Intergenerational transmission of environmental knowledge and pro-environmental behavior: A dyadic relationship

Understanding intergenerational transmission is important for promoting pro-environmental behaviors across generations. The current study applied the family systems theory to examine the transmission of environmental knowledge (EK) and pro-environmental behaviors (PEB) between parents and children. We examined whether children's (n = 396, Mage = 10.82) and parents' (n = 396, Mage = 39.01) EK was related to their own (actor effects) and partners' (partner effects) PEB by utilizing the Actor-Partner Interdependent Model. Both parents and their children filled out a questionnaire about EK and PEB. We found actor effects for parents and children and a partner effect for parents, but not a direct partner effect for children. We found a mixed pattern of the dyadic relationship in which the actor effect was twice as large as the partner effect. In the partner effect, we found that children's EK has a greater tendency to influence parents' PEB than the reverse pattern. This study expanded the understanding of the dyadic context between parents and children in EK and PEB. Further efforts should be made to emphasize the intergenerational transmission of EK and PEB, as well as to develop programs for improving parent-child communication about environmental issues.