Saparuddin Saparuddin, Aswal Salewangeng
Effective and long-term efforts to foster an environmental attitude in the use of natural resources and their conservation are in the form of increasing environmental concern and cultivating ecologically conscious (eco-conscious) consumer behaviour. Improvement of these two aspects needs to be done early on in high school students who are the young generation of prospective consumer society. This study aims: 1) reveal the level of environmental concern and eco-conscious consumer behaviour preferences in high school students, 2) find out the difference between environmental concern and eco-conscious consumer behaviour preferences in high school students based on gender, class and major, and 3) determine the relationship between environmental concern and eco-conscious consumer behaviour preferences in students. 4-point Likert scale questionnaires were used to collect data on environmental concerns and eco-conscious consumer behaviour preferences. The respondents involved were 275 high school students in Karimun Regency, Riau Islands. The results showed that the average level of environmental concern of high school students was moderate based on gender, class and major groups. There is no difference in environmental concern based on gender and class, but there is a significant difference in environmental concern based on majors. The average level of the overall eco-conscious consumer behaviour preferences of students is moderate, and there is no difference in the three groups of students. A moderately positive relationship between environmental concern and eco-conscious consumer behaviour preferences is shown in high school students. Recommendations from this study emphasise the urgency to increase environmental concern and eco-conscious consumer behaviour among high school students who are the younger generation of people in the archipelago region as an effort to preserve the environment, especially the coastal and marine environment. © 2024 Author(s).
Department of Biology, Universitas Negeri Malang, Malang, 65145, Indonesia; Biology Education Program, Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Khairun, Ternate, 97728, Indonesia
