Pro-environmental behavioral intention in university energy-saving contexts: extending the Value–Belief–Norm framework with institutional support

Objective With increasing energy demands across the globe and increased focus in sustainable development agenda, higher education institutions (HEIs) are relevant in developing energy-saving cognitions and attitudes of students. Purpose This paper will examine how university leadership, sustainability-oriented education, environmental values, environmental beliefs, and personal norms influence and affect the pro-environmental behavioral intention (PEBI) of HEIs students. Methods A group of 864 students of 81 HEIs located in the Shanxi Province took part in a survey and were recruited through a multi-stage stratified sampling design. The data analysis was done using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results First, sustainability-oriented education exhibits effective and multidimensional impacts which directly and indirectly impact the environmental values, environmental beliefs, personal norms, and behavioral intentions. Contrastingly, the university leadership (UL) has no direct impact on PEBI and does not trigger the personal norms in the students. Second, the Value–Belief–Norm (VBN) sequence was supported, and personal norms emerged as the strongest direct predictor of PEBI. However, environmental values and environmental beliefs also retained significant direct effects on PEBI. Third, sustainability-oriented education translates into PEBI through significant indirect pathways via environmental values and environmental beliefs, whereas the corresponding indirect effects of university leadership through these psychological mediators are weak or non-significant. Fourth, the integrated model demonstrates strong explanatory power, but this explanatory power is primarily driven by education and the VBN psychological chain rather than by university leadership. Implications The research reveals that effective HEIs interventions should combine direct, knowledge-based educational strategies with leadership actions designed to support and enable student-driven change, rather than attempting to directly command behavioral change through institutional authority.