The means applied to promote environmentally friendly behavior need to be e
valuated. This study investigates the possibility that actions meant to imp
rove recycling may have unintended consequences in fields other than the ta
rget behavior. The relation between self-reported environmental behaviors i
n several sectors is studied, with particular attention given to the questi
on of whether increased recycling may develop into a compensatory behavior
for less environmentally friendly behavior elsewhere. Results from a survey
, including approximately 1,500 Norwegian consumers, are presented. No tend
encies toward compensatory behavior are detected. Furthermore, the survey d
oes not indicate that the introduction of measures meant to increase recycl
ing brings increased attitudinal support for compensatory behavior. At the
same time, the survey supports the view that there is no "general" environm
ental behavior among consumers. On the other hand, the correlations between
different behaviors increase when the behaviors in question become more si
milar.