WAKE-UP CALL
Welcome to the January 2011 Wake-Up Call, Awake’s monthly
newsletter for research and news about behaviour change for sustainability.
To view this newsletter as a webpage, click here
In this edition of Wake-up Call…
·
Feature Article – Does One Good Turn Lead To
Another?
·
60 Seconds With… Chris Harries, Climate Connect
Project, Waterworks Community
·
New Website, More Changes To Come
·
Interesting Article Of The
Month - Converging Conventions
of Comfort, Cleanliness and Convenience
·
Exercise Of The Month – Goal-setting Revisited
Feature
Article – –
Does One Good Turn Lead To Another?
A common
perception among those who encourage behaviour change is that getting people to
make one small change in a positive direction will most likely lead them to
make similar, more significant changes further down the track. For instance, if
we get people to change to more energy-efficient light bulbs, they will go on
to start turning off appliances at the wall when not in use. However, a look at
the research evidence suggests it’s not so simple.
The phenomenon described above is known
as “spillover” – based on the idea that one positive behaviour will spill over
to other behaviours. It is largely based on the idea that, when people do
something small, they will form a belief about themselves that they are “that
kind of person”. For instance, a person who changes to a low-energy light bulb
will see themselves as an energy-saver, or environmentalist. Later, when
presented with a choice about whether to adopt an energy saving behaviour,
theoretically they are motivated to act consistently with that identity, and
adopt the behaviour. This is called cognitive consistency theory, or avoidance
of cognitive dissonance, which is discussed in Wake-Up Call February 2008.
Reliance on spillover is behind a lot of efforts to promote simple,
household-level behaviours, such as the light-bulb example above, changing the
showerhead to reduce water use, and using re-usable shopping bags.
Evidence for spillover has been found by
a number if studies. For instance, Berger (1997) found that
those who recycle regularly are more likely to use their own shopping bag and
use a water-saving showerhead. Similarly, a 1982 study found that householders
who installed a low-flow showerhead were more likely to take other conservation
measures, such as lowering their thermostat.
Despite these positive findings, and the
fact that the theory makes sense, research has overall provided mixed support
for the spillover effect. This is thought to be partly because of the somewhat
convoluted way in which people make decisions about their actions. The WWF
report “Simple
and Painless” provides a good analysis of this.
For a start, it appears that the reason
we undertake a behaviour has a big impact on the extent to which it will
influence future, similar behaviours. If we change our light bulbs to save
money on energy, our motive is entirely different to someone who changes their
light bulb to reduce carbon emissions. Therefore, this behaviour is more likely
to predict future money-saving efforts, rather than emission reduction efforts.
Another barrier to spillover may be a
tendency to feel like one has done enough by undertaking the first behaviour.
If people feel that, by recycling regularly, they are doing their bit for the
environment, then they may not feel any need to reduce the amount of products
they consume. So, rather than recycling behaviour being a motivator for further
pro-environmental behaviour, it may in fact contribute to an overall increase
in consumption for some individuals.
Consideration also needs to be given to
the similarity between the behaviours in question. If people perceive a strong
relationship between behaviours, it appears that the spillover effect is more
prevalent. For instance, reducing water use in one situation (e.g. turning off
the tap while brushing teeth) may predict one’s likelihood of reducing water in
another (e.g. taking short showers). It may, however, have limited relationship
to the probability that a person will recycle, or take public transport. A 2003 study by
Thogerson and Olander explored this question and found some relationship
between pro-environmental behaviours, but concluded that “our analyses also
show that many environment-friendly behaviours are not at all closely related
in people’s minds”.
Lastly, the degree to which a behaviour
is strongly habitual appears to have an impact on it’s susceptibility to
spillover. The Thogerson and Olander study in particular stresses that we are
less likely to reflect on habitual behaviours, and therefore less likely to
consider their consistency with our identities and personal norms. It makes
sense that any strategy which relies on spillover should also consider interventions
to disrupt and replace habits, which are discussed in Wake-Up Call July 2008.
In summary, it makes logical sense that
adopting one pro-environmental behaviour should lead a person to adopt others,
and there is some evidence that is indeed the case. However, there are a number
of conditions which should be considered before investing effort and resources in
a strategy which relies on spillover to encourage environmentally positive
habits. As with most approaches to behaviour change for sustainability, there
is no single foolproof strategy, and spillover is no exception.
