Personality Differences in Environmental Attitude-Intention-Behavior Patterns: A Person-Centered Approach

This study employed latent profile analysis to examine environmental attitude-intention-behavior patterns and their personality correlates among 3,078 Chinese university students. Five distinct profiles emerged: four displayed consistency across attitudes, intentions, and behaviors at varying levels, while one inconsistent profile exhibited positive environmental attitudes but significantly lower intentions and behaviors. Critically, the attitude-behavior gap manifested primarily at the attitude-intention stage rather than the intention-behavior stage. Multinomial logistic regression revealed that neuroticism strongly predicted inconsistent profile membership, whereas conscientiousness, openness, extraversion, and agreeableness predicted membership in higher-consistency profiles. These findings clarify where attitude-behavior gaps occur and demonstrate that personality traits systematically differentiate consistent versus inconsistent environmental engagement patterns.