Psychological and behavioural approaches to understanding and governing sustainable mobility

Higham, JES, Cohen, SA, Peeters, P, and Gössling, S (2013) Psychological and behavioural approaches to understanding and governing sustainable mobility Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 21 (7). pp. 949-967.

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Abstract

This paper introduces and explores the psychological and social factors that both contribute to and inhibit behaviour change vis-à-vis sustainable (tourist) mobility. It is based on papers presented at the Freiburg 2012 workshop. Specifically, it reviews climate change attitudes and perceptions, the psychological benefits of tourism mobilities, addictive elements of mobility and social norming effects, the attitude-behaviour gap (i.e., cognitive dissonance between understandings of, and responses to, climate change), the psychology of modal shifts, the psychology of travel speed/time, and psychological explanations for the perceived importance of long distance travel. It notes that anthropogenic climate change is an inescapable reality, and that tourism’s share of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions appears set to rise substantially. There is little prospect of technical solutions adequately addressing this problem. The paper concludes that, while a comprehensive understanding of tourist psychology is necessary to inform policy makers, it alone will be insufficient to achieve emission reductions, and bring tourism to a climatically sustainable pathway, if treated in isolation. Radical change in the structures of provision is also necessary. That change may take the form of infrastructure planning, including financial and economic infrastructure (e.g. taxation regimes and emission trading schemes) for sustainable mobility.

Item Type:	Article
Divisions :	Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences > School of Hospitality and Tourism Management
Authors :	Name Email ORCID Higham, JES Cohen, SA Peeters, P, Gössling, S
Date :	2013
DOI :	10.1080/09669582.2013.828733
Additional Information :	This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article which was accepted for publication in the Journal of Sustainable Tourism September 2013, copyright Taylor & Francis. Journal of Sustainable Tourism is available online at http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rsus20
Depositing User :	Symplectic Elements
Date Deposited :	05 Aug 2013 13:56
Last Modified :	31 Oct 2017 15:08
URI:	http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/id/eprint/792002

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