Väitös (taloussosiologia): MSc Meiting Liu
MSc Meiting Liu esittää väitöskirjansa ”Going green without a silver spoon: How social processes within families influence proenvironmental behaviors in China” julkisesti tarkastettavaksi Turun yliopistossa keskiviikkona 22.10.2025 klo 12.00 (Turun yliopisto, Publicum, PUB1 Mauno Koivisto -luentosali, Assistentinkatu 7, Turku).
Vastaväittäjänä toimii apulaisprofessori Markus Kaakinen (Helsingin yliopisto) ja kustoksena Pekka Räsänen (Turun yliopisto). Tilaisuus on englanninkielinen. Väitöksen alana on taloussosiologia.
Väitöskirja yliopiston julkaisuarkistossa: https://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-02-0402-0 (kopioi linkki selaimeen).
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Tiivistelmä väitöstutkimuksesta:
Although we’re facing a global environmental crisis, countries like China still have to balance economic growth with protecting the environment. It’s not easy. Challenges like poverty, inequality, and political issues often get in the way. Even when governments create environmental policies, they may not be well enforced, so people don’t always adopt eco-friendly habits.
This situation made me ask an important question: Can people still help the environment even if caring for it isn’t the norm in their society?
In my dissertation, I focused on adolescents in China and looked at what encourages or discourages them from acting in environmentally friendly ways—what I call proenvironmental behaviors.
I used different kinds of data, including national survey results and my own studies with students aged 11 to 17 in Central China. I looked at things like their family background, values, goals for the future, and consumption habits.
What I found interesting were:
- Adolescents who want to move up in life (social mobility) were more likely to act in environmentally friendly ways.
- Respect for parents and traditional family values also encouraged adolescents to care for the environment.
- Adolescents from wealthier childhood backgrounds, those who bought commercial insurance, or those who were focused on material things (like money or status) were less likely to act in environmentally friendly ways.
Overall, my research shows that even in places being eco-friendly isnt common, people—especially young people—can still make a difference. They don’t have to wait for proenvironmental habits to become the social norm.
If adolescents are encouraged to live with purpose, think beyond material wealth, and value traditional ethics, they may develop more sustainable lifestyles.
Vastaväittäjänä toimii apulaisprofessori Markus Kaakinen (Helsingin yliopisto) ja kustoksena Pekka Räsänen (Turun yliopisto). Tilaisuus on englanninkielinen. Väitöksen alana on taloussosiologia.
Väitöskirja yliopiston julkaisuarkistossa: https://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-02-0402-0 (kopioi linkki selaimeen).
***
Tiivistelmä väitöstutkimuksesta:
Although we’re facing a global environmental crisis, countries like China still have to balance economic growth with protecting the environment. It’s not easy. Challenges like poverty, inequality, and political issues often get in the way. Even when governments create environmental policies, they may not be well enforced, so people don’t always adopt eco-friendly habits.
This situation made me ask an important question: Can people still help the environment even if caring for it isn’t the norm in their society?
In my dissertation, I focused on adolescents in China and looked at what encourages or discourages them from acting in environmentally friendly ways—what I call proenvironmental behaviors.
I used different kinds of data, including national survey results and my own studies with students aged 11 to 17 in Central China. I looked at things like their family background, values, goals for the future, and consumption habits.
What I found interesting were:
- Adolescents who want to move up in life (social mobility) were more likely to act in environmentally friendly ways.
- Respect for parents and traditional family values also encouraged adolescents to care for the environment.
- Adolescents from wealthier childhood backgrounds, those who bought commercial insurance, or those who were focused on material things (like money or status) were less likely to act in environmentally friendly ways.
Overall, my research shows that even in places being eco-friendly isnt common, people—especially young people—can still make a difference. They don’t have to wait for proenvironmental habits to become the social norm.
If adolescents are encouraged to live with purpose, think beyond material wealth, and value traditional ethics, they may develop more sustainable lifestyles.
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