Terpstra, Elise (2024) Why Not Take the Train Instead? On the Effectiveness of a Grant to Promote Pro-environmental Travel Behaviour. Master thesis, Psychology.
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Abstract
Air travel contributes to many environmental problems. Yet, research into its substitution with more sustainable alternatives remains limited. Therefore, the current study examined if a green travel grant, that was either framed as benefitting the recipient financially or as benefitting the environment, effectively encouraged pro-environmental travel behaviour. It was tested if the grant, regardless of its framing, increased people’s intention to travel sustainably in the short-term, i.e., when the grant was available. Moreover, this study examined if the financially framed grant undermined people’s intrinsic motivation to travel sustainably (crowding-out effect), and lowered their intention to do so in the long-term, i.e., when the grant was no longer available; and if the environmentally framed grant enhanced people’s intrinsic motivation to travel sustainably (crowding-in effect), and strengthened their intention to do so in the long-term. Lastly, it was studied if people’s financial motive for choosing air travel influenced the effectiveness of the grant. In total, 300 first-year psychology students participated in the online experiment. The results revealed that the grant, regardless of its framing, increased their intentions to travel sustainably in the short-term. Contrary to expectations, however, the financially framed grant increased people’s intrinsic motivation to travel sustainably, whereas the environmentally framed grant did not affect intrinsic motivation. The grant, regardless of its framing, did not affect the intention to travel sustainably in the long-term, and people’s financial motive for choosing air travel did not influence the grant’s effectiveness. These findings demonstrate that implementing a grant is effective in the short-term, when it is available, but not in the long-term, when it is not.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Master) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Werff, E. van der |
| Degree programme: | Psychology |
| Differentiation route: | Environmental Psychology (EP) [Master Psychology] |
| Date Deposited: | 20 Mar 2024 10:54 |
| Last Modified: | 20 Mar 2024 10:54 |
| URI: | http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/3251 |
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