The extended theory of planned behaviour model and national parks visitors' pro-environmental binning behaviour: A cross-cultural perspective

The binning behaviour of visitors holds significant potential to mitigate the growing environmental repercussions of littering in nature-based tourism areas. Drawing from an extended theory of planned behaviour, the social-psychological antecedents of binning behaviour, as a type of pro-environmental behaviour, were examined in the context of national parks of two different cultures. Referring to Hofstede's cultural dimensions, questionnaire data from 241 Iranian (a collectivist sample) and 219 Australian (an individualist sample) participants were analysed via Partial Least Squares (PLS) and Multi-Group Analysis (MGA) to compare the consistency of pro-environmental binning behaviours between individuals from the two contexts. The results reveal a well-fitting model within each sample and also support for the behavioural antecedents; however, none for different effects of the extended TPB predictors on visitors' binning behaviour based on the country. The study sheds light on the growing body of cross-cultural research that addresses pro-environmental behaviour and adds to the need for further establishment. 

Management implications: 

• The finding demonstrated the efficacy of combining normative models with the theory of planned behaviour in explaining visitors' binning behaviour. 

• Park administrators should strengthen and activate visitors' salient personal norms as this was the key driver of binning behaviour. 

• The findings showed some variation in hypothesised impacts of the constructs of the research model; however, the differences in the two study samples were not statistically significant. 

• This study highlighted the need for a deeper understanding of pro-environmental behaviour and cultural barriers in national park contexts.