Incentives , Morality , Or Habit ? Predicting Students ’ Car Use

The predictive power of the Ajzen, Triandis, and Schwartz models are compared in the context of car use for university routes. Two hundred fifty-four students filled out a questionnaire designed to measure the components of the three models. In the prediction of intention to use a car, results indicated that one variable from the Trinandis model—role beliefs—increased the explanatory power offered by the components of the Ajzen model. In the prediction of self-reported car use, one variable of the Triandis model—car use habit—significantly increased the predictive power of the Ajzen model. The central variable of the Schwartz model—personal norm—exerted no significant effect either on intention or on behavior. The 264 AUTHORS’NOTE: This research was supported by the German Science Foundation Grant Schm 658/6-2 to Peter Schmidt. We thank Tanja Keller and Carsten Mertens for their assistance in conducting the study. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Sebastian Bamberg, Institut für Politikwissenschaften, Fachbereich 03, Universität Giessen, Karl-Glöckner-Str. 21E, D-35394 Giessen, Germany; e-mail: [email protected]. ENVIRONMENT AND BEHAVIOR, Vol. 35 No. 2, March 2003 264-285 DOI: 10.1177/0013916502250134 © 2003 Sage Publications © 2003 SAGE Publications. All rights reserved. Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution. at PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on April 14, 2008 http://eab.sagepub.com Downloaded from implications of the findings for interventions to reduce the car use of students for university routes are discussed.