Centre for Entrepreneurship and Sustainability
2023-2024 Research Seminar Series
Does COVID-19 Pandemic Have a Significant Influence on Individuals’ ProEnvironmental Behaviours in the Household? - A Systematic Literature
Review
Date: TBC
Venue: TBC
Discussants: (TBC)
Dr. Lei Yang
Lecturer in Business and Management
Business School, Zhengzhou University, P.R. China
Abstract
As the COVID-19 pandemic has caused substantial changes in individuals’ daily behaviours,
our study aims to identify behavioural and attitudinal changes towards various types of proenvironmental behaviours during the pandemic via a systematic literature review. We
adapted Stern’s (2000) typology of pro-environmental behaviour and integrated Whitmarsh
& O’Neill’s (2010) factor analysis of pro-environmental behaviour to develop an integrative
framework of pro-environmental behaviour that guides our literature search. The review
employed a comprehensive search of databases and relevant literature followed by a rigorous
screening and selection process. As noted, attitudes/intentions/behaviours related to PEB
and reduced travel have been encouraged during the pandemic, while domestic energy
conservation and eco-travel practices have been negatively affected. However, the pandemic
had mixed impacts on waste reduction and eco-shopping and eating behaviours. We further
built on the terror management theory and suggest a framework of pro-environmental
behaviours during the pandemic to explain the mixed behavioural outcomes of waste
reduction and eco-shopping and eating behaviours. The review concludes with
recommendations for future research and policy development to promote proenvironmental behaviour during and after the pandemic.
Biography
Dr. Lei Yang is a Lecturer in Business and Management at the Business School of Zhengzhou
University, China. She obtained her Ph.D. degree from Queen Mary University of London, and
a master’s degree in Business (Behavioural Science) from the University of Warwick. Her main
research interests include consumer behaviour, pro-environmental behaviour, green
marketing, and corporate social responsibility. She has participated in numerous international
academic conferences in her field, such as the 34th European Group for Organizational
Studies (EGOS) Colloquium, the Sustainability Development Academic Conference in Lille,
France, and the British Academy of Management (BAM) Annual Conference. She serves as an
anonymous reviewer for Management Review in China.