This course aims to introduce the students to the strategies,methods and tools of psychology that are concerned with pro-environmental behavior. Special attentionis given to the psychological theories and models that help to identify the factors that predispose ,facilitate and/or maintain behaviors that are related to sustainable development, and to the effectiveness of interventions that aim to change these behaviors.The topicsthat are developed in the course include: behaviors related to sustainable development (e.g., recycling ,reduction of energy consumption, water saving, using environmentally friendly means of transportation); psychological determinants oft he pro-environmental behavior; interventions that improve the pro-environmental behavior; and diffusion of good pro-environmental practices
The student will learn to analyze the psychological and behavioral factors that are related to sustainable development with reference to theories, research evidence, methods and relevant tools of psychology (B1). On the basis of thisanalysis,(s) he will be able to consider the role of human behavior in sustainable development, and identify the main psychological factors that predispose, facilitate, and maintain the behaviors of interest, based upon theories and evidence from psychological research (B2). Moreover,(s) he will be able to identify effective interventions to change these factors in order to contribute to sustainable development, by taking into account his analysis and contextual challenges(B2), and to distinguish approaches and interventions based on scientific evidence from those using common sense(E2). The student will also be able to communicate the result of his observations, his analysis and the conclusions regarding the effectiveness of suggested interventions in a clear, precise and structured way (C1-C2).
The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.
Theobjective of the courseis to consider the contributionsofpsychologyto understanding and altering human activitiesthat affecttheenvironment.More specifically, itwill consider thetheories,modelsandmethodsderiving from fundamental psychologywhichcontributeto(1)identifying and prioritizing thebehaviorsthat must be modifiedto improvethe quality of the environment,(2)identifyingthefactorswhichcauseorinfluencethesebehaviors,(3)developingandapplyingevidence-based and/or theory-informed interventionsto modifytherelevantbehaviorsandtheirdeterminants,and(4)evaluatingtheeffectsoftheseinterventions.
