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Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

Category

Psychology & Environmental Studies > Behavioral & Sustainability Sciences > Consumer Behaviors

Received

August 23, 2023

Accepted

March 8, 2024

Published

July 1, 2024

Authors

Yuhan Bi1** and Kimberly A. Barchard, Ph.D.1

Author Affiliations

1Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA.

Corresponding Author

*Yuhan Bi, biy1@unlv.nevada.edu

Author Contributions

(YB): Conceptualization of research question, data analysis, original draft writing, reviewing and editing, and approving the version to be published.

(KAB): Conceptualization of research question, study design and data collection, data curation, project administration, review and editing, and approving the version to be published.

Data Availability Statement

The author of this article confirms that all included sources are fully available without restrictions.

Conflicts of Interest

The author declares that no conflicts of interest exist.

Ethical Considerations

This study was approved by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Institutional Review Board for the use of human subjects. The study involved only minimal risk and no adverse consequences were expected as a result of participation. Participants indicated their consent to the online study by selecting the radio button that said “I consent” at the bottom of the consent form.

Funding

This study was not funded.

Abstract

Household consumption is a primary source of green-house gas emissions. Individuals can substantially reduce their climate impact by making sustainable purchasing choices, such as choosing products that are made locally and have less packaging, buying used, repairing items rather than replacing them, supporting libraries and bike-share programs, encouraging others to buy less, and donating to charity in someone’s name rather than buying gifts. The Climate Change Action Inventory measures the frequency of 77 daily behaviors, including 14 items regarding Climate-Friendly Purchasing Choices. The purpose of this research was to determine if purchasing choices could be divided into meaningful factors. We recruited 500 United States MTurk workers, aged 19 to 76 (mean 40). Both the minimum average partial test and scree test both suggested three factors, which were rotated using direct oblimin. We labeled the factors Choosing Sustainable Options, Supporting Collective Action, and Avoiding Buying New. These three factors have strong inter-correlations, suggesting that interventions to increase one type of sustainable purchasing choice might also impact other types of sustainable purchasing choices.

Keywords

Climate Change, Sustainability, Pro-environmental Behavior, Consumer Behavior, Upcycling

Submission Type

Primary research article

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