Open AccessPlace attachment influence on human well‐being and general pro‐environmental behaviors
Author(s) -
Junot Amandine,
Paquet Yvan,
Fenouillet Fabien
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of theoretical social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2475-0387
DOI - 10.1002/jts5.18
Subject(s) - place attachment , psychology , social psychology , construct (python library) , attachment theory , population , scale (ratio) , developmental psychology , geography , environmental health , medicine , computer science , cartography , programming language
People's relationship to their own living environment is a key issue for a deeper understanding of pro‐environmental behaviors. How people perceive and experience a place may be a principal explanatory factor. Place attachment provides physical and psychological benefits to people and may have potential benefits for both human well‐being and pro‐environmental behaviors. If, the relationship between place attachment and place protective behaviors is confirmed, the relationship with general pro‐environmental behaviors is unclear. Therefore, this paper aimed to fill the gap and to test the relationship between place attachment, well‐being, and general pro‐environmental behaviors with 212 inhabitants of Reunion Island. First, factor analyses were performed to observe the structure of William and Vaske scale ([Williams, D. R., 2003]). Second, path analysis was performed to examine the relationship between place attachment well‐being and general pro‐environmental behaviors. Results revealed different links between general pro‐environmental behaviors and each dimension of place attachment. Moreover, they highlighted the mediating role of well‐being. The results suggest that place attachment is an important construct on which managers could focus on to improve well‐being and quality of life and promote general pro‐environmental behaviors among population.