The role of the Internet in shaping environmental concern. A focus on post-communist Europe
The role of the Internet in shaping environmental concern. A focus on post-communist Europe

Summary/Abstract: Common sense, as well as scientific evidence, frequently use the generalization that compared to the citizens of the West, citizens of the ex-communist countries are less environmentally concerned as far as during the communist past they were not socialized to behave in an environmentally conscious manner and after the regime change were much more concerned with the economical survival than with environmentally responsible attitudes and behaviours. The paper tries to answer the question if new communication technologies, particularly the Internet, can have a decisive role in socializing people towards environmental concern and environmental practices in the post-communist countries. For this purpose the data set of the Special Eurobarometer 68.2 is used. Analysis shown that in the post-communist member states of the EU Internet use has a significant role in enhancing people’s environmental concern both in terms of perceived environmental information, environmental attitudes and especially environmentally friendly consumerism. Energy saving behaviours and environmentally friendly travelling behaviours were not, or were less dependent on the Internet use when socio-demographics were controlled. Results suggested that technological flux, understood in terms of broadband Internet penetration, is also a decisive factor in enhancing environmental concern.

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