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The Role of the Ecological Awareness and the Influence on Food Preferences in Shaping Pro-Ecological Behavior of Young Consumers

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  • Bogdan Wierzbiński

    (Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship, Institute of Economics and Finance, University of Rzeszow, 35-601 Rzeszow, Poland)

  • Tomasz Surmacz

    (Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship, Institute of Economics and Finance, University of Rzeszow, 35-601 Rzeszow, Poland)

  • Wiesława Kuźniar

    (Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship, Institute of Economics and Finance, University of Rzeszow, 35-601 Rzeszow, Poland)

  • Lucyna Witek

    (Department of Marketing, The Faculty of Management, Rzeszow University of Technology, 35-959 Rzeszów, Poland)

Abstract

Pro-ecological behavior of consumers on the food market is conditioned by many factors, among which the literature on the subject particularly indicates, is high environmental awareness. Among other factors, the influence of social groups is also emphasized, in relation to young consumers; these are mainly peers and friends, which was confirmed by the authors’ research. The aim of the research was to identify the role of ecological awareness and influence on the food purchasing habits of young consumers in shaping their pro-ecological behavior. Based on the literature on the subject, structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the empirical material, reducing the number of dimensions through the use of factor analysis. Analyzing the collected material, the authors proposed three latent variables—ecological awareness (EA), impact on food preferences (IFP), and ecological behavior (EB). Hidden variables were defined by explicit variables, and the whole was characterized in the light of the literature. The research results indicated that there are significant correlations between all latent variables, however the strongest one could be observed between EA and EB. This proves that the ecological behavior of young consumers is strongly determined by their environmental awareness.

Suggested Citation

  • Bogdan Wierzbiński & Tomasz Surmacz & Wiesława Kuźniar & Lucyna Witek, 2021. "The Role of the Ecological Awareness and the Influence on Food Preferences in Shaping Pro-Ecological Behavior of Young Consumers," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-14, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:11:y:2021:i:4:p:345-:d:534970
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Rūtenis Jančius & Algirdas Gavenauskas, 2022. "The Influence of Values and Social Environment on Parents’ Environmental Attitudes: Lithuanian Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-23, October.
    2. Jacek Wysocki & Pawel Dec, 2021. "Pro-Ecological Initiatives and Profitability of Manufacturing Enterprises," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(4), pages 57-74.
    3. 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.
    4. Konrad Biercewicz & Urszula Chrąchol-Barczyk & Jarosław Duda & Małgorzata Wiścicka-Fernando, 2022. "Modern Methods of Sustainable Behaviour Analysis—The Case of Purchasing FMCG," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-24, October.
    5. Ewa Kochańska & Rafał M. Łukasik & Maciej Dzikuć, 2021. "New Circular Challenges in the Development of Take-Away Food Packaging in the COVID-19 Period," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-18, August.
    6. Tomasz Surmacz & Bogdan Wierzbiński & Wiesława Kuźniar & Lucyna Witek, 2024. "Towards Sustainable Consumption: Generation Z’s Views on Ownership and Access in the Sharing Economy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-23, July.
    7. Stanley Y. B. Huang & Kuei-Hsien Chen & Yue-Shi Lee, 2021. "How to Promote Medium-Sized Farms to Adopt Environmental Strategy to Achieve Sustainable Production during the COVID-19 Pandemic?," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-8, October.
    8. Dominika Mesinger & Aneta Ocieczek & Witold Kozirok & Tomasz Owczarek, 2023. "Attitudes of Young Tri-City Residents toward Game Meat in the Context of Food Neophobia and a Tendency to Look for Diversity in Food," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-22, February.

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