Patterns of Sustainability Awareness in Higher Education: Stakeholder- Based Segmentation at the University of Pécs
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15170/MM.2026.60.03.04Keywords:
sustainable university, sustainability knowledge, awareness, stakeholder segmentation, cluster analysisAbstract
THE AIM OF THE PAPER
Based on the survey database of the Sustainability Campus project at the University of Pécs, the aim of this study is to explore the patterns of sustainability-related awareness that characterize different university stakeholder groups. The research does not focus on attitudes or sustainable behaviour, but on the measurement and analysis of conceptual, global and institutional knowledge related to sustainability, that is, sustainability awareness, which can be regarded as the first step towards sustainability engagement.
METHODOLOGY
The analysis is based on data from 1,677 respondents belonging to six stakeholder groups: Hungarian students, international students, administrative staff, lecturers/researchers, partners and alumni. Nine variables were included to measure sustainability awareness. These capture familiarity with the basic concepts of sustainability, global sustainability frameworks and the sustainability strategy of the University of Pécs. After standardizing the variables, k-means cluster analysis was conducted. The relationship between stakeholder group membership and cluster membership was examined using the chi-square test, Monte Carlo estimation and Cramer’s V.
MOST IMPORTANT RESULTS
The analysis identified four clearly distinguishable sustainability awareness clusters, labelled as follows: Familiar with the Basic Concepts, Less Informed, Comprehensively Informed and Intermediate Group with Development Potential. The results show that stakeholder group membership is significantly associated with cluster membership. International students are overrepresented in the Less Informed cluster, while lecturers/researchers and partner stakeholders are more likely to belong to the Comprehensively Informed cluster.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that sustainability communication at university and faculty level should be targeted rather than uniform. International students need introductory information in English, Hungarian students need more visible links to institutional sustainability goals and programmes, while lecturers, researchers and partners can be involved in participatory forms of development and dissemination.
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