Social Dilemmas and Sustainability: Promoting Peoples’ Motivation to “Cooperate with the Future”

Abstract

(from the chapter) Introduces social dilemmas and discusses why they are relevant to sustainability. The authors then consider how peoples' social values can be problematic for optimal resolution of social dilemmas. To address the question of how to encourage people to cooperate rather than compete with sustainability initiatives, the authors introduce self-determination theory's concept of internalization, then discuss the factors that promote internalization. The authors summarize an empirical test of these proposals and show that it is possible to promote involvement in environmentally responsible behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2003 APA, all rights reserved).