Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
12-2024
Abstract
Previous research suggests that descriptive norms positively influence proenvironmental behavior, including littering prevention. However, in some behavioral contexts, a weak descriptive norm may increase individuals’ feelings of responsibility by signaling a need for action. We examined this effect in the context of litter prevention by conducting structural equation modeling of survey data from 1400 Singapore residents. The results showed that descriptive norms negatively predicted ascription of responsibility and were negatively related to littering prevention behavior via ascription of responsibility and personal norms. It also showed that strong injunctive norms can reduce the inhibitory effect of descriptive norms on ascription of responsibility. These findings were consistent with several hypotheses constituting the model of norm-regulated responsibility, a novel explanatory framework offering new insights and a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of social norms’ influence on proenvironmental behavior.
Discipline
Environmental Sciences
Research Areas
Integrative Research Areas
Publication
Scientific Reports
Volume
14
Issue
1
First Page
1
Last Page
12
ISSN
2045-2322
Identifier
10.1038/s41598-024-60047-0
Publisher
Nature Research
Citation
AI, Pengya and ROSENTHAL, Sonny.
The model of norm-regulated responsibility for proenvironmental behavior in the context of littering prevention. (2024). Scientific Reports. 14, (1), 1-12.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cis_research/192
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-60047-0