Version 1
: Received: 13 September 2024 / Approved: 15 September 2024 / Online: 16 September 2024 (09:45:15 CEST)
How to cite:
Harold, S.; Johnson, C. C. Into the Weeds: A Case Study of Pro-Environmental Behavior Through the North Carolina Native Plant Forum on Facebook. Preprints2024, 2024091168. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1168.v1
Harold, S.; Johnson, C. C. Into the Weeds: A Case Study of Pro-Environmental Behavior Through the North Carolina Native Plant Forum on Facebook. Preprints 2024, 2024091168. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1168.v1
Harold, S.; Johnson, C. C. Into the Weeds: A Case Study of Pro-Environmental Behavior Through the North Carolina Native Plant Forum on Facebook. Preprints2024, 2024091168. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1168.v1
APA Style
Harold, S., & Johnson, C. C. (2024). Into the Weeds: A Case Study of Pro-Environmental Behavior Through the North Carolina Native Plant Forum on Facebook. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1168.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Harold, S. and Carla C. Johnson. 2024 "Into the Weeds: A Case Study of Pro-Environmental Behavior Through the North Carolina Native Plant Forum on Facebook" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.1168.v1
Abstract
Global biodiversity loss and climate change highlight the importance of environmental knowledge and behavior in the population at large. Americans gain environmental knowledge almost exclusively from sources outside of formal schooling, and increasingly, the internet and social networking sites (SNS) are the preferred sources of that specific, just-in-time learning. The North Carolina Native Plant Forum is a regionally specific Facebook group focused on environmental education with over 80,000 members. This case study used 14 forum member interviews and analysis of the Facebook site itself to explore the Native Plant Forum and its users through the lens of the Technologies for Pro-Environmental Actions Model (TPAM). These data revealed a process of information seeking, sharing experiences, obsession, and pro-environmental intentions leading to the planting of native plant species that host and support pollinators and wildlife. Users of the forum expressed how much they learned from the Facebook group and particularly valued the photographs shared daily by other forum members of their native planting projects. The ability of social networking sites to support and incentivize pro-environmental knowledge and behaviors is a critical area of research for adapting environmental education to a new information age and for combating multiple overlapping environmental crises.
Keywords
pro-environmental behavior; social media; environmental education; Facebook
Subject
Social Sciences, Education
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
