First Advisor

Brianne Suldovsky

Term of Graduation

Spring 2021

Date of Publication

9-28-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (M.S.) in Communication

Department

Communication

Language

English

Subjects

Internet and activism, Internet and environmentalism, Environmentalism, Social media

DOI

10.15760/etd.7679

Physical Description

1 online resource (v, 55 pages)

Abstract

Past and present human activities have created and accelerated an array of environmental catastrophes and various systems in the environment remain under threat as a result of human behavior. In hopes of mitigating environmental consequences, a social movement has arisen to encourage people to behave in ways that are more environmentally sustainable. Research shows that individual behavior choices impact the environment, and this influence can be used to positively affect the environment through engagement in pro-environmental behavior. Like with many other social movements, the internet has been a tool in spreading awareness of a cause and allowing people the opportunity to engage in online activism. This paper considers the relationship between engaging in online activism via social media and pro-environmental behavior. Prior literature has mixed findings regarding this relationship; some have criticized engaging in online activism for its potential to replace, rather than complement, other forms of participation in a cause, described by a concept known as slacktivism. In addition to exploring this relationship, this paper focuses on the motivation for social media use as an explanation for the relationship found between online activism and pro-environmental behavior. Correlation analyses indicate there is a significant positive correlation between online activism and pro-environmental behavior. The data also reveals a significant positive relationship between social media use motivated by altruism and pro-environmental behavior, aligning with prior research about altruistic values and pro-environmental behavior.

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/36599

Download

Share

COinS