IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jconsa/v56y2022i1p68-96.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The coronavirus pandemic: A window of opportunity for sustainable consumption or a time of turning away?

Author

Listed:
  • Alexandra Hüttel
  • Ingo Balderjahn

Abstract

As a means to preserve present and future generations' living conditions, sustainable consumption presents a route to the enhanced well‐being of individuals. However, the occurrence of the COVID‐19 pandemic raises the question of whether society is going to continue down a path of increased awareness of sustainable consumption or whether the pandemic will move people to focus more on themselves. Based on data gathered before and near the end of the first pandemic lockdown in Germany in spring 2020, this research demonstrates that ecological, social, and voluntary simplicity consciousness deteriorated in the minds of sustainability‐conscious consumers, with notable impacts on their willingness to spend sustainably and their shopping affinity. Furthermore, we identify segments that show particular vulnerability to the lockdown by reacting with a decrease in their ecological consumption consciousness. This study concludes with a discussion of the pandemic's implications for the spread of sustainable consumption styles and human well‐being.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexandra Hüttel & Ingo Balderjahn, 2022. "The coronavirus pandemic: A window of opportunity for sustainable consumption or a time of turning away?," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 68-96, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jconsa:v:56:y:2022:i:1:p:68-96
    DOI: 10.1111/joca.12419
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/joca.12419
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/joca.12419?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stéphane Hallegatte & Valentin Przyluski, 2010. "The Economics of Natural Disasters," CESifo Forum, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 11(02), pages 14-24, July.
    2. Goolsbee, Austan & Syverson, Chad, 2021. "Fear, lockdown, and diversion: Comparing drivers of pandemic economic decline 2020," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    3. Dang, Hai-Anh H. & Viet Nguyen, Cuong, 2021. "Gender inequality during the COVID-19 pandemic: Income, expenditure, savings, and job loss," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    4. Peyer, Mathias & Balderjahn, Ingo & Seegebarth, Barbara & Klemm, Alexandra, 2017. "The role of sustainability in profiling voluntary simplifiers," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 37-43.
    5. Ingo Balderjahn & Anja Buerke & Manfred Kirchgeorg & Mathias Peyer & Barbara Seegebarth & Klaus-Peter Wiedmann, 2013. "Consciousness for sustainable consumption: scale development and new insights in the economic dimension of consumers’ sustainability," AMS Review, Springer;Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 3(4), pages 181-192, December.
    6. Belk, Russell W, 1988. "Possessions and the Extended Self," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 15(2), pages 139-168, September.
    7. Julie Sneath & Russell Lacey & Pamela Kennett-Hensel, 2009. "Coping with a natural disaster: Losses, emotions, and impulsive and compulsive buying," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 45-60, March.
    8. Rahmiye Figen Ceylan & Burhan Ozkan & Esra Mulazimogullari, 2020. "Historical evidence for economic effects of COVID-19," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 21(6), pages 817-823, August.
    9. Soo Kim & Derek D. Rucker, 2012. "Bracing for the Psychological Storm: Proactive versus Reactive Compensatory Consumption," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 39(4), pages 815-830.
    10. Kirk, Colleen P. & Rifkin, Laura S., 2020. "I'll trade you diamonds for toilet paper: Consumer reacting, coping and adapting behaviors in the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 124-131.
    11. Hüttel, Alexandra & Balderjahn, Ingo & Hoffmann, Stefan, 2020. "Welfare Beyond Consumption: The Benefits of Having Less," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    12. J. Allister McGregor, 2014. "Human wellbeing and sustainability: interdependent and intertwined," Chapters, in: Giles Atkinson & Simon Dietz & Eric Neumayer & Matthew Agarwala (ed.), Handbook of Sustainable Development, chapter 14, pages 217-234, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    13. Sheth, Jagdish, 2020. "Impact of Covid-19 on consumer behavior: Will the old habits return or die?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 280-283.
    14. Barbara Seegebarth & Mathias Peyer & Ingo Balderjahn & Klaus-Peter Wiedmann, 2016. "The Sustainability Roots of Anticonsumption Lifestyles and Initial Insights Regarding Their Effects on Consumers' Well-Being," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(1), pages 68-99, March.
    15. Naeem, Muhammad, 2021. "Do social media platforms develop consumer panic buying during the fear of Covid-19 pandemic," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    16. Jing Xiao & Haifeng Li, 2011. "Sustainable Consumption and Life Satisfaction," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 104(2), pages 323-329, November.
    17. Ingo Balderjahn & Michael S.W. Lee & Barbara Seegebarth & Mathias Peyer, 2020. "A Sustainable Pathway to Consumer Wellbeing. The Role of Anticonsumption and Consumer Empowerment," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(2), pages 456-488, June.
    18. Derek D. Rucker & Adam D. Galinsky, 2008. "Desire to Acquire: Powerlessness and Compensatory Consumption," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(2), pages 257-267, April.
    19. Martina Schäfer & Melanie Jaeger-Erben & Sebastian Bamberg, 2012. "Life Events as Windows of Opportunity for Changing Towards Sustainable Consumption Patterns?," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 35(1), pages 65-84, March.
    20. Pantano, Eleonora & Pizzi, Gabriele & Scarpi, Daniele & Dennis, Charles, 2020. "Competing during a pandemic? Retailers’ ups and downs during the COVID-19 outbreak," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 209-213.
