Synchronizing Environmental Education Research Trends: Promoting Sustainable Practices and Enhancing Scientific Knowledge
Abstract
This research explores the diversity of topics related to environmental education issues and students’ environmental concerns regarding their behavior. The bibliometric method is a quantitative approach used to measure and investigate specific indicators within the literature published in a particular field. This method involves creating knowledge maps using extensive databases to identify patterns and trends. Using the keyword “environmental education” on Scopus from 2018 to 2023, 365 relevant documents were found. In the PRISMA flow diagram, the process started with 7550 traced documents, narrowing down to 2536 relevant documents through screening. From these, 776 related documents were chosen, and 573 relevant documents were recognized after the inclusion stage. Throughout, a total of 365 publications were included in the study. VOS viewer software was used to analyze data and generate bibliographic maps and networks. In the last five years, research on environmental education has experienced exciting fluctuations. Key sources like Sustainability Switzerland and the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health have played a significant role. Research by Bogner, F.X. stands out, reflecting high interest in environmental issues and education within the scientific community. Universities such as Universidad de Granada and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia contribute significantly. The United States leads in publications. Environmental education research remains crucial for sustainable practices and environmental literacy despite fluctuations. This data provides essential guidance for future research planning. This research not only underscores the increasing research emphasis on the educational ramifications of pandemics but also identifies specific areas that warrant more extensive exploration.
References
M. M. Chusni, S. Saputro, S. B. Rahardjo, and Suranto, “Student’s critical thinking skills through discovery learning model using e-learning on environmental change subject matter,” Eur. J. Educ. Res., vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 1123–1135, 2020, doi: 10.12973/EU-JER.10.3.1123.
E. Chuvieco, M. Burgui-Burgui, E. V. Da Silva, K. Hussein, and K. Alkaabi, “Factors affecting environmental sustainability habits of university students: Intercomparison analysis in three countries (Spain, Brazil and UAE),” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 198, pp. 1372–1380, 2018, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.07.121.
A. M. Aleixo, S. Leal, and U. M. Azeiteiro, “Higher education students’ perceptions of sustainable development in Portugal,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 327, p. 129429, 2021, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.129429.
B. G. Bergman, “Assessing impacts of locally designed environmental education projects on students’ environmental attitudes, awareness, and intention to act,” Environ. Educ. Res., vol. 22, no. 4, pp. 480–503, 2016, doi: 10.1080/13504622.2014.999225.
R. Dagiliūtė, G. Liobikienė, and A. Minelgaitė, “Sustainability at universities: Students’ perceptions from Green and Non-Green universities,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 181, pp. 473–482, 2018, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.01.213.
J. Butterworth and T. Geoff, Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Thinking Skills Thinking Skills Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Second edition, vol. 13, no. August. Cambridge University Press, 2013.
A. H. Toomey, A. T. Knight, and J. Barlow, “Navigating the Space between Research and Implementation in Conservation,” Conserv. Lett., vol. 10, no. 5, pp. 619–625, 2017, doi: 10.1111/conl.12315.
North American Association for Environmental Education, Across the Spectrum: Resources for Environmental Educators. North American Association for Environmental Education, 2015.
UNESCO—UNEP, “International Environmental Education Programme, Series 17. A Comparative Survey of the Incorporation of EE into School Curricula.” Unesco Paris, France, 1985.
R. Valderrama-Hernández, L. Alcántara, and D. Limón, “The Complexity of Environmental Education: Teaching Ideas and Strategies from Teachers,” Procedia - Soc. Behav. Sci., vol. 237, pp. 968–974, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2017.02.137.
S. Cornell et al., “Opening up knowledge systems for better responses to global environmental change,” Environ. Sci. Policy, vol. 28, pp. 60–70, 2013, doi: 10.1016/j.envsci.2012.11.008.
M. A. Vicente-Molina, A. Fernández-Sáinz, and J. Izagirre-Olaizola, “Environmental knowledge and other variables affecting pro-environmental behaviour: Comparison of university students from emerging and advanced countries,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 61, pp. 130–138, 2013, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.05.015.
T. S. A. Wright, “Definitions and frameworks for environmental sustainability in higher education,” Int. J. Sustain. High. Educ., vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 203–220, 2002, doi: 10.1108/14676370210434679.
