Promoting and Developing Sustainable Behavior among Engineering Students: The Role of Higher Education Institutions, Digital Environments and Digital Technologies

Our research explores how higher education institutions (HEI) can effectively foster sustainable behavior and better wellbeing among engineering students, using digital technologies to enhance development of these life aspects. Engineering graduates, as future professionals, influence technological development and contribute to workplace cultures, yet often lack the knowledge to address sustainability challenges, thereby increasing the risk of developing unsustainable solutions and work-life habits. Universities offer powerful learning, social, and living environments that can influence long-term attitudes and habits. To understand how these environments shape sustainable behavior and how they can be improved, a narrative literature review was conducted across behavioral science, sustainability studies, engineering education, and digital technology research. The review synthesizes four key categories of behavioral factors: internal drivers, social pressure, environmental and infrastructural facilitators, and habit formation. Universities can address these categories through their curricula, institutional image, and campus infrastructure. The analysis highlights several effective educational strategies, including early exposure to sustainability concepts, problem- and project-based learning, interdisciplinarity, collaboration with industry and communities, and informal activities that extend beyond the classroom. A second contribution of this study is the integration of technological tools into the sustainability education discussion. As digital technologies become deeply embedded in students’ learning processes and increasingly shape how they access information and interact with systems and artificial intelligence tools to make decisions, Industry 4.0 and 5.0 tools serve as powerful mechanisms for promoting sustainable behavior. The review identifies four categories of digital tools that can support sustainable behavior development: visualization, simulation, gamification, and smart infrastructure. The study proposes an integrative conceptual framework that aligns pedagogical strategies, institutional image, and campus infrastructure to support the development of sustainable behavior among engineering students. We recommend follow-up studies on social media's impact on mental health, virtual and metaverse technologies for wellbeing and soft skills development, especially in an era of increasing reliance on artificial intelligence (AI) tools for human work and thinking offloading. Additionally, linking technological tools with behavioral predictors to demonstrate how technology can improve learning has been shown to boost social and motivational factors and incorporate sustainable actions into daily routines. This presents strong opportunities to connect HEI education to Society 5.0 and Education 5.0 development.