Attitude and behavior of consumption in an ecological destination: A study with youths of Ilhabela (SP, Brazil)

Abstract

The preservation of the environment has been discussed for a long time in the media and in the academy. The aim of this study was to exam attitudes and behavior of young people from an ecotourism destination regarding environmental consumption. The survey was conducted with a random sample of 143 high school students from Ilhabela, a city on the northern coast of São Paulo, which the main economic activity is ecotourism. The analyses indicate that the studied population can be divided into three groups relating the attitude and behavior of environmentally friendly consumption. These groups were labeled "proactive". "Indifferent" and "negative", 10 of the 40 statements of the scale used to measure the phenomenon discriminate the groups and generate a function that allows predictive adequate allocation of 92.3% of the population. Most profiles considered "proactive" were generated from the combination of variables "gender", "current school year” and "income" and is comprised of women. We conclude that it is imperative to address the issue of environmental preservation among young people, because only 21% of the population was considered "proactive".