Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship of sustainability knowledge to pro-environmental behaviour. A common misperception is that unsustainable behaviours are largely driven by a lack of knowledge of the underlying societal costs and the contributing factors leading to environmental degradation. Such a perception assumes if individuals “only knew better” they would engage in more sustainable behaviours. The “knowledge deficit model” has been critiqued for not including social psychological research about how knowledge is incorporated into decision-making and its subsequent effect on human behaviour. The theory of planned behaviour (TPB) model has been used extensively to examine intention to engage in a variety of behaviours, therefore this model is applied to examine the effect knowledge has in predicting behaviour. Design/methodology/approach To better understand these relationships, the authors examined the relationships between sustainability behaviours through an online survey of over 500 students at a large university in the USA. Findings Results indicate that knowledge had a significant, albeit weak, bivariate correlation with behaviour (r = 0.113, p < 0.001). However, when controlling for TPB variables (attitudes, norms and perceived behavioural control), knowledge was not a significant predictor of behaviour. Research limitations/implications The authors conclude with several implications to guide university sustainability programmes. Originality/value This study places sustainable knowledge in the context of other social psychological factors which also influence behaviour. The results show that as the students are educated about sustainability, fostering behaviour change will require education not only about how actions affect sustainability but also about social norms, attitudes towards sustainable behaviours and the level of self-efficacy in doing those behaviours.

For many households, energy consumption represents a non-discretionary portion of their budget and directly relates to quality of life. As researchers continue to study the environmental impacts of energy behavior, it is important to explore how energy consumption relates to socio-economic wellbeing. This paper examines the economic impacts of being energy-burdened in the United States, defined as spending at least 10% of household income on heating and electricity services; energy burdens are partially, but not entirely, driven by income, since energy needs and costs can vary substantially due to housing characteristics, utility rates, and other factors. Using panel data of US household income and energy expenditures during 1999–2017, this analysis demonstrates that energy-burdened households were at about 150%–200% greater risk of transitioning into or extending the duration of economic poverty over a two-year timeframe relative to non-burdened households. This analysis indicates that dedicating inordinate amounts of income to energy services can threaten a household’s economic well-being over time, possibly by preventing a household from engaging in other economic activities or compounding existing economic hardship. These results emphasize the importance of energy assistance and energy efficiency for low-income households, drawing attention to how structures of energy consumption, the welfare state, and social stratification intertwine.

This study tests the effect of the environmental movement, political opportunities, and media attention on air pollution in a time-series analysis (1959-1998). It examines changes in national emissions of five types of air pollution: sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and volatile organic compounds (combined into an index with Cronbach’s α = .904); nitrogen oxides; and particulate matter smaller than 10 µm. Results show that media attention to the environment is an important predictor of all three dependent variables. Additionally, the environmental social movement is only effective given specific political opportunities, namely, Democratic Party control of the federal government, media attention to environmental issues, and effective policy. The environmental movement also only appears to be effective at combating highly visible pollutants that are on the political agenda. This study demonstrates the complexity of air pollution, the importance of media attention, and the limited impact of the environmental movement on real-world outcomes.

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