H. L. Ballard, C. G. H. Dixon, and E. M. Harris, “Youth-focused citizen science: Examining the role of environmental science learning and agency for conservation,” Biol. Conserv., vol. 208, pp. 65–75, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2016.05.024.
Z. Akinci, G. Yurcu, and M. A. Kasalak, “The mediating role of perception in the relationship between expectation and satisfaction in terms of sustainability in tourism education,” Sustain., vol. 10, no. 7, p. 2253, 2018, doi: 10.3390/su10072253.
S. Otto and P. Pensini, “Nature-based environmental education of children: Environmental knowledge and connectedness to nature, together, are related to ecological behaviour,” Glob. Environ. Chang., vol. 47, pp. 88–94, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2017.09.009.
A. Diduck, “Critical education in resource and environmental management: Learning and empowerment for a sustainable future,” J. Environ. Manage., vol. 57, no. 2, pp. 85–97, 1999, doi: 10.1006/jema.1999.0289.
N. M. Ardoin and A. W. Bowers, “Early childhood environmental education: A systematic review of the research literature,” Educ. Res. Rev., vol. 31, p. 100353, 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.edurev.2020.100353.
N. M. Ardoin, A. W. Bowers, and E. Gaillard, “Environmental education outcomes for conservation: A systematic review,” Biol. Conserv., vol. 241, p. 108224, 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108224.
Á. Zsóka, Z. M. Szerényi, A. Széchy, and T. Kocsis, “Greening due to environmental education? Environmental knowledge, attitudes, consumer behavior and everyday pro-environmental activities of Hungarian high school and university students,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 48, pp. 126–138, 2013, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.11.030.
. N. M. and . F. M., “Based on Environmental Education: The Effects of Environmental Knowledge and Awareness on the Purchase Intention of New Energy Vehicles in the Southern part of China,” Adv. Soc. Sci. Res. J., vol. 5, no. 11, 2018, doi: 10.14738/assrj.511.5405.
Richmond, “Environmental and Health Initiatives,” Www.Ci.Richmond.Ca.Us, 2023. .
D. N. Pellow and F. Fischer, Citizens, Experts, and the Environment: The Politics of Local Knowledge, vol. 31, no. 5. Duke University Press, 2002.
M. L. Tseng, “Using linguistic preferences and grey relational analysis to evaluate the environmental knowledge management capacity,” Expert Syst. Appl., vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 70–81, 2010, doi: 10.1016/j.eswa.2009.05.020.
H. S. Auta, C. U. Emenike, and S. H. Fauziah, “Distribution and importance of microplastics in the marine environmentA review of the sources, fate, effects, and potential solutions,” Environ. Int., vol. 102, pp. 165–176, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.02.013.
H. Steinfeld, P. Gerber, T. Wassenaar, V. Castel, M. Rosales, and C. de Haan, Livestock’s long shadow: Environmental issues and options, vol. 24, no. 4. Food & Agriculture Org., 2006.
A. Abdullah, S. Z. Syed Zakaria, and M. R. Razman, “Environmental education through outdoor education for primary school children,” Int. J. Malay World Civiliz., vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 27–34, 2018.
J. E. Dyment, “Green school grounds as sites for outdoor learning: Barriers and opportunities,” Int. Res. Geogr. Environ. Educ., vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 28–45, 2005, doi: 10.1080/09500790508668328.
M. Rickinson et al., “A Review of Research on Outdoor Learning Executive Summary,” National Foundation for Educational Research, no. March. Shrewsbury, 2004.
A. C. Bell and J. E. Dyment, Grounds for action: Promoting physical activity through School Ground Greening in Canada. Evergreen, 2006.
R. Pandit, M. Dhakal, and M. Polyakov, “Valuing access to protected areas in Nepal: The case of Chitwan National Park,” Tour. Manag., vol. 50, pp. 1–12, 2015, doi: 10.1016/j.tourman.2014.12.017.
F. Ugolini, L. Massetti, L. Pellegrino, G. Rossini, A. Raschi, and B. Finato, “Environmental education by gaming,” in Mondo Digitale, 2016, vol. 15, no. 64, pp. 21–23.
L. Massetti et al., “Test of Innovative Environmental Education Methodologies in Tuscany,” in EDULEARN16 Proceedings, 2016, vol. 1, pp. 4697–4704, doi: 10.21125/edulearn.2016.2131.