    21. Chizuru Nishio & Minoru Ishida & Toshie Takeuchi, 2014. "The impact of natural disasters on the values and lifestyles of consumers: in the case of the Tohoku Earthquake," Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(2), pages 172-188, March.
    22. Giles Atkinson & Simon Dietz & Eric Neumayer & Matthew Agarwala (ed.), 2014. "Handbook of Sustainable Development," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 15312.
    23. Marina A. Kartseva & Polina O. Kuznetsova, 2020. "The economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic: which groups will suffer more in terms of loss of employment and income?," Population and Economics, ARPHA Platform, vol. 4(2), pages 26-33, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kyung-Tae Lee, 2022. "How Are Material Values and Voluntary Simplicity Lifestyle Related to Attitudes and Intentions toward Commercial Sharing during the COVID-19 Pandemic? Evidence from Japan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-14, June.
    2. Elizabeth A. Minton, 2022. "Pandemics and consumers' mental well‐being," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(1), pages 5-14, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. F. Ziesemer & A. Hüttel & I. Balderjahn, 2021. "Young People as Drivers or Inhibitors of the Sustainability Movement: The Case of Anti-Consumption," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 44(3), pages 427-453, September.
    2. Katarina Valaskova & Pavol Durana & Peter Adamko, 2021. "Changes in Consumers’ Purchase Patterns as a Consequence of the COVID-19 Pandemic," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 9(15), pages 1-17, July.
    3. Cruz-Cárdenas, Jorge & Zabelina, Ekaterina & Guadalupe-Lanas, Jorge & Palacio-Fierro, Andrés & Ramos-Galarza, Carlos, 2021. "COVID-19, consumer behavior, technology, and society: A literature review and bibliometric analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    4. Hüttel, Alexandra & Balderjahn, Ingo & Hoffmann, Stefan, 2020. "Welfare Beyond Consumption: The Benefits of Having Less," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    5. Anker, Thomas Boysen, 2021. "At the boundary: Post-COVID agenda for business and management research in Europe and beyond," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 39(2), pages 171-178.
    6. Sawang, Sukanlaya & Lee, Chia-Chi & Chou, Cindy Yunhsin & Vighnesh, Nanjangud Vishwanath & Chandrashekar, Deepak, 2023. "Understanding post-pandemic market segmentation through perceived risk, behavioural intention, and emotional wellbeing of consumers," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    7. Mostafa Ghodsi & Ali Ardestani & Arash Rasaizadi & Seyednaser Ghadamgahi & Hao Yang, 2021. "How COVID-19 Pandemic Affected Urban Trips? Structural Interpretive Model of Online Shopping and Passengers Trips during the Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-15, October.
    8. Michela Piccarozzi & Cecilia Silvestri & Patrizio Morganti, 2021. "COVID-19 in Management Studies: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-28, March.
    9. Ali Zackery & Joseph Amankwah-Amoah & Zahra Heidari Darani & Shiva Ghasemi, 2022. "COVID-19 Research in Business and Management: A Review and Future Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-32, August.
    10. Peluso, Alessandro M. & Pichierri, Marco & Pino, Giovanni, 2021. "Age-related effects on environmentally sustainable purchases at the time of COVID-19: Evidence from Italy," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    11. Tarek Ben Hassen & Hamid El Bilali & Mohammad S. Allahyari & Sinisa Berjan & Darjan Karabašević & Adriana Radosavac & Goran Dašić & Ružica Đervida, 2021. "Preparing for the Worst? Household Food Stockpiling during the Second Wave of COVID-19 in Serbia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-19, October.
    12. Jiang, Yangyang & Stylos, Nikolaos, 2021. "Triggers of consumers’ enhanced digital engagement and the role of digital technologies in transforming the retail ecosystem during COVID-19 pandemic," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    13. Balderjahn, Ingo & Peyer, Mathias & Seegebarth, Barbara & Wiedmann, Klaus-Peter & Weber, Anja, 2018. "The many faces of sustainability-conscious consumers: A category-independent typology," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 83-93.
    14. Morimura, Fumikazu & Sakagawa, Yuji, 2023. "The intermediating role of big data analytics capability between responsive and proactive market orientations and firm performance in the retail industry," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    15. Bożena Kusz & Lucyna Witek & Dariusz Kusz & Katarzyna Chudy-Laskowska & Paulina Ostyńska & Alina Walenia, 2023. "The Effect of COVID-19 on Food Consumers’ Channel Purchasing Behaviors: An Empirical Study from Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-17, March.
    16. Zielke, Stephan & Komor, Marcin & Schlößer, Andrea, 2023. "Coping strategies and intended change of shopping habits after the Corona pandemic – Insights from two countries in Western and Eastern Europe," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    17. Zaid Obeidat & Mohammad Ibrahim Obeidat, 2023. "A typology of Jordanian consumers after Covid‐19: The rational, the suspicious, and the cautious consumer," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(1), pages 121-139, January.
    18. Florence Ziesemer & Alexandra Hüttel & Ingo Balderjahn, 2019. "Pioneers’ Insights into Governing Social Innovation for Sustainable Anti-Consumption," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-16, November.
    19. Guthrie, Cameron & Fosso-Wamba, Samuel & Arnaud, Jean Brice, 2021. "Online consumer resilience during a pandemic: An exploratory study of e-commerce behavior before, during and after a COVID-19 lockdown," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    20. Park, Inyoung & Lee, Jieon & Lee, Daeho & Lee, Changjun & Chung, Won Young, 2022. "Changes in consumption patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic: Analyzing the revenge spending motivations of different emotional groups," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jconsa:v:56:y:2022:i:1:p:68-96. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0022-0078 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.