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Sustainable Consumer Behavior: Literature Overview

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  • Elena Kostadinova

    (University of National and World Economy, Sofia, Bulgaria)

Abstract

Sustainable consumption is a problem of growing importance and complexity. There is hardly another issue that combines the triviality of everyday human behavior and the abstract dimensions of moral responsibility and the man-nature relationship. Two main perspectives dominate research on sustainable consumer behavior – demand side (marketing) and supply side (business strategy). This paper reviews relevant literature on sustainable consumer behavior and discusses the problem from a marketing perspective. This study aims to introduce the concept of sustainable consumer behavior and its theoretical and methodological foundations, to outline key factors influencing sustainable consumption and the major challenges facing it.

Suggested Citation

  • Elena Kostadinova, 2016. "Sustainable Consumer Behavior: Literature Overview," Economic Alternatives, University of National and World Economy, Sofia, Bulgaria, issue 2, pages 224-234, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:nwe:eajour:y:2016:i:2:p:224-234
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. repec:blg:reveco:v:69:y:2017:i:6:p:41-53 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Selma Saracevic & Bodo B. Schlegelmilch, 2021. "The Impact of Social Norms on Pro-Environmental Behavior: A Systematic Literature Review of The Role of Culture and Self-Construal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-21, May.
    3. Darcy A. Santor & Ihssane Fethi & Sara-Emilie McIntee, 2020. "Restricting Our Consumption of Material Goods: An Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-13, January.
    4. Shobhana Chandra & Sanjeev Verma, 2023. "Big Data and Sustainable Consumption: A Review and Research Agenda," Vision, , vol. 27(1), pages 11-23, February.
    5. Catalin M. Stancu & Alice Grønhøj & Liisa Lähteenmäki, 2020. "Meanings and Motives for Consumers’ Sustainable Actions in the Food and Clothing Domains," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-25, December.
    6. Gratiela Dana Boca, 2021. "Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior in Sustainable Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Maramures County, Romania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-20, February.
    7. Lina Novikovienė & Ieva Navickaitė-Sakalauskienė, 2020. "Safeguarding the legal balance between competitive entrepreneurship (business) and sustainable consumption," Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 8(1), pages 868-883, September.
    8. Mario Pagliacci & Adriana Manolica & Teodora Roman & Gabriela Boldureanu, 2019. "The Consumers of Green Products. The Case of Romanian Moldavia Counties," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 21(S13), pages 830-830, November.
    9. Beckers, Joris & Cardenas, Ivan & Le Pira, Michela & Zhang, Jia, 2023. "Exploring Logistics-as-a-Service to integrate the consumer into urban freight," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    10. Lina PilelienÄ— & Vilma TamulienÄ—, 2021. "Consumer attitudes and behavior towards organic products: Evidence from the Lithuanian market," Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management and Innovation, Fundacja Upowszechniająca Wiedzę i Naukę "Cognitione", vol. 17(1), pages 269-299.
    11. DURALIA Oana, 2017. "The Influence Of Directly Observable Factors On The Behavior Of The Organic Agro-Food Products Consumer," Revista Economica, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 69(6), pages 42-54, December.
    12. Kokkinou, Alinda & Quak, Hans & Mitas, Ondrej & Mandemakers, Albert, 2024. "Should I wait or should I go? Encouraging customers to make the more sustainable delivery choice," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    13. Öykü Hazal Aral & Jordi López-Sintas, 2020. "A Comprehensive Model to Explain Europeans’ Environmental Behaviors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-27, May.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    sustainable consumer behavior; green consumer behavior; green purchasing; literature review;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • M31 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Marketing and Advertising - - - Marketing

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