Pro-Environmental Behaviors in the Workplace: Is Concern for the Environment Enough?

Abstract

Although there has been some research on corporate social responsibility and sustainable practices in organizations, individuals' pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) in the workplace have not received much attention. A primary goal of this study was to gain a better understanding of the factors related to PEBs in the workplace and to further our understanding of the relationship between environmental attitudes and PEBs within the organizational context. Contextual factors, including psychological climate for PEBs, perceptions of leader support for PEBs, home climate for PEBs, and role overload, as well as individual differences, including individuals' norms regarding the environment and sense of guilt repair for failing to act in an environmentally responsible manner, were examined. Moreover, two types of PEBs were distinguished: PEBs easily engaged in and PEBs that require a cost to self. A commons dilemma perspective was applied to better understand the relative importance of contextual and individual difference variables in relation to the different types of PEBs, and which factors are more likely to influence individuals' environmental attitude - PEBs relationship in the workplace. Results suggested that psychological perceptions of climate for PEBs, perceptions of home climate for PEBs, and personal norms regarding the environment were most strongly related to the extent to which individuals engaged in both types of PEBs in the workplace. Guilt repair was positively related to the extent to which individuals were willing to engage in PEBs at work despite incurring a cost. Finally, psychological perceptions of climate for PEBs and role overload adversely affected the relationship between individuals' environmental attitude and PEBs at work.