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Motivation Toward the Environment Scale (MTES)3

Motivation Toward the Environment Scale (MTES) Test

Understand what drives your environmental mindset in 5 minutes. Get clear insight into 6 motivation types with 24 items to guide more sustainable habits and programs.

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Questions: 245 minutes

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

32,683 views

3,291 completion

2,697 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

4/7

Amotivation (A)

Amotivation measures the degree of indifference, perceived lack of control, and absence of personal drive to engage in environmentally friendly behavior.

Low amotivation

Moderate amotivation

High amotivation

1 – 2.9: Low amotivation | 3 – 5: Moderate amotivation | 5.1 – 7: High amotivation

A score of 4 indicates moderate amotivation, suggesting occasional feelings of disengagement or limited impact on environmental outcomes that may reduce consistent ecological action.

example score

4/7

Externally Regulated (ER)

Measures how much a person’s ecological actions are driven by external pressure, rewards, or the desire for approval rather than personal commitment.

Low external drive

Moderate external drive

High external drive

1 – 2: Low external drive | 3 – 5: Moderate external drive | 6 – 7: High external drive

A score of 4 indicates a moderate level of externally regulated motivation, suggesting environmental actions are sometimes influenced by others’ expectations or approval.

example score

5/7

Introjected Motivation (IM)

Measures how much ecological behavior is driven by internal pressure such as guilt, shame, or the need to protect self-esteem.

Low internal pressure

Moderate internal pressure

High internal pressure

1 – 2.9: Low internal pressure | 3 – 4.9: Moderate internal pressure | 5 – 7: High internal pressure

A score of 5 suggests your eco-friendly actions are often motivated by avoiding guilt or maintaining self-image rather than purely by enjoyment or personal values.

example score

4/7

Identified Regulation (IR)

Measures how strongly a person consciously endorses environmental actions as personally important, even when they require effort.

Low

Moderate

High

1 – 2.9: Low | 3 – 5: Moderate | 5.1 – 7: High

A score of 4 indicates a moderate level of identified motivation, suggesting you generally view eco-friendly choices as personally meaningful but may not apply them consistently in all situations.

example score

5/7

Integrated (I)

Measures the extent to which pro-environmental behavior is integrated into a person’s self-identity and core values.

Low integration

Moderate integration

High integration

1 – 3: Low integration | 3.1 – 5: Moderate integration | 5.1 – 7: High integration

A score of 5 indicates moderate integration, suggesting environmental values are fairly internalized and often guide choices, though they may not be consistently central across all situations.

example score

5/7

Intrinsic Motivation (IM)

Measures how much ecological actions are driven by genuine interest and enjoyment rather than external rewards or pressure.

Low intrinsic

Moderate intrinsic

High intrinsic

1 – 2: Low intrinsic | 3 – 5: Moderate intrinsic | 6 – 7: High intrinsic

A score of 5 indicates a moderate level of intrinsic motivation, suggesting you often enjoy and feel personally interested in pro-environmental actions even when they require effort.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Eco-curious everyday changers

41%OF USERS

People who recycle, save energy, or try greener habits and want to understand what truly motivates them to keep going.

Students and educators

33%OF USERS

Learners and teachers who use the test for classes or projects to explore different types of environmental motivation.

Sustainability program organizers

26%OF USERS

Project leads and researchers who need quick insight into whether participation is driven by values, pressure, rewards, or indifference.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you complete the test, your results are compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.

Amotivation (A)

Average

3.9

Normal range

2.8 — 4.9

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Externally regulated (Er)

Average

3.3

Normal range

2.3 — 4.4

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Introjected (I)

Average

3.1

Normal range

2.1 — 4.2

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Identified (I)

Average

4.2

Normal range

3.1 — 5.3

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Integrated (I)

Average

5.3

Normal range

4.2 — 6.4

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internal (I)

Average

Normal range

4 — 6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

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SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

People engage in various actions to protect the environment. Below are statements describing possible reasons for engaging in these actions. Using the response scale, indicate the extent to which each statement reflects why you care about the environment.

- Absolutely untrue
- Untrue
- Somewhat untrue
- Neither true nor untrue
- Somewhat true
- True
- Absolutely true
- Not at all true
- Untrue
- Mostly untrue
- Somewhat true
- Mostly true
- True
- Completely true
- Completely false
- False
- Rather false
- Neither true nor false
- Rather true
- True
- Completely true

These are 3 of the 24 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

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WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Pro-environmental Motivation Scale, MTES Test

Motivation Toward the Environment Scale (MTES) Test - Symptoms and Signs

ecology

self-determination

This measure assesses self-reported motivations related to environmental concern and behavior. The Motivation Toward the Environment Scale (MTES) is intended to characterize distinct regulatory styles underlying engagement with pro-environmental actions.

The instrument contains 24 items and typically requires about 5 minutes to complete. It yields scores reflecting different types of motivation, ranging from more autonomous forms (e.g., intrinsic, integrated, identified) to more controlled forms (e.g., introjected, externally regulated), as well as amotivation. Developed by Susan Clayton and Wesley Schultz, the Motivation Toward the Environment Scale (MTES) may be used in research, educational, or program-evaluation contexts to describe motivational profiles and to inform interpretation of barriers or facilitators to sustained environmental engagement.

Author: Susan Clayton, Wesley Schultz

Literature: Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. Plenum Press. 1985.; Pelletier, L. G., Tuson, K. M., Green-Demers, I., Noels, K., & Beaton, A. M. Why are you doing things for the environment? The Motivation Toward the Environment Scale (MTES). Journal of Applied Social Psychology. 1998.