Engineering students’ agency for sustainability in a PBL context: Q methodology research

Sustainability has become a central concern in engineering education, requiring future engineers to address complex ecological, social, and economic challenges while exercising professional agency. This study examines engineering students’ perceptions of their sustainability agency within a Problem-Based Learning (PBL) environment, using Q methodology to capture diverse viewpoints among students enrolled in the same course. The analysis identified four key factors shaping sustainability agency: (1) educational opportunities combined with institutional support, (2) societal engagement through teamwork and collaboration, (3) emotional and motivational drivers, and (4) knowledge of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within a supportive learning framework. These factors represent complementary pathways through which students enact agency. The findings demonstrate that diversity of perspectives functions as a generative and enabling condition for learning in PBL, as it fosters dialogue, negotiation, and collective sense-making around complex sustainability problems. The study highlights the importance of intentionally designing large-scale, interdisciplinary PBL projects that connect students with real-world sustainability challenges and provide institutional support for sustained engagement. Such learning environments can strengthen engineering students’ capacity to navigate uncertainty, work across disciplinary boundaries, and act as proactive agents of sustainable change.