ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an analysis of the environmental consciousness of European citizens. It explores environmental consciousness of Europeans at the individual and cross-national levels, and investigates how environmental consciousness has evolved between 1974 and 2020. The affective dimension is considered as the first dimension of environmental consciousness. It corresponds to environmental concerns and the perceived severity or importance of environmental issues. An assessment of global environmental conditions can be used to measure the affective dimension. Secondary data analysis has many advantages compared to primary data that are collected by a researcher or a public organisation using surveys, experiments or interviews. Flash Eurobarometer surveys aim to explore EU citizens’ perceptions and opinions on a specific topic. Flash Eurobarometer surveys are published irregularly. The last qualitative study is from 2014 and it dealt with public opinion about future innovations, science and technology.
