Self-reports are:often discredited as poor indicators of actual behavior. T
he present study aims at comparing subjective and observable, objective ind
icators of ecological behavior. Fourteen exemplary behaviors of 40 either s
ubjectively particularly ecologically or unecologically behaving participan
ts were checked by two interviewers. AU 14 behaviors derive from the most r
ecent version of the General Ecological Behavior scale(originally developed
by Kaiser, 1998). Moreover, they relate to objective: data such as possess
ion of a fuel-efficient car or membership m an environmental organization.
Evidenly, self-reports represent-fairly stable (r(tt) = .83: r(tt) = .96) a
nd valid (kappa = .78; M(r) = .81)indicators of ecological behavior, partic
ularly when self-reported behaviors represent dichotomized practices - I do
or I don't - or circumstances - I possess or I do not possess. Key words:
ecological behavior, self-report,test validity, measurement.