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This study examines the relationship between connectedness to nature, spirituality, wellbeing and sustainable behaviour in two different cultural contexts: the cities of Nantes, France, and Hermosi...

Despite the notion that characterizes criminals as lacking virtues or character strengths, evidence shows that people who engage in antisocial and delinquent behavior are not dissimilar in ...

Given the environmental problems humanity is currently facing, and considering that the future of the planet lies in the hands of children and their actions, research on the determinants of sustainable behaviors in children has become more relevant; nonetheless, studies on this topic focusing on children are scarce. Previous research on adults suggests, in an isolated manner, the relationship between connectedness to nature, the development of behaviors in favor of the environment, and positive results derived from them, such as happiness and well-being. In the present research, connectedness to nature was considered as a determinant of sustainable behaviors, and happiness was considered as a positive consequence of the latter. This research aimed to demonstrate the relationship between these variables in children. Two hundred and ninety-six children with an average age of 10.42 years old participated in the study, in which they responded to a research instrument that measured connectedness to nature, sustainable behaviors (pro-ecological behavior, frugality, altruism, and equity), and happiness. To analyze the relationships between these variables, a model of structural equations was specified and tested. The results revealed a significant relationship between connectedness to nature and sustainable behaviors, which, in turn, impact happiness. This suggests that children who perceive themselves as more connected to nature tend to perform more sustainable behaviors; also, the more pro-ecological, frugal, altruistic, and equitable the children are, the greater their perceived happiness will be. The implications for studying and promoting sustainable behaviors are discussed within the framework of positive psychology.

The personalization of space is constructed through the items that the resident distributes around the space they inhabit, and they can be considered part of the resident’s self. Three studies were conducted with the goal of establishing the categories into which the objects contained in bedrooms can be organized and to evaluate to what extent these categories are related to the extended self and attachment. In the first study, with 77 students, we obtained a list of the most representative objects in their bedrooms. In the next study, a group of 56 students classified these objects freely using their own criteria; a subsequent cluster analysis showed four categories: Functional, Personal Grooming, Symbolic and Free Time. In the last study, 144 students evaluated the relationship between the categories of the objects and the extended self and attachment. The results showed that the residents’ representative objects were part of their extended self more than the level of attachment attributed to th...

Decreasing greenhouse gas emissions (climate change mitigation) is one of the most important types of pro-environmental behavior. Greenhouse gases have been repeatedly cited as a leading cause of climate change (CC). However, before engaging in CC mitigation behaviors, individuals must accept the reality of CC. Few studies addressing the influence of individual time perspective on climate change mitigation have been found. No study investigating the relationship between time perspectives and acceptance of the reality of CC exists. This study was aimed at filling that research gap. The study examines the impact of consideration of immediate and distant consequences of behavior on individual acceptance of the reality of CC and commitment to engage in CC mitigation behaviors. Two-hundred-and-forty-five undergraduate students responded to an instrument investigating those variables. A structural-equation model revealed that consideration of distant consequences affects acceptance of CC, but considering immediate consequences do not influence that acceptance. Accepting that CC is real affects the commitment to act pro-environmentally, which in turn influences CC mitigation commitment. Consideration of distant consequences also positively affects willingness to engage in CC mitigation; yet, consideration of immediate consequences produced no effect on that commitment.

School environment refers to the set of relationships that occur among members of a school community that are determined by structural, personal, and functional factors of the educational institution, which provide distinctiveness to schools. The school environment is an important factor when evaluating student well-being. Previous findings have shown that variables such as physical, academic, and social dimensions influence school environments. This research seeks to explain the relationship between school environment and the well-being of primary education students. To carry out this research, a total of 405 students from four public elementary schools in northwestern Mexico were selected to participate. The instrument used to measure the variables and the relationship of school environment and well-being is based on the three dimensions of school environment proposed by Kutsyuruba et al. (2015): Physical, social, and academic. Statistical analyses were carried out to determine the reliability and validity of the measurement scales using SPSS V20 and EQS software. Confirmatory factor analysis models were tested to determine the construct validity of each scale; then, an analysis via structural equation modeling was made to form an explanatory model obtaining acceptable practical and statistical indicators. Among the relationships in this study, our research identified the variable of school environments as an outcome determined by physical, academic, and social factors. School environment and student well-being variables were also found to be correlated.

Affinity towards diversity (ATD) is the tendency to appreciate the dynamic variety of biophysical and socio-cultural scenarios. ATD may reveal a human predisposition to conserve the diversity necessary to guarantee the preservation of human and natural ecosystems. This study expands upon previous studies which employed only self-report measures by introducing a version of the Implicit Association Test (IAT) and by using a mediational model to test whether ATD through sustainable (pro-environmental and pro-social) behaviors leads to greater wellbeing. We recruited 119 Mexican students to complete a computerized IAT task and respond to ATD, wellbeing, and sustainable behavior self-report questionnaires. Reliability analyses of the scales utilized showed acceptable indexes. A mediational model was tested to examine whether sustainable behaviors mediate the relationship between ATD and wellbeing. Results demonstrated that affinity towards diversity indirectly predicted wellbeing via the mediating effects of pro-environmental behaviors and altruism. Despite finding an association between self-reported affinity towards biodiversity and IAT reaction times, an association was not found with D scores, highlighting the need for further research. These findings suggest that those with increased inclination towards diversity are more prone to engage in environmentally (both physical and social) protective behaviors and to experience psychological wellbeing.

Environmental psychology is a particular area or subfield of psychology, especially involved in the delimitation of the causes and solutions of environmental problems. This area deals with the study of the interactions between human behavior and the socio-physical components of the environment. The emphasis on the interrelationship of environment and behavior is important, not only physical settings affect people&rsquo, s behavior, individuals actively influence the environment. Thus, several studies have proposed the existence of a series of predispositions which allow the appreciation of diversity and the interdependence of person&ndash, environment relationships, making it possible to adopt lifestyles that can guarantee the sustainability of socio-ecological systems for present and future generations. Therefore, in order to work towards the goals of sustainability, it is necessary to know which are the inclinations or dispositions that people present when caring for the environment. The objective of this research was to identify the association between the variables of psychosocial predispositions towards sustainability with environmental identity in a sample of higher education students from southern Sonora. Nine different scales to measure these predispositions were applied to 417 students, considering emotions towards the environment, environmental and socio-environmental actions, as well as a scale to measure environmental identity. Results revealed, on the one hand, that first-order factors emerged consistently, indicating the presence of a higher-order factor (psychosocial predispositions towards sustainability). On the other hand, we found this construct is related in a bidirectional way with environmental identity, that is, that both the emotions and actions carried out by the students in favor of the environment are related to the degree of identification they have with it, and vice versa, thereby demonstrating an interdependence relationship between these two variables. These findings suggest that the presence of certain psychological characteristics in people would promote a closer relationship with nature, which could encourage participation in caring for the environment.