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Behaviorism: Human Behavior Negatively and Positively Affects the Environment
Environmental cues, sustainability and social norms are all highly influential aspects of human life in society. While environmental cues and social norms can work against sustainability, they can also support sustainability and the quality of human life for this generation and for future generations. There are abundant examples of the use of environmental cues and social norms to support sustainability by creating and strengthening pro-environmental beliefs and behaviors. These uses do not at least initially need to be on a grand scale; rather individuals can do their parts to support sustainability and lessen negative impacts on the environment.
Body
How environmental cues shape behavior and provide at least one example.
Environmental cues are formally defined as "elements in the environment that convey important information or trigger an affective reaction" (Steg, van den Berg, & de Groot, 2012, p. 127). They are components of an individual's and group's surroundings that transmit influential clues or cause emotional responses or both. These cues often bypass thought processes (Steg, van den Berg, & de Groot, 2012, p. 200) but can be so strong that they inform people of what is happening in their environment, give...
324). One classic example of an environmental cue is the phenomenon of litter: if an individual sees quite a bit of litter in his/her environment, he/she is likelier to litter; if he/she sees no litter in the environment, he/she is less likely to litter; if he/she is used to seeing no litter and sees a piece of litter in the environment, he/she is more likely to stop, pick it up and dispose of it. In these ways, environmental cues are telling the person what's going on in the environment (littered, not littered or a little littered) and how he/she should behave (litter, do not litter, pick up that bit of litter) (Steg, van den Berg, & de Groot, 2012, p. 159). A classic example of solving a behavioral problem through an environmental cue is the noisy class that the teacher advises to be quiet through switching the classroom lights off and on. Here, the class learns that the rapid on/off of the classroom lights is a sign to quiet down (Steg, van den Berg, & de Groot, 2012, p. 229). These are well-known examples of the numerous environmental cues that tell people what is happening, how to behave and how to change their problematic behavior.
b. How behavior can be modified…
Classic examples of modified behaviors that support sustainability and reduce negative impacts on the environment are: greater reliance on fuels such as wind-generated power rather than fossil fuels; and recycling. In the past, our reliance on limited fossil fuels has damaged the environment through recovery of those fuels by methods that damage the earth, has polluted the environment through burning those fuels and has endangered the quality of life for ourselves and for future generations by reliance on highly polluting fuels that will eventually run out. Reliance on alternate fuels sources, such as wind-power generators, lessens physical damage to the environment because we are not using old methods to obtain fossil fuels, lessens pollution because we are burning less fossil fuel, and improves the quality of life for ourselves and future generations through environmentally friendly, renewable energy sources (Steg, van den Berg, & de Groot, 2012, p. 224). Recycling of cans, bottles, plastic, paper and other materials lessens wastes in the environment and helps generate definite beliefs about its value that make the tendency to recycle even stronger (McCarty & Shrum, Spring 2001, p. 96). Our modified behaviors regarding the extraction and use of fossil fuels and greater tendency toward recycling are merely two examples of modifications that support sustainability and lessen negative impacts on the environment.
c. How social norms influence behavior and beliefs about the environment.
"Social norms" are informal rules accepted by all of a society or a segment of that society. These informal rules tell individuals how to behave by informing them of which behaviors are proper or improper. (Steg, van den
Environmental Cues Shape Behavior Most people spend their daily lives completing tasks, which involve waiting or queuing on a line. With this situation of waiting like at ATMs, others avoid, postpone, or even abandon their endeavors. Other people endure the wait even though they feel frustrated or dissatisfied by the experience (Horowitz, 2007). It is evident that irrelevant environmental cues like queue barriers used in airports, banks of ATMs serve as
Environmental Cues Shape Behavior and Implications for the Environment Summer 2013 Humans are responsive creatures, and a wide array of environmental cues serves to shape human behavior. In some cases, the responses to environmental cues are strictly in the self-interests of the consumer, but in other cases, these responses can be modified to promote improved outcomes. Because people may not be able to gauge the impact of their individual behaviors on
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However, when it comes to health-related issues, I do not believe that subjective personal impressions and feelings can influence one's ethical decision-making. The evidence is clear that smoking is harmful to the smoker, and also to the person who inhales second-hand smoke. Additionally, we were in my parents' home. I know that they have hard and fast rules about smoking on their property. My friend took a different point-of-view: he acquiesced