Table 6: Highest and lowest rankings of statements within scales for all groups combined.

Scales and Statements Mean
Pollution Sensitivity Scale
       Highest ranked statements
            Air pollution from trucks, buses, cars 4.95
            Polluted rivers, harbors, lakes, or ocean 4.68
            Pesticides - insect sprays, lawn chemicals, etc. 4.60
            Pesticides, hormones, antibiotics in our food 4.42
       Lowest ranked statements
            Radiation from nuclear power plant 0.96
            Toxic places like abandoned factories or dumps 2.34
            Contaminated drinking water 2.37
            PCBs from landfills or from discarded electrical equipment getting into our water or food* 2.76
Pollution Causes Illness Scale
       Highest ranked statements
            Asthma is made worse by pollution in the air 7.77
            People should worry about toxic things in their home 6.79
            People who work with chemicals often get sick from it 6.05
            People may get sick because they don’t eat the right foods to protect themselves from pollution * 5.19
       Lowest ranked statements
            The drinking water in my community causes health problemsn 2.28
            The air in my neighborhood looks or smells polluted 2.52
            The environment where I work might hurt my health 3.15
            Some schools in my community are contaminated and unhealthy 3.33
Pollution Acceptance Scale
       Highest ranked statements
            Many people I know don’t seem to get sick, even though they don’t try to keep contaminants out of their food * 4.51
            I don’t consider environmental problems nearly as important as other problems in my family or neighborhood 3.82
            People often exaggerate the amount of sickness caused by pollution 3.58
            If you want to eat a normal diet, you can’t spend time worrying about contaminants in your food* 3.13
       Lowest ranked statements
            People don't need to worry about toxic things, because our bodies can overcome the toxins 2.13
            Pollution is just a part of modern life, so we can’t do much about it 2.78
            I am too busy to do anything about how the environment affects health 2.95
            Eating a healthy diet will not make a difference in my health if I live near pollution * 2.97
Personal Environmental Action Scale
       Highest ranked statements
            I wash my fruits and vegetables thoroughly before using them * 8.50
            I do what is necessary to make sure my home is free of toxins, like lead and radon 6.84
            I avoid being around people who are smoking 6.77
            I pick up trash that I see in the street or around my neighborhood 6.54
       Lowest ranked statements
            I talk to my doctor or nurse about how to reduce the effects of pollution on my health 1.79
            I limit how much fish I eat because fish might contain toxic chemicals 3.50
            I eat organically grown food as much as I can* 3.78
            I avoid using insect sprays and pesticides because they could make people sick 5.21
Community Environmental Action Scale
       Highest ranked statements
            I tell others about how the environment can affect health 4.09
            I talk with my friends and neighbors about how we can get healthier foods in our town* 3.29
            I join with others in trying to keep polluting businesses out of our community 3.25
       Lowest ranked statements
            I attend meetings about environmental health problems in my community 2.28
            When something is polluting our community, my neighbors and I get it stopped 2.57
            I talk with my friends and neighbors about how we can get cleaner water in our town* 2.78

Note. Pollution Sensitivity Scale has eighteen statements with this question: “Are there any of these problems in your neighborhood?” 0 equals [none at all], 10 equals [very serious].
Pollution Causes Illness Scale has thirteen statements with this question: “Do things in the environment cause people to get sick?” 0 equals [disagree completely], 10 equals [agree completely].
Pollution Acceptance Scale has eight statements with this question: “Do people just need to live with these things?” 0 equals [disagree completely], 10 equals [agree completely].
Personal Environmental Action Scale has thirteen statements with this question: “Do you do things to help yourself with these problems?” 0 equals [never do this], 10 equals [always do this].
Community Environmental Action Scale has six statements with this question: “Do you do things with others in the community that help?” 0 equals [never do this], 10 equals [always do this].