What does sustainability mean in the minds of consumers? A multi-country panel study
Publication type
Vlerick strategic journal articlePublication Year
2024Journal
Marketing LettersPublication Volume
35Publication Begin page
317Publication End page
377
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Show full item recordAbstract
In developed countries, sustainability is increasingly an active agenda topic for businesses. Yet a view on what sustainability exactly means in the minds of consumers is missing. In response to this research opportunity, online panel respondents from seven advanced economies (France, UK, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Netherlands, Australia, N = 5620) were surveyed in two cross-sectional waves. Factor analytical results show that consumers associate sustainability with three key subdimensions: ‘social equality’ (e.g., fair wages), ‘circularity’ (e.g., recycling) and ‘naturalness’ (e.g., avoiding use of pesticides and GMOs). This observation offers inspiration to update the traditional two-dimensional (social vs. environmental) structure of sustainability advanced in previous literature. In addition, the identified ‘naturalness’ dimension may point to a new route to stimulate pro-environmental behavior as it has both a strong link with the environment and may introduce an affective undertone. We discuss theoretical and managerial implications, and report observed country, gender, and age differences.Keyword
Consumer Perceptions, Sustainable Consumption, Cross-National Survey, Structural Equation Modeling, Dimensionality of SustainabilityKnowledge Domain/Industry
Marketing & Salesae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1007/s11002-023-09699-y