N. M. Ardoin, M. DiGiano, J. Bundy, S. Chang, N. Holthuis, and K. O’Connor, “Using digital photography and journaling in evaluation of field-based environmental education programs,” Stud. Educ. Eval., vol. 41, pp. 68–76, 2014, doi: 10.1016/j.stueduc.2013.09.009.
Mr.Kapil Vashistha, “Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Development,” in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Development, 2019, vol. 9, no. 9th International Conference on Chemical & Environmental Engineering, pp. 413–439, doi: 10.25215/9386162261.
Q. Liu, D. Gong, and M. Chen, “Applying virtual reality to study the effects of environmental education on college students’ Ethics and environmental literacy,” Eurasia J. Math. Sci. Technol. Educ., vol. 14, no. 6, pp. 2255–2263, 2018, doi: 10.29333/ejmste/85937.
V. Aksel Stenberdt and G. Makransky, “Mastery experiences in immersive virtual reality promote pro-environmental waste-sorting behavior,” Comput. Educ., vol. 198, p. 104760, 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2023.104760.
G. Fauville, A. C. M. Queiroz, and J. N. Bailenson, “Virtual reality as a promising tool to promote climate change awareness,” Technol. Heal., pp. 91–108, 2020, doi: 10.1016/b978-0-12-816958-2.00005-8.
D. M. Markowitz and J. N. Bailenson, “Virtual reality and the psychology of climate change,” Curr. Opin. Psychol., vol. 42, pp. 60–65, 2021, doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.03.009.
A. Maz-Machado, B. Muñoz-Ñungo, D. Gutiérrez-Rubio, and C. León-Mantero, “Patterns of Authorship and Scientific Collaboration in Education: The Production of Colombia in ESCI,” Libr. Philos. Pract., vol. 2020, 2020.
K. Onopriienko, V. Onopriienko, Y. Petrushenko, and I. Onopriienko, “Environmental education for youth and adults: A bibliometric analysis of research,” in E3S Web of Conferences, 2021, vol. 234, p. 2, doi: 10.1051/e3sconf/202123400002.
N. Donthu, S. Kumar, D. Mukherjee, N. Pandey, and W. M. Lim, “How to conduct a bibliometric analysis: An overview and guidelines,” J. Bus. Res., vol. 133, pp. 285–296, 2021, doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.070.
F. E. Sandnes, “Is there an imbalance in the supply and demand for universal accessibility knowledge? Twenty years of UAIS papers viewed through the lens of WCAG,” Univers. Access Inf. Soc., vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 333–349, 2022, doi: 10.1007/s10209-021-00834-y.
J. L. Hung, “Trends of e-learning research from 2000 to 2008: Use of text mining and bibliometrics,” Br. J. Educ. Technol., vol. 43, no. 1, pp. 5–16, 2012, doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8535.2010.01144.x.
M. Thelwall, “Bibliometrics to webometrics,” J. Inf. Sci., vol. 34, no. 4, pp. 605–621, 2008, doi: 10.1177/0165551507087238.
R. Zeng and A. Chini, “A review of research on embodied energy of buildings using bibliometric analysis,” Energy Build., vol. 155, pp. 172–184, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.enbuild.2017.09.025.
M. J. Culnan, “The Intellectual Development of Management Information Systems, 1972–1982: A Co-Citation Analysis,” Manage. Sci., vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 156–172, 1986, doi: 10.1287/mnsc.32.2.156.
H. D. White and K. W. McCain, “Visualizing a discipline: An author co-citation analysis of information science, 1972-1995,” J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci., vol. 49, no. 4, pp. 327–355, 1998, doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-4571(19980401)49:4<327::AID-ASI4>3.0.CO;2-W.
J. P. Eaton, J. C. Ward, A. Kumar, and P. H. Reingen, “Structural analysis of co-author relationships and author productivity in selected outlets for consumer behavior research,” J. Consum. Psychol., vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 39–59, 1999, doi: 10.1207/s15327663jcp0801_02.
H. P. F. Peters and A. F. J. Van Raan, “Structuring scientific activities by co-author analysis - An expercise on a university faculty level,” Scientometrics, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 235–255, 1991, doi: 10.1007/BF02018157.
