Empowered Youth: Agents of pro-environmental behavioural change in secondary schools

Abstract

Student-led, pro-environmental behavioural change initiatives are becoming more commonplace in New Zealand secondary schools. However, there appears to be little research that has investigated perceptions of what 'student-led' entails, how it is enacted and the results of such behavioural change in New Zealand secondary schools. The aim of this research was to investigate student-led initiatives in the context of waste minimisation. How students perceived their roles as agents of pro-environmental change in secondary schools was explored, along with the enablers and barriers they encountered as they led behavioural change initiatives in their schools. The usefulness of behavioural change theories for developing, initiating and reflecting on the success of behavioural change strategies was also explored. This research used a critical qualitative method with a case study approach primarily utilising focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews with 33 environmental council students and 10 supporting staff members from three secondary schools, to capture their perceptions and experiences as they engaged in a whole-school waste reduction initiative. A definition of student empowerment comprised of two characteristics was developed and used in conjunction with Arnstein's (1969) Ladder of Participation and Fielding's (2001) Levels of Student Involvement model to capture the complex structural and cultural characteristics that supported and hindered students' perceptions of empowerment. It was found that while students initially believed that they had the means and the power to bring about change in their school, they experienced several barriers that prevented them from bringing about any measurable behavioural change in their school. As a consequence, this research illustrates how historical expectations of and limitations placed on students within schools can impede today's students' attempts to fulfil their role as active and empowered citizens. Furthermore, this research analysed the usefulness of two behavioural change theories, the Theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1985) and Social Practice Theory (Shove, Pantzar, & Watson, 2012), throughout these year-long behavioural change initiatives. Findings indicated that behavioural change is complex, made up of personal, social and contextual influences and, therefore, neither theory is able to capture the intricate nature of student-led behavioural change. This thesis concludes by suggesting a number of real-world and conceptual implications for future research that explores the facilitating of student-led, pro-environmental behavioural change.