Environmental Concerns, Values and Meanings in the Beijing and Detroit Metropolitan Areas

Abstract

Given increasing evidence from international surveys that concern for the environment appears to be a worldwide phenomenon, the authors of this article were interested in conducting an in-depth analysis of environmental concerns, values and behavior in the Beijing and Detroit metropolitan areas. Because of the attention that has been given to the influences of dominant social values and neighborhood environmental context on environmental attitudes cross-nationally, the authors were especially interested in examining what impact these have. In so doing, they attempted to introduce several important innovations in their comparative study, including new measures of commitment to the Dominant Social Paradigm (DSP) and indicators of neighborhood environmental quality. Using face-to-face interviews with probability samples surveys of residents in the Beijing and Detroit metropolitan areas, the study also determined, from openended questions, people’s understandings of ‘the environment’ and ‘economic growth’ and the priority trade-offs between them that are often implied and debated. The analyses found striking similarities as well as differences in the two metropolitan areas.

The Nature and Bases of Environmental Concern among Chinese Citizens

“…Similarly, considerable attention has been paid to analyzing “environmentalism” in China, ranging from efforts to highlight the unique nature of China's “Government‐Organized ‘Non‐Governmental Organizations’” or “GONGOs” and their relationship to more Western‐style Environmental Non‐Governmental Organizations or “ENGOs” to offering varying assessments of the nature and viability of an “environmental movement” per se in China (Economy, ; Watts, ; Stalley and Yang, ; Ho, ). And finally, there has been a rapid growth in surveys of public perceptions and opinions concerning environmental issues, ranging from a few national‐level surveys to numerous regional and city‐wide surveys of the general public (Mohai, Simões, and Brechin, ; Harris, ; Stalley and Yang, ; Lee, ). This last part of literature is the key focus of this article.…”

The Case for Studying Non-Market Food Systems

“…Finally, markets for food might inhibit the formation of environmental values. Interacting with the living world and experiencing the negative effects of environmental degradation tend to correlate with pro-environmental attitudes, worldviews, and behaviors [152][153][154][155]. Markets, however, distance consumers from both the ecology of food production and the environmental damage it causes [146].…”

The Case for Studying Non-Market Food Systems

“…Finally, markets for food might inhibit the formation of environmental values. Interacting with the living world and experiencing the negative effects of environmental degradation tend to correlate with pro-environmental attitudes, worldviews, and behaviors [147][148][149][150]. Markets, however, distance consumers from both the ecology of food production and the environmental damage it causes [142].…”