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Human Behavior: Negative and Positive Effects on the Environment

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Human Behavior: Negative and Positive Effects on the Environment Human behavior has many effects on the environment; some of which are negative and some that are positive. The environment also affects human behavior. Negative effects of human behavior can be seen in animal extinction, climate change, pollution, noise, and deforestation, just to name some. Protecting the ozone layer, conserving earth’s resources such as; water and power, and protecting endangered animals are some of the ways that human behavior has a positive effect on the environment. When something in the environment triggers important information or causes a reaction it is known as an environmental cue. Environmental cues often affect human behavior.

Environmental Impact Humans cannot possibly avoid impact of the environment; just existing creates an impact on the environment. However that impact can be positive. The negative impact that humans have on the environment is the main concern today and causes concern for the future. Humans have changed the environment by making adaptations to make living more comfortable. However humans don’t always consider the consequences for the behaviors they exhibit (Derreby, 2011).

Environmental Cues Steg (2013) describes environmental cues as environmental elements that trigger a reaction or send information that is important. Environmental cues signal humans to behave in sync with social norms or to engage in a specific action, however the response depends on the individual responds to the cue. Recycling is a great example of how human behavior is affected by environmental cues. Many towns now have recycling programs, such as road side pickup, where the recyclers come to your home. Residents are encouraged to recycle and seeing neighbors recycle each week encourages them to do it also.

Supporting Sustainability Humans are powered by motivation, which means that there are a large number of ways that one can be empowered to live more sustainable lives and change the behaviors that have a negative effect on the environment. Many humans respect the environment and often take part in sustainable behaviors, but others still create a negative impact on the environment. Behavior is made up of internal psychological factors along with external cues. Due to this being motivated or knowing that one should behave in a more sustainable manner is not enough to actually change a behavior. Behavior is generally based on the situation one is in. Even if an individual has the intention to act or behave in a specific manner the circumstances of the situation can often lead to a behavior that the individual did not plan on. In order for a behavior to change there must be reinforcement and support across all situations. Obstacles often make it difficult for an individual to change a behavior, so a person is more successful creating a sustainable behavior when there are not many obstacles (Manning, 2009). An example of this is organic vs. non-organic food. Organic food is often more expensive than non-organic food in the stores. The price difference often leads to more non-organic food being purchased. The same theory can also be used for health vs. non-health (highly processed) food. The more sustainable route is not used because it is also the more expensive one. There are actions that were created to help individuals contribute to sustainability. These actions are civil, direct behaviors, educational, and financial. The most important action that any person can take is changing their daily routine (i.e. taking a bus or riding a bike to work and buying local groceries and other items).

Behaviors and Social Norms Humans base their behavior off of their own values along with other factors like incentives. Pro-environmental values lead to pro-environmental behaviors, however studies have been done that suggest an individual’s pro-environmental values can be influenced by pro-environmental behaviors. Therefore, if there is a regulation that stays you have to recycle or there will be a fine, the action of recycling can led to the individual adopting pro-environmental values. Actions are driven by a person’s values, along with other factors such as situation and incentives. The action to recycle is driven by an incentive (not being fined) in the beginning, however after time passes it the individual values recycling and then the action is driven by a value. Eventually the economic incentives can cause enough individuals to have new pro-environmental values that steps toward a sustainable future start taking place (Kinzig et al., 2013).

Solutions for Environmental Impact Behaviors can be changed to have a more positive impact on the environment. Humans can make small and large charges every day and their impact on the environment will also lessen. One way behaviors can change is to conserve water. Conserving water can be done by taking short showers instead of a bath or long shower, turning off the faucet and not letting the water run when doing dishes or brushing teeth, and using a rain catcher to assist in watering gardens. Energy is also a conservation that is easy for humans to make. Solar panels can be installed to help use the natural energy of the sun, drying clothing on a line outdoors instead of a drying machine, and using hybrid vehicles all can help in reducing the energy usage and helping to create a sustainable environment (Steg, 2013). Another way to change behaviors is to inform people about how they can help to reduce the impact on the environment. Information alone does not usually cause a behavior change. When goal-setting is applied, along with incentives and feedback then the behavior change in individuals increases. Human behavior changes easier and remains more permanently changed when there is a reason to change the behavior. Humans can be given an incentive or a consequence to enforce behavior change. Feedback is another thing that helps humans keep consistency when changing behavior, if they know that what they’re doing is helping and they are doing it well then they are more likely to stick with it (Steg, 2013).

Conclusion Human behavior has both a negative and positive impact on the environment. The way humans behave can come from situations, incentives, and environmental cues. Motivation is also a way that humans change behaviors. Many humans are motivated to live a more sustainable life; not only for them and their family, but also for future generations. Changing ones routine can have a large impact to the sustainability of the environment. Individuals do not have to make huge contributions, simple things like riding a bike to work instead of driving, shutting the facet off when tooth brushing, and drying clothes outside on a line can all help reduce the negative impact on the environment. Humans can be motivated to do these things by goal-setting, incentives, and motivation. After the task is initiated if given additional incentives and/or feedback on progress can help keep one motivated to continue to live a life that has less negative impact and more positive impact on the environment. Environmental impact cannot disappear altogether, because just existing has an impact, however controlling the things we do and working together to create a more sustainable future can greatly improve the future generations wellbeing.

References
Berreby, D. (2011, March). Environmental Impact. The Scientist. Retrieved April 27, 2015 from http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/29548/title/Environmental-Impact/

Manning, C. (2009). The psychology of sustainable behavior. Retrieved April 27, 2015 from http://www.pca.state.mn.us/index.php/view-document.html?gid=12949.

Kinzig, A., Ehrlich, P., & Alston, L. J., Arrow, K., Barrett, S., Buchman, T. G.,… Sarri, D. (2013, March). Social norms and global environmental challenges: The complex interaction of behaviors, values, and policy. Bioscience, 63(3), 164-175. doi:10.1525

Steg, L. (2013). Environmental psychology: An introduction. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell.

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