Integrating Behaviorism and Humanism for Environmental Protection

Theory and principles from behaviorism and humanism are integrated to propose a synergistic approach for dealing with the human aspects of environmental protection. Numerous intervention agents are needed worldwide to implement the kind of behavior-change techniques that lead to positive attitudes. This requires people to “actively care.” Research is reviewed to support an actively caring model, which proposes that certain person states increase one's propensity to actively care for the environment. Strategies to increase these person states or expectancies are found in the basic principles and technology of behaviorism. Behaviorism offers the technology for changing behaviors and attitudes in environment-protective directions, while humanism offers the states or expectancies needed in people to increase their propensity to actively care for the environment.

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