Engaging Hairdressers in Pro-Environmental Behaviours

尽管努力提高对可持续发展挑战和环境问题的认识，如石油储量枯竭、有毒废物、气候变化和水资源短缺，个人行为改变缓慢。拟议的研究探讨了一种创新的自下而上的社会营销方法，以鼓励环保行为（PEB）的有效性利用理发师作为“催化剂个人”，在其社交网络中传播与负责任地使用化学品、能源和水有关的知识和做法。理发师使用大量的能源，水和化学品，但我们去年的研究（巴登，2010年）表明，尽管越来越多的关注和公众对可持续发展的重要性的声明，很少有意识渗透到美发行业。理发师对环境问题缺乏关注，这就构成了一种社会规范，与可持续性意识背道而驰，特别是洗头、吹干和染发，这些活动也是在家里进行的。因此，这项研究的目的是让理发师参与开发自己的PEB，并作为“催化剂个人”，帮助在他们的社交网络中实施更环保的社会规范。拟议的研究将采取行动研究的形式：行动：将对选定的美发师进行访谈，以评估他们目前的可持续性做法，以及他们通过自己的做法或通过与客户的对话提供PEB模式的程度（例如，降低头发产品的毒性，节约用水，在干燥和风格方面使用低能源）。我们的试点研究没有发现这种环境意识的例子，但愿意进一步参与这个话题。二十五名理发师将被邀请参加一个活动，以提高他们工作中的环境问题意识，并鼓励他们提出自己的想法，以减少对环境的影响。我们计划通过让活动变得有趣、提供美味的茶点和鼓舞人心的演讲者，以及提供免费的环保产品样品，来营造对该项目的积极态度。四个月后将举行一次后续活动，分享哪些有效，哪些无效，并让美发师参与制定其行业的最佳实践基准，并使他们能够获得环境管理步骤（STEM）认证。我们计划举办两场活动和两场后续活动，总样本量为50名理发师。行动研究的研究部分将研究如何利用理发师向公众传播有关PEB的信息。社交网络理论认为，信息最好通过弱关系传播（Grananetter，1973）。创新扩散理论探讨了社交网络及其在影响新思想和实践传播中的作用。在所有职业中，理发师花最多的时间与各种各样的人聊天，对许多人来说是一种弱关系。该研究计划探索参与制定环境基准的美发师与客户和其他同事谈论可持续性的程度，并在与水，电和化学品使用相关的领域中作为PEBs的信息和实践的传播者。这是一个跨学科的建议，带来了一些理论见解，从不同领域的网络建模（社会网络理论、扩散理论）;社会心理学（如自决理论、社会学习理论、社会规范）和营销（口碑营销，社会营销，催化个人）和可持续发展管理在一个项目中，有真实的潜力，这既是为了改变一个特定的部门，也是为了测试开发一种更具创新性和自下而上的社会营销方法的有效性，以满足我们向低碳经济过渡的迫切需要。

Despite efforts to raise awareness of the challenges of sustainable development and environmental issues, such as depleting oil reserves, toxic waste, climate change and water shortages, individual behaviour has been slow to change.The proposed study explores the efficacy of an innovative bottom-up social marketing approach to encourage pro-environmental behaviour (PEB) using hairdressers as 'catalytic individuals' to diffuse knowledge and practices relating to responsible chemical, energy and water use across their social networks. Hairdressers use a lot of energy, water and chemicals, but our research last year (Baden, 2010) indicated that, despite the increased concerns and public pronouncements on the importance of sustainability, little awareness has filtered into the hairdressing sector. This lack of attention to environmental issues by hairdressers then constitutes a social norm that is antagonistic to sustainability awareness, especially hair-washing, drying and colouring, which are activities that are also carried out at home. Thus the study aims to engage hairdressers, both in developing their own PEBs, and as 'catalytic individuals' to help perpetrate more pro-environmental social norms across their social networks. The proposed study will be in the form of action research:Action: Selected hairdressers will be interviewed to assess their current sustainability practices and extent to which they provide a model of PEBs (e.g. reduced toxicity of hair products, water conservation, low use of energy in terms of drying and style) either through their practices or through their conversations with customers. Our pilot research found zero examples of such environmental awareness, but a willingness to engage with the topic further. Twenty five hairdressers will then be invited to an event to raise awareness of environmental issues in their work and encouraged to come up with their own ideas to reduce environmental impacts. We plan to create positive attitudes towards the project by making the event fun, with good refreshments and inspirational speakers, and offering free samples of eco-friendly products. A follow up event will be held four months later to share what worked and what didn't and engage the hairdressers in developing best practice benchmarks for their industry, and to enable them to attain the Steps Towards Environmental Management (STEM) certification. We plan to hold two events and two follow-up events, with a total sample size of 50 hairdressers. The research part of the action research will look at how hairdressers can be used to disseminate information about PEBs to the general public. Social networking theory proposes that information is best disseminated by weak ties (Granovetter, 1973). Diffusion of Innovations theory explores social networks and their role in influencing the spread of new ideas and practices. Of all occupations, hairdressers spend the most time generally chatting to a wide variety of people and comprise a weak tie for many. The research plans to explore the extent to which hairdressers involved in the development of environmental benchmarks talk to their customers and other colleagues about sustainability and act as a diffuser of information and practice on PEBs in areas related to the use of water, electricity and chemicals. This is a cross disciplinary proposal which brings some of the theoretical insights from the disparate areas of network modeling (social network theory, diffusion theory); social psychology (e.g. self-determination theory, social learning theory, social norms) and marketing (word of mouth marketing, social marketing, catalytic individuals) and sustainability management together in one project that has real potential, both to transform a particular sector, and to test the efficacy of developing a more innovative and bottom-up approach to social marketing to address our urgent need for a transition to a low carbon economy.