Fostering Green Behaviour Through Environmental Education: A Structural Equation Model of Nature Connectedness and Social Dominance Orientation

Environmental education (EE) seeks to inspire individuals to adopt sustainable practices and foster a deeper awareness of environmental responsibility. Effective EE develops and enhances environmental knowledge, connectedness to nature (CN), and builds socially benefitting attributes that prepare individuals and communities to undertake positive EE action collaboratively. EE combines promoting environmental knowledge and internal motivation, namely being connected to the natural world, as a holistic strategy for increasing environmental awareness. The current study examined the relationships between EE and green behaviour (GB), employing insights from the environmental competence model. The link between the aforementioned variables was investigated to determine the role of CN as a mediator and social dominance orientation (SDO) as a moderator. A cross-sectional methodology was employed to gather data from 421 university students using a convenience sampling method through self-reported questionnaires measuring the CN scale, GB inventory, and SDO scale. Structural equation modelling and PROCESS methodologies were used for data analysis. The study’s findings confirmed the hypothesised conceptual model: EE was positively associated with GB. Furthermore, CN improved the positive relationships between EE and GB. Moreover, SDO has significantly reduced the positive association of direct and mediated links. This research provides empirical evidence for the education-nature association and bears practical implications for social dominance ideologies and beliefs.