Pro-Environmental Behavior (PEB) - How Can Gender and Living Location Affect PEB?

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya

East Kalimantan’s natural system is being degraded, largely driven by anthropogenic exploitation, making pro-environmental behavior (PEB) essential for future guardians and decision-makers. This study assessed 410 junior high school students and examined PEB by gender and residence (rural vs urban). Using an adapted Two Major Environmental Values model with an added Appreciation scale, results from independent t-tests showed males scored higher PEB than females, while rural students were more pro-environmental than urban peers. Most students preferred Utilization, especially in urban settings, supporting targeted behavioral interventions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages8

Reading Time20 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Methods and Measurement of PEB

Two Major Environmental Values model and Appreciation scale

Results by Gender and Residence

Male vs female PEB

Rural vs urban PEB

Aspect-level preferences

Pro-Environmental Behavior (PEB): How Can Gender and Living Location Affect PEB? Lambang Subagiyo1, Atin Nuryadin1*, Nurul Fitriyah Sulaeman 1, Syayidah Dinnurohmah2 1Physics Education Study Program, Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Mulawarman University, Samarinda, Indonesia. 2Bunga Bangsa Islamic High School, Samarinda, Indonesia. *Corresponding author: [atinnuryadin@hotmail.com](atinnuryadin@hotmail.com) ABSTRACT The natural system in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, is undergoing degradation, which mainly originated from the anthropogenic exploitation of nature. To reduce the harmful effects of the environmental damages, East Kalimantan students must, therefore, be examined on pro-environmental behavior (PEB) as they will be the future guardians, planners, and policymakers. This study investigated the PEB of 410 junior high school students in East Kalimantan and discussed it based on their gender and location categories (rural and urban) . The investigation of PEB was conducted using an adapted version of the Two Major Environmental Values model, which includes an additional scale for measuring Appreciation. The PEB questionnaire data was analyzed quantitatively using an independent t-test to compare the means across location categories and gender. Our findings revealed that the PEB of male students (2.44) is higher than female students (2.36) . Most female students favored the Utilization of nature more than male students, resulting in lower PEB. Students in rural schools were likely to behave more pro-environmentally than those in urban schools. According to the analysis of each PEB aspect, most students had Utilization preferences toward nature, especially students studying in Urban schools. These results may be valuable in designing behavioral interventions to encourage PEB, especially in East Kalimantan Keywords East Kalimantan, Gender, Junior high school, Pro-environmental behavior, Rural-urban 1. INTRODUCTION Transhumanism, as the impact of revolutionary industry, initiates global environmental practitioners to develop Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) . Additionally, economic growth as the further impact of the revolutionary industry has a long-relationship with energy consumption (Nordin & Sek, 2020) . Further to the SDGs implementation in society, psychologists introduced the term pro-environmental behavior (PEB) as positive behavior toward the environment. PEB simply means the volitional behavior to minimize the negative impact on the environment (Kollmuss & Agyeman, 2002) . Human behavior is primarily responsible for many environmental problems that threaten environmental sustainability. In order to prevent environmental degradation, factors influencing PEB need to be identified for designing products, educational programs, and policies that meet the needs of society's environmental demands (Li et al., 2019) . However, within the years of exploration of PEB, the factors and barriers of PEB itself are extremely complex. The complexity of pro-environmental behavior (PEB) stems from the interplay of individual, social, and contextual influences. Psychological, cultural, and socioeconomic factors significantly impact PEB and can vary across populations and settings (Kollmuss & Agyeman, 2002) . Researchers are still seeking to gain a deeper understanding of PEB and its influencing factors. In social science, sociodemographic factors related to proenvironmental behavior become one of the focus of sociologists' and psychologists' research, including gender (Sulaeman et al., 2023) and residence location (Liu et al., 2018; Nuryadin, et al., 2023; Rahmawati, Nuryadin and Syam, 2023) . Many researchers found that gender and residence affect people's PEB, where females and people living in rural areas were found to have higher levels of environmentalism than men and people living in the city, respectively (Berenguer et al., 2005; Evans et al., 2018; Johnson et al., 2004; Xiao & Hong, 2010) . Rec

FAQs

Why is pro-environmental behavior (PEB) important in East Kalimantan?

East Kalimantan’s ecosystems are degrading due to human exploitation. Examining students’ PEB helps support future guardians, planners, and policymakers in reducing environmental damage.

How was PEB measured in the study?

PEB was measured using an adapted version of the Two Major Environmental Values model, including Preservation and Utilization, with an additional scale for Appreciation. Responses from 410 junior high school students were analyzed quantitatively.

What differences in PEB were found between gender groups and between rural and urban students?

Male students showed higher PEB than female students, and rural school students were more likely to behave pro-environmentally than urban students. Aspect-level analysis indicated many students favored Utilization, particularly urban students.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya