IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i7p3021-d1623018.html

Readiness to Change and Pro-Environmental Transportation Behaviors: A Multidimensional and Gender-Sensitive Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Mirko Duradoni

    (Department of Education, Literatures, Intercultural Studies, Languages and Psychology, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

  • Marina Baroni

    (Department of Education, Literatures, Intercultural Studies, Languages and Psychology, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

  • Giulia Valdrighi

    (Department of Education, Literatures, Intercultural Studies, Languages and Psychology, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

  • Andrea Guazzini

    (Department of Education, Literatures, Intercultural Studies, Languages and Psychology, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy
    Centre for the Study of Complex Dynamics, University of Florence, 50135 Florence, Italy)

Abstract

The escalating climate crisis necessitates urgent and widespread behavioral change, particularly in transportation choices, given their significant contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. This study examines the relationship between dimensions of readiness to change (RTC) and pro-environmental transportation behaviors (PEB-T), exploring both linear and non-linear patterns of association. Data were collected from 807 participants via an online survey, and analyses included linear discriminant analysis (LDA) and network analysis (NA) to account for non-linear relationships and gender-specific variations. Results indicate that perceived importance of the problem consistently emerged as a critical predictor of PEB-T across all analyses and gender groups. However, other dimensions, such as motivation, effectiveness of the proposed solution, action, and perceived readiness, exhibited gender-sensitive effects. These findings advance the understanding of RTC as a determinant of PEB-T, highlighting both universal and gender-specific predictors. The study supports the hypothesis of non-linear relationships between antecedents and behaviors, emphasizing the need for tailored interventions.

