News
New Publication: Uncovering the relevance of reasons for behavior: The attitude-behavior gap revisited
Available free of charge at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2025.102762
Kaiser, F. G. & Brüggemann, M. (2025). Uncovering the relevance of reasons for behavior: The attitude-behavior gap revisited. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 107, 102762.
Abstract:
To use a particular reason to explain behavior, the reason (e.g., to protect the environment) must be present when people engage in the action (e.g., riding a bike) and absent when people do not (e.g., not riding a bike). This thinking resonates in the statistical benchmark that behavioral scientists typically apply when assessing a reason's behavioral relevance. In contrast to what the notorious attitude-behavior gap insinuates, explaining small amounts of variance in a behavior does not inevitably challenge the behavioral relevance of reasons. The problem arises because different people have different reasons for engaging in a behavior and even for not engaging in it. By reanalyzing two previously collected data sets, we corroborate the environmental-protection reason's sensitivity for actions and specificity for inactions. Additionally, we confirm that both effects become even more convincing when person-specific rather than behavior-specific benchmarks for the presence and absence of a reason are employed.
Highlights:
- Many reasons can account for any specific decision to act or not to act.
- Alternative reasons usually weaken the behavioral relevance of any specific reason.
- A reason's behavioral relevance is not necessarily shown by its explained variance.
- Action must correspond with the presence of a reason and inaction with its absence.
- Environmental protection is a vital reason for specific action-inaction decisions.
New Publication: Explaining behavior with mental attributes: An exposition with environmental attitude
Available free of charge at: https://doi.org/10.1027/1016-9040/a000558
Kaiser, F. G. & Wilson, M. (2025). Explaining behavior with mental attributes: An exposition with environmental attitude. European Psychologist.
Abstract:
New Publication: The role of attitude toward nature in learning about environmental issues
Available free of charge at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1471026
Baierl, T.-M., Kaiser, F. G. & Bogner, F. X. (2024). The role of attitude toward nature in learning about environmental issues. Frontiers in Psychology: Environmental Psychology, 15, 1471026
Abstract:
New Publication: Wealth as an obstacle and a support for environmental protection
Available free of charge at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102449
Kaiser, F. G. & Urban, J. (2024). Wealth as an obstacle and a support for environmental protection. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 100, 102449.
Abstract:
Highlights:
-Wealth effects are not perplexing when wealth's behavioral relevance is understood.
-When engaging in behavior, individuals typically have to incur costs.
-A population's behavior indicates how supportive the conditions are for action.
-For populations, a surplus in money helps furnish behavior-supportive conditions.
-Wealth helps populations protect the environment, but helps and hinders individuals.
New Publication: Exploring intergenerational differences in consumer acceptance of insects-fed farmed fish
Available free of charge at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2024.105165
Trentinaglia, M.T., Adler, M. , Peri, M., Panzone, L., & Baldi, L. (2024). Exploring intergenerational differences in consumer acceptance of insects-fed farmed fish. Food Quality and Preference, 117, 105165.
Abstract:
This study delves into the multi-faceted process of consumer acceptance of innovative food products, such as insect-fed farmed fish. This is a food product that introduces new, though potentially conflicting, intangible attributes aligning with circularity and sustainability but also evoking negative emotions, such as disgust or neophobia. Drawing from two distinct studies on young and older Italian consumers, we employ an intergenerational lens to explore individual psychometric characteristics, socio-demographic variables, and nudging effects in shaping the acceptance process. We apply the Campbell Paradigm, integrating three acceptance items into well-established scales measuring attitudes towards the environment and nature.
Our results reveal that environmental protection inclination, rather than a connectedness to nature, primarily drives acceptance. Notably, young consumers exhibit a more facile acceptance process, indicating lower behavioral costs at each stage. Sociodemographic variables, particularly gender, exert varied influences on acceptance stages, with older women displaying greater hesitancy in adopting new dietary practices. Additionally, exploring the impact of nudges, we find that information significantly influences acceptance, while visual priming does not. Interestingly, the effectiveness of information varies between generations, indicating different reactions and responses.
The findings propose strategies for policymakers and marketers to highlight the positive attributes of insects-fed farmed fish, emphasizing sustainability and addressing consumer disgust concerns. Introducing insects as feed in various farming practices may enhance familiarity with this alternative protein source, potentially reducing disgust and fostering widespread acceptance.
Highlights:
-Exploring Intergenerational Variances in Acceptance of Novel Foods.
-Socio-Demographic Nuances: Unpacking Influences on Insects-Fed Farmed Fish Acceptance.
-Psychological Drivers: A Rasch Model Analysis of Environmental Attitudes in Novel Food Adoption.