Understanding social sciences students’ perceptions of environment and nature: implications for critical thinking, reimagine socioecological futures and enriching intercultural dialogues

Alves, Fátima; Vidal, Diogo Guedes; Lourenço, Vitória; Viegas, Vanda

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.2/20191

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Understanding Social Sciences Students’ Perceptions of Environment and Nature.pdf	Capítulo de livro em revista internacional Alves, F., Vidal, D. G., Lourenço, V., & Viegas, V. (2025). Understanding Social Sciences Students’ Perceptions of Environment and Nature: Implications for Critical Thinking, Reimagine Socioecological Futures and Enriching Intercultural Dialogues. Em W. L. Filho, J. Newman, A. Lange Salvia, L. Viera Trevisan, & L. Corazza (Eds.), North American and European Perspectives on Sustainability in Higher Education (pp. 585–605). Springer Nature Switzerland. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-80434-2_32	314.54 KB	Adobe PDF	Download

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Abstract(s)

This study presents the results of a survey applied to students of the curricular unit called “Environment, Health, and Wellbeing” which is part of the undergraduate degree in Social Sciences at the Universidade Aberta (Open University), an online distance public university in Portugal. The purpose of the survey was to understand students’ perceptions of the environment and nature, as constructed in their particular sociocultural contexts. It consisted of a series of questions about their environmental perceptions, their position on the environmental crisis and a call to re-imagine future socio-ecological scenarios. The survey was applied online to a universe of 308 students, organised in 5 classes of this curricular unit. With a total of 92 responses (29.9%), the majority of responses came from females (79.8%), with an average age of 44 years old and employed. Through qualitative analysis and reference to established themes, we reveal the multifaceted nature of students’ perspectives on environmental challenges. Students are concerned about environmental issues such as climate change, pollution and loss of biodiversity and believe that these issues should be addressed through policies and regulations. They were also capable of envisioning potential futures and exploring pessimistic, realistic, and optimistic scenarios. These findings underscore the significance of acknowledging and embracing diversity in social-ecological education. They bolster the argument that adjusting educational strategies to accommodate various perspectives, identifying obstacles, fostering critical thinking, and promoting innovation can inspire contextually relevant solutions to global socio-environmental challenges. Socio-ecological education needs to resonate with a wide range of students to empower them as agents of change in our rapidly changing world.

Keywords

Nature Environment Social perceptions Socioecological futures Critical thinking

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http://hdl.handle.net/10400.2/20191

Citation

Alves, F., Vidal, D. G., Lourenço, V., & Viegas, V. (2025). Understanding Social Sciences Students’ Perceptions of Environment and Nature: Implications for Critical Thinking, Reimagine Socioecological Futures and Enriching Intercultural Dialogues. Em W. L. Filho, J. Newman, A. Lange Salvia, L. Viera Trevisan, & L. Corazza (Eds.), North American and European Perspectives on Sustainability in Higher Education (pp. 585–605). Springer Nature Switzerland. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-80434-2_32