose formal prosocial activity focused on environmental issues. Through this dissertation, I intend to highlight older adults’ potential to engage in environmental action to reframe the role of older adults in contemporary environmentalism. Together, findings from the two studies provide support for some previous research and suggest pathways, including the important role of flow experiences, to facilitate pro-environmental behavior in later life.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Psychology, PhD

Level thesis:degree_level

Open Access Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

School of Social Science, Politics, and Evaluation

Year dc:date.available

2024

Author dc:creator

• Mann, Ajit Singh

Contributors dc:contributor

• Jeanne Nakamura
• P. Wesley Schultz
• Kendall Cotton Bronk

• aging
• flow
• older adults
• pro-environmental behavior
• volunteering
• Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_etd/829

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarship.claremont.edu:cgu_etd-1852