Efeitos do ensino para o desenvolvimento sustentável nas normas pessoais de discentes universitários quanto à escassez de água potável: contribuições à luz da teoria do valor-crença-norma

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of teaching for sustainable development on university students' personal norms regarding drinking water scarcity in light of the value-belief-norm theory (VBN). To achieve the proposed objective, the empirical research was developed at the Federal University of Bahia. The final sample was composed of 2,376 undergraduate students. The data collection instrument was validated qualitatively (Judges' Analysis) and quantitatively (Confirmatory Factor Analysis). Path Analysis was employed for hypothesis testing. The research results indicated that the level of education for sustainable development positively impacted only biospheric values. The evidence is aligned to the assumptions of value-belief-norm theory and suggests that, individuals' values are in fact guiding principles of their beliefs. Altruistic and biospheric values were found to have a positive effect on ecological beliefs. Nevertheless, selfish values were found to have a positive effect on utilitarian beliefs. Additionally, to feel a moral obligation to address drinking water scarcity, the evidence suggests that learners need to believe that drinking water scarcity is indeed a serious problem for society. This evidence has potential contributions to the teaching-learning process, in the sense that it signals to teachers the importance of valuesbased education. Moreover, for the students, knowing the value orientations that guide their beliefs is a promising opportunity to critically rethink the assumptions that contributed to the internalization of these orientations, as well as the impact of these processes on their sense of responsibility with the promotion of sustainable development. The results suggest that the impact of teaching for sustainable development depends on its quality, quantity, distribution, and diffusion in the curricula. The creation and validation of the dimension "level of education for sustainable development" and the analysis of its role in the values of individuals, impacting the Value-Belief-Norm chain (VBN), to explain the students' coping with drinking water scarcity, is an original contribution of this study. The scale developed and validated presents potential contributions to the improvement of the level of education for sustainable development in other contexts, besides the higher education level (as an example, we can mention elementary and high school), by providing subsidies for the diagnosis of the institutional performance regarding the level of education that is being propagated in comparison with the desired one. Additionally, by presenting a consistent scale to measure personal norms, the research provides subsidies for Higher Education Institutions, as well as public policy makers to evaluate the effectiveness of actions that seek to increase the sense of responsibility of individuals with regard to addressing the scarcity of drinking water. The evidence suggests important educational implications, although not easily measurable.