Environmental Belief Systems

Abstract

Many studies have assumed that the public's apparent concern about environmental quality is rooted in one or more abstract ideologies or philosophies. In contrast, the literature on mass belief systems implies that environmental opinion is probably very crude, fragmented, and narrowly focused on mundane irritants. This article presents results from an exploratory study applying the belief systems approach to &ttitudes on land use regulation. Data for the study came from a survey (N = 388) of residents of southeast Florida. Findings from the analysis suggest that opinion toward land use regulation is grounded in a number of narrow orientations.