Suggested Citation

  • Mirko Duradoni & Marina Baroni & Giulia Valdrighi & Andrea Guazzini, 2025. "Readiness to Change and Pro-Environmental Transportation Behaviors: A Multidimensional and Gender-Sensitive Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-24, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:7:p:3021-:d:1623018
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/7/3021/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/7/3021/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Thøgersen, John & Noblet, Caroline, 2012. "Does green consumerism increase the acceptance of wind power?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 854-862.
    2. Wei-Ta Fang & Yi-Te Chiang & Eric Ng & Jen-Chieh Lo, 2019. "Using the Norm Activation Model to Predict the Pro-Environmental Behaviors of Public Servants at the Central and Local Governments in Taiwan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-20, July.
    3. Mirko Duradoni & Giulia Valdrighi & Alessia Donati & Maria Fiorenza & Luisa Puddu & Andrea Guazzini, 2024. "Development and Validation of the Readiness to Change Scale (RtC) for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(11), pages 1-27, May.
    4. Yong Li & Bairong Wang & Orachorn Saechang, 2022. "Is Female a More Pro-Environmental Gender? Evidence from China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(13), pages 1-11, June.
    5. Jingjing Zeng & Meiquan Jiang & Meng Yuan, 2020. "Environmental Risk Perception, Risk Culture, and Pro-Environmental Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(5), pages 1-18, March.
    6. Jenny Doorn & Peter Verhoef & Tammo Bijmolt, 2007. "The importance of non-linear relationships between attitude and behaviour in policy research," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 75-90, June.
    7. Anne M. van Valkengoed & Linda Steg, 2019. "Meta-analyses of factors motivating climate change adaptation behaviour," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 9(2), pages 158-163, February.
    8. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/61ih2qtadc8g1894enmudd2f09 is not listed on IDEAS
    9. Qinyuan Wan & Wencui Du, 2022. "Social Capital, Environmental Knowledge, and Pro-Environmental Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-17, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Marina Baroni & Giulia Valdrighi & Andrea Guazzini & Mirko Duradoni, 2025. "Eco-Sensitive Minds: Clustering Readiness to Change and Environmental Sensitivity for Sustainable Engagement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-29, June.
    2. Andrea Guazzini & Marina Baroni & Maria Fiorenza & Sofia Sprugnoli & Giulia Valdrighi & Mirko Duradoni, 2025. "Development and Validation of the New Environmental Locus of Control (NE-LOC) Scale: A Novel Measure of Internal, External, and Community Locus of Control for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-23, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mirko Duradoni & Marina Baroni & Maria Fiorenza & Martina Bellotti & Gabriele Neri & Andrea Guazzini, 2025. "Readiness to Change and the Intention to Consume Novel Foods: Evidence from Linear Discriminant Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-19, May.
    2. Marina Baroni & Giulia Valdrighi & Andrea Guazzini & Mirko Duradoni, 2025. "Eco-Sensitive Minds: Clustering Readiness to Change and Environmental Sensitivity for Sustainable Engagement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(12), pages 1-29, June.
    3. Marina Baroni & Giulia Valdrighi & Andrea Guazzini & Mirko Duradoni, 2025. "“More than a Feeling”: How Eco-Anxiety Shapes Pro-Environmental Behaviors and the Role of Readiness to Change," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-34, July.
    4. Andrea Guazzini & Marina Baroni & Maria Fiorenza & Sofia Sprugnoli & Giulia Valdrighi & Mirko Duradoni, 2025. "Development and Validation of the New Environmental Locus of Control (NE-LOC) Scale: A Novel Measure of Internal, External, and Community Locus of Control for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-23, July.
    5. Mirko Duradoni & Giulia Valdrighi & Alessia Donati & Maria Fiorenza & Luisa Puddu & Andrea Guazzini, 2024. "Development and Validation of the Readiness to Change Scale (RtC) for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(11), pages 1-27, May.
    6. Tan-Soo, Jie-Sheng & Li, Jun & Qin, Ping, 2023. "Individuals' and households' climate adaptation and mitigation behaviors: A systematic review," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    7. Yilin Sun & Li Zhu & Ni Zhang & Honglin Wu & Quhan Chen & Haolong Wang, 2024. "Study on Pro-Environmental Behavior to Enhance Rural Social-Ecological Resilience: The Role of Place Identity and Social Cohesion as Mediating Mechanisms," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-26, December.
    8. Yingqian Lin & Shuaikun Lu & Guanmao Yin & Baolong Yuan, 2025. "Policy Tools, Policy Perception, and Compliance with Urban Waste Sorting Policies: Evidence from 34 Cities in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-22, July.
    9. Canan Demir Yıldız, 2025. "Raising Climate Heroes: Ecological Game Camp —A Mixed-Methods Study on Experiential Climate Education in Children and Adults," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-26, September.
    10. Hilary Byerly Flint & Paul Cada & Patricia A. Champ & Jamie Gomez & Danny Margoles & James R. Meldrum & Hannah Brenkert-Smith, 2022. "You vs. us: framing adaptation behavior in terms of private or social benefits," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 174(1), pages 1-17, September.
    11. Enns, Alfred, 2022. "Die Bedeutung klimaschutzfördernder Entwicklungsprojekte und die Rolle der Salienz der ökologischen Norm für den internationalen Klimaschutz," KCN Schriftenreihe, FOM Hochschule für Oekonomie & Management, KCN KompetenzCentrum für nachhaltige Entwicklung, volume 3, number 3 edited by FOM Hochschule für Oekonomie & Management, KompetenzCentrum für nachhaltige Entwicklung (KCN).
    12. Heidi E Brown & Erika Austhof & Paula M Luz & Daniel B Ferguson, 2023. "Economics, health, or environment: What motivates individual climate action?," PLOS Climate, Public Library of Science, vol. 2(8), pages 1-16, August.
    13. Alfred Olfert & Gérard Hutter, 2025. "Strategic Communication and Evaluation to Improve the Capacities of Local Administration for Climate Change Adaptation: A Case Study on Dresden, Germany," Public Organization Review, Springer, vol. 25(1), pages 61-79, March.
    14. Ashi Perveen, 2025. "Bridging the Climate Finance Gap: Behavioral and Market Barriers to Efficient Climate Risk Pricing in Emerging Economies," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 9(6), pages 6392-6426, June.
    15. Xie, Li & Li, Siyi, 2024. "Climate risk and energy-saving technology innovation: Evidence from Chinese prefecture-level cities," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    16. Gómez, Patricia & Shaikh, Nazrul I. & Erkoc, Murat, 2024. "Continuous improvement in the efficient use of energy in office buildings through peers effects," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 360(C).
    17. Chad M. Baum & Christian Gross, 2017. "Sustainability policy as if people mattered: developing a framework for environmentally significant behavioral change," Journal of Bioeconomics, Springer, vol. 19(1), pages 53-95, April.
    18. Ding, Yihong & Robinson, Elizabeth & Balcombe, Kelvin, 2025. "The role of experience in climate adaptation: Evidence from a field experiment in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 94(PB).
    19. Gil-Clavel, Sofia & Wagenblast, Thorid & Filatova, Tatiana, 2023. "Farmers’ Incremental and Transformational Climate Change Adaptation in Different Regions: A Natural Language Processing Comparative Literature Review," SocArXiv 3dp5e, Center for Open Science.
    20. Hernández-Pizarro, Helena M. & Nicodemo, Catia & Casasnovas, Guillem López, 2020. "Discontinuous system of allowances: The response of prosocial health-care professionals," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:7:p:3021-:d:1623018. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.