M. Callon, J. P. Courtial, W. A. Turner, and S. Bauin, “From translations to problematic networks: An introduction to co-word analysis,” Soc. Sci. Inf., vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 191–235, 1983, doi: 10.1177/053901883022002003.
Y. Ding, G. G. Chowdhury, and S. Foo, “Bibliometric cartography of information retrieval research by using co-word analysis,” Inf. Process. Manag., vol. 37, no. 6, pp. 817–842, 2001, doi: 10.1016/S0306-4573(00)00051-0.
Z. Chen and X. Zhao, “Visualization Analysis of Smart Classroom Research Based on CiteSpace,” IEEE Access, vol. 12, no. 11, pp. 20779–20801, 2024, doi: 10.1109/ACCESS.2024.3354719.
N. J. van Eck and L. Waltman, “CitNetExplorer: A new software tool for analyzing and visualizing citation networks,” J. Informetr., vol. 8, no. 4, pp. 802–823, 2014, doi: 10.1016/j.joi.2014.07.006.
N. J. van Eck and L. Waltman, “Citation-based clustering of publications using CitNetExplorer and VOSviewer,” Scientometrics, vol. 111, no. 2, pp. 1053–1070, 2017, doi: 10.1007/s11192-017-2300-7.
N. Aggrawal and A. Arora, “Visualization, analysis and structural pattern infusion of DBLP co-Authorship network using Gephi,” in Proceedings on 2016 2nd International Conference on Next Generation Computing Technologies, NGCT 2016, 2017, pp. 494–500, doi: 10.1109/NGCT.2016.7877466.
V. Batagelj and A. Mrvar, “Pajek — Analysis and Visualization of Large Networks,” Ref. Manual. Ljubljana, pp. 77–103, 2004, doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-18638-7_4.
A. Mrvar and V. Batagelj, “Analysis and visualization of large networks with program package Pajek,” Complex Adapt. Syst. Model., vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 1–8, 2016, doi: 10.1186/s40294-016-0017-8.
P. Pradhan, “Science mapping and visualization tools used in bibliometric & scientometric studies: An overview,” Inflibent, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 19–33, 2016, [Online]. Available: https://ir.inflibnet.ac.in/handle/1944/2132.
W. M. Sweileh, “Research trends on human trafficking: A bibliometric analysis using Scopus database,” Global. Health, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 1–12, 2018, doi: 10.1186/s12992-018-0427-9.
H. Y. Khudair, A. Bin Jusoh, A. F. Abbas, A. Mardani, and K. M. Nor, “Abbas Mardani and Khalil Md Nor, A Review and Bibliometric Analysis of Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction by using Scopus Database,” Int. J. Manag. (IJM, vol. 11, no. 8, pp. 459–470, 2020.
Elsevier, “Scopus: Content Coverage Guide,” Elsevier BV, vol. 2, pp. 1–22, 2014.
A. Agarwal et al., “Bibliometrics: Tracking research impact by selecting the appropriate metrics,” Asian J. Androl., vol. 18, no. 2, pp. 296–309, 2016, doi: 10.4103/1008-682X.171582.
P. Dzikowski, “A bibliometric analysis of born global firms,” J. Bus. Res., vol. 85, pp. 281–294, 2018, doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2017.12.054.
D. Mishra, A. Gunasekaran, T. Papadopoulos, and S. J. Childe, “Big Data and supply chain management: a review and bibliometric analysis,” Ann. Oper. Res., vol. 270, no. 1–2, pp. 313–336, 2018, doi: 10.1007/s10479-016-2236-y.
Y. Tang, X. Lu, X. Wan, and M. Hu, “A bibliometric analysis of publications on obsessive–compulsive disorder using VOSviewer,” Front. Psychiatry, vol. 14, no. 13, 2023, doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1136931.
N. J. van Eck and L. Waltman, “Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping,” Scientometrics, vol. 84, no. 2, pp. 523–538, 2010, doi: 10.1007/s11192-009-0146-3.
L. Meng, K. H. Wen, R. Brewin, and Q. Wu, “Knowledge atlas on the relationship between urban street space and residents’ health-a bibliometric analysis based on vos viewer and cite space,” Sustain., vol. 12, no. 6, p. 2384, 2020, doi: 10.3390/su12062384.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Copyright of the published article belongs to the authors and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY SA) International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See the Effect of Open Access).
