UNDERSTANDING ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP THROUGH GOVERNANCE AND PSYCHOLOGY A Study of the 48 Cantones of Totonicapán and Its Social Foundations

Abstract

This study1 explores how the psychological drivers of trust, social norms and collective identity support governance mechanisms in the Indigenous communal system of 48 Cantones of Totonicapán, Guatemala. Drawing on three of Elinor Ostrom’s institutional design principles (monitoring, collective decision-making and enforcement), the study applies a matrix framework that links governance mechanisms to internal behavioral drivers, exploring how they interact to sustain environmental stewardship. Using a qualitative case study approach, the research is based on semi-structured interviews, direct observations, and document analysis. The methodology combined deductive coding, guided by the proposed matrix, with inductive identification of emergent themes. While the findings confirm that psychological drivers play a central role in governance, they also reveal symbolic and moral dimensions not captured by the initial framework. Concepts such as k’axk’ol (service with sacrifice), symbolic legitimacy, and relational forms of authority emerged as key to participation and compliance. The study shows that governance and conservation in the 48 Cantones is not only institutional and psychological, but also cultural and intergenerational. Trust, norms, and identity do not merely support governance; they constitute its foundation. At the same time, certain environmental challenges, such as waste management, fall outside the moral-symbolic structure that sustains forest and water protection. By integrating theory-driven analysis with culturally situated insights, this thesis contributes to both insights on environmental psychology and common pool resource governance.