| This study sought to understand the public perception of ecological values among adolescents in China. To clarify what adolescents considered as ecological values, 136 middle school and college students in Hangzhou were interviewed in a pilot survey, identifying 31 separate values, 62 characteristics associated with environmental consciousness, and 28 factors affecting their perception of these values. Based on these results, questionnaires consisting of three parts were then developed to survey the main factors behind their public perception of these ecological values. The content included the cognitive, emotional and behavioral reactions to projective ecological scenarios and several questions related to ecological values. A sample consisting of 1,361 adolescent students was randomly selected. The first part of the questionnaire results in five clusters of ecological values, six clusters of characteristics associated with environmental consciousness, and five clusters of factors affecting students'perception of ecological values. Differences in sex and age group had significant bearing on these clusters. The second part of the questionnaire surveys the students'psychological reactions, including intended cognitive, emotional and behavioral intentions towards three projective ecological scenarios. Result shows that the psychological reactions are more active when there is no personal interest at stake. The psychological reactions are stronger when the subject is projected into a hypothetical scenario as opposed to undirected projection. The intended cognitive, emotional and behavioral reactions to the three scenarios are significantly correlated. Apart from the environmental protection scenario, there is no significant difference in the intended cognitive, emotional and behavioral reactions to the three scenarios between three age groups in general. Overall, female subjects generated stronger psychological reactions than male subjects to the scenarios. The third part of the questionnaire surveys several questions related to ecological values. Ecological scenarios were used to investigate students'ecological sensitivity. Results showed that response was strongest among college students and lowest among junior middle school students. When given a choice between the ecological ethics espoused by Taoism, Confucianism and Christianity, subjects preferred Taoism the most and Christianity the least. In terms of daily ecological behavior, college students scored highest and senior middle school students scored lowest. The multiple regression analysis shows that intended behaviors under conditions where the subject has a personal interest and emotional reactions under conditions where there is no personal interest are a strong predictor of daily ecological behavior. There is significant attitudinal difference regarding the New Ecological Paradigm between three age groups.
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