Environmental empathy and connectedness to nature are two main constructs that explain variations in pro-environmental behavior. However, little is known about whether environmental (cognitive and emotional) empathy and connectedness to nature might vary as a function of school adjustment. Participants were 881 Spanish adolescents from 12 to 17 years old (47.2% males). The design was a 2 × 2 MANOVA (school adjustment × sex). Results of the CFA analysis confirmed the theoretical assumptions about two different but related aspects of environmental empathy (cognitive and emotional) and connectedness to nature as a unidimensional construct. Overall, results showed that high school adjustment was related to higher environmental empathy (cognitive and emotional) and greater connectedness to nature. Moreover, interactions were found between school adjustment and sex. Females reported the highest levels of environmental emotional empathy and connectedness to nature (regardless of their school adjustment). By contrast, males with both low and high school adjustment reported lower environmental emotional empathy than females with high school adjustment. Furthermore, only males with high school adjustment reported similar connectedness to nature to that of females (regardless of their school adjustment). Implications of these findings for research and psychosocial interventions in environmental education are discussed. La empatía ambiental y la conexión con la naturaleza son dos constructos relevantes para explicar las variaciones en el comportamiento proambiental. Sin embargo, poco se sabe acerca de si la empatía ambiental (cognitiva y emocional) y la conexión con la naturaleza pueden variar en función del ajuste escolar. Los participantes fueron 881 adolescentes españoles de 12 a 17 años (47.2% hombres). El diseño fue un MANOVA 2 × 2 (ajuste escolar × sexo). Los resultados del análisis de CFA confirmaron los supuestos teóricos sobre dos dimensiones diferentes pero relacionadas de la empatía ambiental (cognitiva y emocional) y la conectividad con la naturaleza como un constructo unidimensional. En general, los resultados mostraron que un alto ajuste escolar se relacionaba con una mayor empatía ambiental (cognitiva y emocional) y una mayor conexión con la naturaleza. Además, se observó interacción entre el ajuste escolar y el sexo. Las mujeres reportaron un nivel más alto de empatía emocional ambiental y conexión con la naturaleza (independientemente de su ajuste escolar). En contraste, los hombres con ajuste escolar bajo y alto reportaron menor empatía emocional ambiental que las mujeres con ajuste escolar alto. Además, solo los hombres con alto ajuste en la escuela informaron de una conexión similar con la naturaleza que las mujeres (independientemente de su ajuste escolar). Se discuten las implicaciones de estos hallazgos para la investigación y la intervención psicosocial en el ámbito de la educación ambiental.

The university is an essential participant in education, a key place where societal change processes are developed. So, it must be a place to bring up current challenges and social requirements. That is the reason why it holds the responsibility to assure the creation of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values in the students to achieve an effective solution to environmental issues. The objective of this research was the assessment of the attitudes, knowledge, and pro-environmental behavior in university students from different faculties, studies, and degrees, as well as their influence in this group. The results show that most of the students have previous concepts of environment, and they consider that a good environmental education is necessary to solve the environmental issues that they have around. This proves that key factors in attitudes become essential elements for changing them. The differences made by gender and studies in several fields in attitudes (cognitive and emotional levels) are also confirmed.

Parents exert a strong influence on several adjustment outcomes. However, little is known about their influence on adolescents’ connectedness with the environment. This study examined the relationships between parenting styles, empathy and connectedness with the environment. The two-dimensional socialization model was used with four resulting styles: Indulgent, authoritative, neglectful and authoritarian. The sample comprised 797 adolescents (52.7% girls) from six public secondary schools who were aged between 12 and 16 years (M = 13.94, SD = 1.28). The results showed significant relationships between parental socialization styles, empathy and connectedness with nature. It was also observed that adolescents from indulgent and authoritative families showed higher levels of empathy and connectedness with the environment than adolescents raised by authoritarian and neglectful parents, with males from such families consistently presenting the lowest levels of empathy and connectedness, which was not the case among women. Additionally, women, regardless of the parental style in which they had been educated, showed greater cognitive and emotional empathy with the natural environment, while adolescents raised in indulgent and authoritative families displayed higher levels of empathy and connectedness than those with authoritarian and neglectful parents. These results suggest that indulgent and authoritative styles are stronger enablers of empathy and connectedness with nature.

The objective of this research is the analysis of sustainable development’s incorporation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the university from the environmental education approach. The study includes the necessary strategy to implement environmental contents, as well as the training of individuals to act with environmental responsibility. The descriptive, cross-sectional and quantitative methodology was used to create a questionnaire for university students. Then, we gathered data to achieve the goals proposed in this research: interpret the variations in environmental knowledge and behavior, and understand the conceptual aspects underlying in the students’ features, paying attention to the differences between men and women. The results show that many of the students have previous concepts about the environment, and they consider that environmental education is required to solve environmental issues. Finally, a training proposal is presented to introduce the topics of the SDGs and environmental education in the university.

Resumen: El objetivo de este trabajo fue construir y validar una escala de actitudes hacia el medio ambiente natural en adolescentes españoles. Se generaron 72 ítems a partir de los escritos de 264 adolescentes sobre actitudes hacia el medio ambiente. A través del juicio de expertos y de un estudio piloto se efectuó́ una depuración reduciendo la escala a 9 ítems que se administraron a una muestra de 833 adolescentes de ambos sexos. Mediante un análisis factorial exploratorio, se identificaron dos dimensiones, actitud proximal y actitud distal, que fueron replicadas a través de un análisis confirmatorio cuyos resultados mostraron un buen ajuste a los datos. Los índices de fiabilidad fueron adecuados y respecto de la validez se obtuvieron relaciones significativas con la empatía con el medio ambiente natural en sus dos dimensiones, cognitiva y emocional, y el ajuste escolar. También se obtuvieron diferencias significativas en función del género en la actitud distal, pero no en la actitud proximal. Se analizan los resultados obtenidos y se subraya la importancia de esta escala en la investigación ambiental en la adolescencia. The aim of this study was to design and validate a scale of attitudes towards the natural environment among Spanish teenagers. 72 items were generated from the writings of 264 adolescents on attitudes towards the environment. Through expert judgement and a pilot study, a depuration was carried out, reducing the scale to 9 items that were administered to a sample of 833 adolescents of both sexes. By means of an exploratory Factor analysis, two dimensions were identified, proximal attitude and distal attitude, which were replicated through a confirmatory analysis whose results showed a good fit to the data. Reliability indices were adequate and with respect to validity significant relationships were obtained with empathy with the natural environment in its two dimensions, cognitive and emotional, and school adjustment. Significant gender differences were also found in distal, but not proximal, attitudes. Results obtained are analysed and the importance of this scale in environmental research in adolescence is also highlighted.

The aim of this study was to determine well-being and its relationship to social support from friends and family communication in university students. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1679 university students aged 18–25 years from four universities in Spain. Logistical regression models were tested (p < 0.05). The students in the last year of university reported higher well-being scores in comparison with students in the previous years. Well-being was inversely related to family communication problems. Family communication and social support from friends were the factors that associated the most with better well-being. All the regression models were statistically significant and explained from 16% of the well-being in Year 4 students until 34% of the well-being in Year 1 students. Our findings could be useful for developing interventions to promote health in order to improve college students’ well-being. It is important for strategies to be developed in mental and family health areas.