Eastern Mennonite University
ER-13: Sustainability Literacy Assessment

The New Ecological Paradigm scale (NEP; Dunlap, Van Liere, Mertig, & Jones, 2000), is a 15-item scale with five response options, where a response of five indicates endorsement of an environmental worldview (seven items are reverse-coded). Adding the three Christian perspective items (one reverse-coded) resulted in an 18-item scale, henceforth referred to as the New Ecological Paradigm-Revised (NEP-R). Total scores on the NEP-R may therefore range from 18 to 90, with higher scores indicating stronger endorsement of the construct.

Dunlap et al. (2000) reported that the NEP has been used extensively to measure beliefs “about the nature of the earth and humanity’s relationship with it” (p. 427). They also cited many studies in which scale scores demonstrated satisfactory reliability and that provided evidence of predictive, content and construct validity. The NEP has been used successfully with American college student populations, and we consider it a compelling measure of the extent to which environmental sustainability is incorporated into a student’s value system (learning outcome 5). The QEP Planning Committee determined, however, that the scale would better serve our purposes if it also addressed the concept of sustainability as founded in Christian theology. Thus, we revised the scale to the NEP-R, which includes three new items for this purpose (see items 6, 12, and 18). In addition to the 18 Likert-type items comprising the NEP-R, the QEP Questionnaire includes the following open-ended, short answer items that align with learning outcomes 1 and 3, respectively: “What is your definition of ‘sustainability’?” and “List three things individuals can do to promote environmental sustainability.”

The NEP-R assessment is given each fall to all incoming first year undergraduate students the day before classes begin. It is also given to all senior undergraduate students in their general education Senior Seminar class either during the fall or spring semester of their senior year.

Overall the seniors scored slightly higher on the NEP questionnaire, with first years averaging scores around 60 and seniors around 65 during the first 3 years the questionnaire was administered (2009-2011). The first open ended questions (what is your definition of 'sustainability'?) was scored by first categorizing whether definition included ecological, social, economic, theological or 'a looking to the future" component. The majority of definitions including only one aspect, most likely ecological. Seniors, however, were more likely to include more complex definition with 2 or more components. The listing of sustainability actions yielded similar results, with actions relating to recycling or reusing being the most common named by students, but seniors being able to provide significantly more varied and/or complex answers.