V. Vilčinskas “Climate Change Attitude and Behaviour Gap in Lithuania” doctoral dissertation defense

Author, Institution: Vidas Vilčinskas, Kaunas University of Technology

Science area, field of science: Social Sciences, Sociology, S005

Scientific Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Audronė Telešienė (Kaunas University of Technology, Social Sciences, Sociology, S005)

Scientific Advisor: Prof. Dr. Jose Manuel Echavarren Fernandez (Pablo de Olavide University, Spain, Social Sciences, Sociology, S005)

Dissertation Defense Board of Sociology Science Field:
Chief Researcher Dr. Jolanta Aidukaitė (Lithuanian Center for Social Sciences, Social Sciences, Sociology, S005) – chairperson
Senior Researcher Dr. Dainius Genys (Vytautas Magnus University, Social Sciences, Sociology, S005)
Prof. Dr. Vaidas Morkevičius (Kaunas University of Technology, Social Sciences, Sociology, S005)
Prof. Dr. Goda Perlavičiūtė (University of Groningen, Netherlands, Social Sciences, Psychology, S006)
Prof. Dr. Eglė Staniškienė (Kaunas University of Technology, Social Sciences, Management, S003)

Dissertation defense meeting will be at Rectorate Hall of Kaunas University of Technology (K. Donelaičio 73-402, Kaunas)

The doctoral dissertation is available at the library of Kaunas University of Technology (Gedimino 50, Kaunas)

Annotation: The problem of the gap between attitude and behaviour is important because it is one of the obstacles to environmentally friendly behaviour. In order to address the environmental problems caused by human activities, it is important to take measures to bridge this gap. The aim of this research is therefore to investigate and explain the gap between climate change attitudes and behaviours in the Lithuanian population. In this paper, the type of energy-saving behaviour is chosen for analysis. This choice is based on the environmental impact of this type of behaviour in the context of climate change, where the energy sector in Lithuania accounts for a significant share of greenhouse gas emissions. The dissertation uses the theory of planned behaviour to examine the gap between attitudes and behaviour. The theoretical model of analysis additionally includes a value factor, for which the theory of post-materialistic values was chosen. The study is based on a nationally representative survey combined with data from the Environment IV module of the International Social Survey Programme. The study shows that the Lithuanian population is divided into three groups with different typical socio-demographic characteristics in terms of the relationship between attitudes and behaviour towards climate change. The first segment is characterised by a positive attitude towards climate change and strong climate change behaviour. The second segment is characterised by a moderate attitude and moderate behaviour. The third segment is characterised by positive attitudes and a moderate level of climate-relevant behaviour. Based on these characteristics, the first segment is referred to as ‘Conscious Savers’, the second as ‘Average Consumers’ and the third as ‘Dissonant Consumers’. The sizes of the three groups are similar in the Lithuanian population. The model developed in the dissertation, which is based on the theory of planned behaviour, significantly explains the discrepancy between attitudes and behaviour towards climate change in the Lithuanian population, but has different explanatory power in the three groups of the attitude-behaviour gap. Post-materialistic values were only a significant factor in explaining climate change behaviour in the first group of the population.