Environmentalism for whom? How perceived injustice shapes environmental beliefs & personal norms among the energy-poor

Abstract

This qualitative thesis explores the reasoning of people living in energy-poverty towards injustice and environmental behavior regarding energy policies. This thesis is an empirical study and deductively builds on the theory of the Value-Belief-Norm model by Stern et al. (1999). It introduced how injustice possibly influences the shaping of ascription of responsibility and a moral obligation to act pro-environmentally with inductive reasoning. Interviews were conducted in the Netherlands that studied the reasoning of energy-poor people related to the VBN model and implemented energy policies. The data indicated a positive association between perceived injustice in the energy policies and a decline in the ascription of responsibility and moral obligation to act pro-environmentally for the energy-poor, although further research is needed to confirm this data. Moreover, data illustrated that this occurs through the triggered variables anger and powerlessness. These variables may disrupt the causal relationship between beliefs and personal norms in the Value-Belief-Norm. This thesis confirms that energy-poor people perceive participation in the energy transition as unjust. In their view, governmental support mostly benefits richer households, which evidently marginalizes the energy-poor further. Perceiving injustice in one area could lead to disobedience in others, making it relevant to connect injustice to other research fields, such as environmental behavior. The results of this study help to achieve better inclusive policymaking and an equitable energy transition.