Shaping environmental citizenship in universities through social responsibility, identification, and attitude

This study aims to evaluate the dual mediating effect of student-university identification (SUI) and environmental attitude (EA) on the relationship between university social responsibility (USR) and organisational citizenship behaviour for the environment (OCBE). An online survey was conducted to collect 247 responses from university students. The partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 4 showed a significant relationship between USRS and students’ EA. It was determined that USRS has a positive effect on EA, and EA has a significant influence on OCBE, while USR did not have any direct impact on OCBE. Even though the mediation of SUI between USRS and OCBE was not supported, instead, the EA was found to mediate the relationship between USRS and OCBE. This raises the importance of USR in forming students’ EA, which subsequently leads to their participation in environmentally responsible behaviours. Another contribution of this study to the OCBE literature is emphasising the increasing role of educational institutions in mandating students to acquire pro-environmental values and actions. The study proposes that educational institutions should play an active role in promoting social responsibility and environmental stewardship, as this can increase attitudes and behaviours, thus shaping a generation of sustainable Corporate Social Responsibility.