Psychological Approaches to Sustainability : Current Trends in Theory, Research and Applications

An international team of leading scholars and young researchers in environmental psychology offers a relatively new perspective on the origin and solutions of the current environmental crisis. They explain how human nature has played a prominent role in the emergence of ecological problems such as global warming, threats to biodiversity, resources scarcity and pollution. But also, they demonstrate that such problems are interlinked with social problems such as poverty, famine, social and economical inequities and violence. According to this book's authors, psychological theories and empirical evidence show that the solutions for those socio-ecological problems are to be found in human nature and its psychological predispositions. These include personal motives, world-visions, future perspective, environmental emotions, altruistic tendencies and behavioral capacities among other psychological predispositions that could allow the adoption of sustainable lifestyles. Meeting the ideals of sustainability requires the participation of the natural and social sciences, including psychology, in order to guarantee the fulfillment of its purposes. Behavioral sciences study the psychological characteristics and the contextual factors that lead people to adopt more sustainable lifestyles. In addition, these sciences investigate how sustainable behaviors promote happiness, psychological well being and restoration, which are considered among the aims of sustainable development by governments throughout the world. The authors, who are recognized experts in these areas, offer a state-of-the-art review and data on what it is known regarding the psychological dimensions of the environmental crisis, its behavioral solutions and the repercussions of sustainable behavior on human well being.