Naslov
Material well-being as sustainable consumption driver: Results of European studies

Autori
Dunković, Dario ; Knežević, Blaženka ; Borusiak, Barbara

Izvornik
Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review (2353-883X) 10 (2022), 4; 125-141

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
Sustainable consumption ; material well-being ; consumers ; sustainable practices ; Eurobarometer

Sažetak
The paper deals with the causality between material well-being indicators of all the EU-27 countries and sustainable consumption behaviour indicators of the corresponding consumers. The authors assumed that the material well-being construct is determined by net income and by actual individual consumption (AIC) variables, while the sustainable consumption construct captures five selected behavioural variables. Hypothesis is that material well-being significantly determines sustainable practices in European countries. The research model is tested by structural equation modeling (SEM) using path coefficients and developed construct predictors. Two sets of statistical data were used, the first one was data on material well-being from Eurostat 2019 and the second dataset was a public opinion poll covering the EU-27 countries as stated in the 2019 'Special Eurobarometer 501'. Consumers in countries with lower material well-being indicators had a lower capacity for implementing consumers’ sustainable practices. The reported causality is important for micro and macro policy decision-makers so they can regulate measures more reliably according to specific cities and countries and distribute scarce resources relevant to sustainable consumer practices. The paper contributes to the sustainable consumption theory by developing of new theoretical construction that combine the different sustainability featured variables. The introduction of policy measures for sustainable consumer behaviour, which at the same time require greater sacrifice, will depend on consumer income and their ability to meet the costs of environmentally friendly activities.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Ekonomija

POVEZANOST RADA