Psychological Determinants of Pro-Environmental Behavior among High School Students in Jakarta

Abstract

Increasing environmental problems have highlighted the need to better understand the psychological determinants of pro-environmental behavior among adolescents. This study examined the effects of environmental concern, personality, and the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) on pro-environmental behavior among high school students in Jakarta. A quantitative survey was conducted involving 475 students from nine senior high schools selected through multistage random sampling. Data were collected using validated questionnaires and analyzed using multiple linear regression. The results indicated that the regression model was statistically significant (R = 0.741; R² = 0.548; p < 0.001), accounting for 54.8% of the variance in students' pro-environmental behavior. All three psychological variables significantly predicted pro-environmental behavior, with personality emerging as the strongest predictor (β = 0.400), followed by the New Ecological Paradigm (β = 0.261) and environmental concern (β = 0.241). These findings indicated that personality was a stronger predictor than environmental concern and ecological worldview in shaping students' pro-environmental behavior. The findings provide empirical evidence that integrating psychological development into environmental education may enhance students' pro-environmental behavior and support more effective environmental education programs.