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Awake provides psychology-based
services to support the development of sustainable behaviour in individuals,
groups and organisations. Visit www.awake.com.au for more info
60 Seconds with….. Chris Harries, Climate Connect Project,
Waterworks Community
What first got you focused on
sustainability?
In the 1970s I as aghast at the impending flooding of Lake Pedder, one
of Australia's premier natural icons – especially knowing that it was being
done to meet growing energy demand. I was so affected that I dropped my
metallurgical career and took up environmental campaigning, specialising in
energy demand management.
What is the sustainable choice you have
recently made of which you are most proud?
In the past year I have initiated a community project that examined the
many barriers that well-intentioned householders face when trying to reduce
their energy footprint, with a view to finding ways to work through the
barriers. We got very good feedback from those exercises.
What is a less sustainable choice that
you are not so proud of?
Although I'm
aware that there is good information out there are ways to minimise the climate
impact of pets, I haven't gone to the trouble of finding out the best way to
feed our pet dog in the most sustainable way. (The impact of pets is larger
than most people realise.)
Future Workshops
The workshop schedule for 2011 is currently being developed and will be
advised on the website and future editions of Wake-Up Call as soon as it is
confirmed.
Along with the popular Cultivating
Sustainability workshop, a more advanced behaviour change workshop is under
development and will be piloted in the near future.
Enquiries, requests and
suggestions are welcomed by email to timc@awake.com.au
New Website, More
Changes To Come
Awake has a new website! Be sure
to check out www.awake.com.au . There is
still a fair bit of content to add, so please bear with me.
The aim is to provide a more visually appealing and easy-to-navigate
site, while still keeping the site clean and clutter-free.
Wake-Up Call is also in line for a revamp. After more than 35 issues.
I’m currently looking at new ways to provide valuable news, views and insights
on the psychology of sustainability to the more than 1000 subscribers to
Wake-Up Call. Suggestions are welcomed by email to timc@awake.com.au
Interesting Article of the
Month – Converging Conventions of
Comfort, Cleanliness and Convenience
Where?
Converging
Conventions of Comfort, Cleanliness and Convenience
By Elizabeth
Shove
Available for
download here
What is it about?
This article reviews and discusses some
of the societal and cultural trends which have driven our current consuming
lifestyle. In particular, the concepts of comfort, cleanliness and convenience
are discussed, along with the question of “how do new conventions become
normal, and with what consequence for sustainability?”.
What did they find?
A number of interesting cultural trends
are discussed, such as the expectation of cleanliness and it’s impact on
laundry activity, which makes interesting reading when compared to the norms of
those in previous generations. The trends presented depict a society which has
developed habits and cultural expectations which have a far greater resource
impact than those of a few generations ago.
What can we take from this?
Shove likens the
change in trends to a ratchet, a mechanism which turns one way, but cannot go
back, “representing the impossibility of backward movement and the locking in
of technologies and practices as they move along a path”. Recognising the
influence of cultural convention on the way in which we consume, these insights
underline the need to challenge and shift expectations and norms at a cultural
level as part of the shift to a more sustainable society. Such work is at least
as important as efforts to change individual behaviours.
Exercise of the Month –
Goal-setting Revisited
Now is the
perfect time to set some goals for the year ahead. Whether it be new years
resolutions, business targets or goals for reducing our carbon emissions, the
research shows that there are a number of key elements which make a goal more
likely to be achieved. These elements are discussed in the June 2010 Wake-Up
Call, and the
exercise below is a timely reprint of the one from that month.
1. Identify
some sustainable behaviours for which you would like to either set or review
some goals. For example, you may wish to set a target for household energy or
water use.
2. For
each behaviour, ensure you write down specifically what you wish to achieve.
Consider the following
a. Is
the goal challenging enough? Could you make it a bit more of a stretch?
b. Will
you be able to measure attainment of the goal?
c. Is
there a process by which feedback can be provided along the way?
d. Have
you ensured that any necessary support, information and resources will be in
place to assist with achieving the goal?
If your goals
tick all of these boxes, then there is a strong chance they will be achieved.
Good luck!
The exercise of the month provides
a tool to help you get engaged, inspired, aware and in action around
sustainability. Feel free to use it on your own, with a friend, or in
your work. If you do use it with others, please tell them where you got
it!
About Awake
Awake provides
psychology-based services to support the development of sustainable behaviour
in individuals, groups and organisations. Visit www.awake.com.au for more info
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© Awake 2011