The dual-process of reactive and intentional decision-making involved in eco-friendly behavior

We extended the prototype model Gibbons and Gerrard to examine the disparity between professed environmental concerns and behavior. Our model assumed that there are two decision processes: a reactive process involving unintentional decision-making based on situational factors, and an intentional process involving goal-oriented decision-making based on attitudinal factors. A questionnaire about recycling behavior was completed by 206 Japanese undergraduate students. The results indicated that the prototype image and descriptive norm were determinants of the reactive process to accept eco-unfriendly behavior. In contrast, environmental concern and the injunctive norm were determinants of the intentional process to promote eco-friendly behavior. Our model suggests that eco-friendly behavior may be inhibited or promoted depending upon whether the reactive process or the intentional process is more salient.