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Environmental Psychology: History, Scope, and Methods

Environmental Psychology: A discipline that studies the interplay between individuals and their built and natural environment

  • How humans impact the environment and vice versa

History

  • Environmentally psychologically has been recognized as a field in the 1960s

  • Willy Hellpach

    • Considered as first environmental psychologist

    • Studied the impact of different environmental stimuli, such as color and form, the sun and the moon and extreme environments, on human activities

  • Founding Fathers of Environmental Psychology

    • Egon Brunswik (1903-1955)

    • Kurt Lewin (1890-1947)

Towards a green psychology (our role)

  • Growth in studies examining the role of humans in preserving (or destroying the environment)

  • How the environment contributes to human mental health and well-being

  • Human beings’ role is important in environmental psychology

    • Environment is influenced by human actions

Topics

  • Conservation behavior, climate change beliefs, plastic use, nature and well-being (mental health), nature and healing

Scope of the Field

  • Increased concern about environmental problems (climate change, deforestation, pollution, etc)

  • Broad concept “sustainability” (encompases healh, economic, environmental aspect of sustainable living)

  • Eventually evolved into psychology of sustainability

    • Human behavior and how we can get people to engage in pro-environmental behavior

4 Features of Environmental Psychology

  • Human-environmental interaction

    • Reciprocal interaction between humans and environment

    • Deforestation

      • Laws exist in the Philippines but they’re not as effective

    • Plastic Pollution

      • Philippines is top 3 in contributing globally

      • 50% of the plastic waste that went to the ocean come from the top 5 countries

      • 6-8% come from Pasig River

  • Interdisciplinary approach

    • Psychologists working with

      • Environmental scientists, engineers, architects, sociologists, anthropologists, educators, etc.

    • Different perspective and more holistic point of view

  • An applied focus

    • Problem-focused

    • Does not only study phenomenon but thinks about how it can be useful

    • E.g. how can we use research findings to reduce important environmental problems (plastic pollution, food waste, etc.)

  • Use of diversity of methods

    • Quantitative methods (involve numbers, statistics)

    • Qualitative methods (interviews, group focus discussion, observation, etc.)

      • Cannot be generalized to the general population


Environmental Psychology: History, Scope, and Methods

Environmental Psychology: A discipline that studies the interplay between individuals and their built and natural environment

  • How humans impact the environment and vice versa

History

  • Environmentally psychologically has been recognized as a field in the 1960s

  • Willy Hellpach

    • Considered as first environmental psychologist

    • Studied the impact of different environmental stimuli, such as color and form, the sun and the moon and extreme environments, on human activities

  • Founding Fathers of Environmental Psychology

    • Egon Brunswik (1903-1955)

    • Kurt Lewin (1890-1947)

Towards a green psychology (our role)

  • Growth in studies examining the role of humans in preserving (or destroying the environment)

  • How the environment contributes to human mental health and well-being

  • Human beings’ role is important in environmental psychology

    • Environment is influenced by human actions

Topics

  • Conservation behavior, climate change beliefs, plastic use, nature and well-being (mental health), nature and healing

Scope of the Field

  • Increased concern about environmental problems (climate change, deforestation, pollution, etc)

  • Broad concept “sustainability” (encompases healh, economic, environmental aspect of sustainable living)

  • Eventually evolved into psychology of sustainability

    • Human behavior and how we can get people to engage in pro-environmental behavior

4 Features of Environmental Psychology

  • Human-environmental interaction

    • Reciprocal interaction between humans and environment

    • Deforestation

      • Laws exist in the Philippines but they’re not as effective

    • Plastic Pollution

      • Philippines is top 3 in contributing globally

      • 50% of the plastic waste that went to the ocean come from the top 5 countries

      • 6-8% come from Pasig River

  • Interdisciplinary approach

    • Psychologists working with

      • Environmental scientists, engineers, architects, sociologists, anthropologists, educators, etc.

    • Different perspective and more holistic point of view

  • An applied focus

    • Problem-focused

    • Does not only study phenomenon but thinks about how it can be useful

    • E.g. how can we use research findings to reduce important environmental problems (plastic pollution, food waste, etc.)

  • Use of diversity of methods

    • Quantitative methods (involve numbers, statistics)

    • Qualitative methods (interviews, group focus discussion, observation, etc.)

      • Cannot be generalized to the general population