Abstract Direct exploitation of resources, climate change, and land pollution drive marine degradation. Influencing these drivers are political, cultural and economic systems, which are guided by people’s values, beliefs, and behaviours. To tackle this conservation challenge and make oceans more sustainable, we need to understand how people think and act in relation to marine issues. This article examined marine value orientations, beliefs and personal norms. Self-administered questionnaires were randomly delivered to coastal residents in Newfoundland, Canada (n = 776, response rate = 49 %). The structural equation model predicted 86 % of the variance in personal norms. Newfoundland residents felt a moral obligation to act in favour of a healthy ocean when they care for the ocean (relational value), felt responsible for their actions, and were aware of the negative impacts of humans can have on marine environments. Relational, instrumental, and intrinsic value orientations were also related to knowledge of human impacts on the ocean. The results imply that efforts aimed at inspiring people to engage in sustainable behaviours should be grounded on relational values, such as care and concern for the ocean.

中文翻译：

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价值取向和信念有助于海洋保护个人规范的形成

摘要 资源的直接开发、气候变化和土地污染导致海洋退化。影响这些驱动因素的是政治、文化和经济体系，它们以人们的价值观、信仰和行为为指导。为了应对这一保护挑战并使海洋更具可持续性，我们需要了解人们对海洋问题的思考和行动方式。本文考察了海洋价值取向、信仰和个人规范。自填式问卷随机发放给加拿大纽芬兰的沿海居民（n = 776，响应率 = 49 %）。结构方程模型预测了个人规范中 86% 的差异。纽芬兰居民在关心海洋（关系价值）时感到有道德义务为健康的海洋采取行动，对自己的行为负责，并意识到人类可能对海洋环境产生的负面影响。关系、工具和内在价值取向也与人类对海洋影响的知识有关。结果表明，旨在激励人们参与可持续行为的努力应基于关系价值观，例如对海洋的关心和关注。