EFFORT AS A MODERATOR OF THE ATTITUDE-BEHAVIOR RELATIONSHIP - GENERALENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN AND RECYCLING

It is proposed that attitudes are stronger predictors of behavior when the amount of effort required for the behavior is high than when litt le effort is required. The first study found support for the effort hy pothesis among undergraduates who participated in a high-effort recycl ing program. A second study of undergraduates found a strong positive relationship between attitudes of environmental concern and the amount of effort they were willing to exert to recycle. The third study, a m eta-analysis of studies on the relationship between environmental conc ern and recycling, showed that studies conducted in (high-effort) drop off recycling programs typically found a stronger relationship than st udies conducted in (low-effort) curbside recycling programs. Across al l three studies the results consistently support recent theoretical fi ndings: Effort is a strong moderator of the attitude-behavior relation ship.