Dual 'realities' of conservation behavior: Self-reports vs observations of re-use and recycling behavior

Housewives in 100 randomly selected Mexican families self-reported their re-use/recycling, and direct observations were made of the frequency of re-used/recycled items in those families. A comparison between reported and observed measures revealed low correlations between self-reports and observations of re-use/recycling. A model of conservation behaviors was tested in which self-reports and observations were predicted by dispositional factors (beliefs, motives and competencies) assessed verbally, nonverbally, or in combination. Results revealed that beliefs (assessed verbally) only predicted the self-reported conservation, while competencies (assessed nonverbally) were only related to observed. behavior. Motives (assessed verbally and nonverbally) predicted both the self-reported and observed re-use. These results indicate that competencies are more indicative of instrumental (observed) behavior, while beliefs are more related to a 'reality' of social conventions and desires, which directs verbal, self-reports. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limited.