Social trust, past behavior, and willingness to pay for environmental protection: evidence from China

In the twenty-first century, environmental degradation has become a global concern. In this context, sustainable development has become the primary goal of the global community. Enhancing individuals’ willingness to pay (WTP) for environmental protection is crucial for the sustainable development of the economy, society, and environment. Based on social cognitive theory, this study uses 1961 samples from the 2021 Chinese General Social Survey to identify and analyze the factors, or combinations of factors, that improve WTP for environmental protection. The multiple regression analysis results show that institutional trust, interpersonal trust, and past behavior significantly and positively affect environmental WTP. Environmental self-efficacy partially mediates the effects of interpersonal trust and past behavior on environmental WTP, and education level positively moderates the relationship between environmental self-efficacy and environmental WTP. The fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis results show that eight combinations can generate high environmental WTP, as a single factor is insufficient. Further analysis shows that institutional trust and interpersonal trust can interact to affect environmental WTP. Under certain conditions, an alternative relationship exists between institutional trust and environmental self-efficacy. Creating a positive social trust environment through information disclosure and organizing environmental activities, while implementing customized environmental measures that consider demographic and psychological factors, can effectively increase individuals’ WTP. In conclusion, the findings emphasize the contribution of social trust, past behaviors, and their interaction with other factors in shaping future environmental WTP, ultimately supporting sustainable development goals.