Consumers’ Intention to Bring a Reusable Bag for Shopping in China: Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior

Abstract

Bringing a reusable bag for shopping is a typical pro-environmental behavior and has been shown to be effective in reducing plastics, but research regarding this green behavior is limited. In this regard, using the snowball sampling technique, this study conducts a survey on a sample of 361 Chinese consumers to investigate their intention to bring a reusable bag for shopping based on the theory of planned behavior. To increase the explaining power for behavioral intention, this study extended the TPB by adding two additional variables: locus of control and environmental concern. Data was analyzed using the structural equation modeling technique. Results show that attitude, perceived behavioral control, and subjective norm exert significant and positive influence on consumers’ intention to bring reusable bags for shopping, and the perceived behavioral control exerts the greatest influence, followed by attitude and subjective norm. Both locus of control and environmental concern fail to directly impact consumers’ bringing intention, but they could impact consumers’ intention indirectly. Specifically, the external locus of control exerts a negative influence on attitude and perceived behavioral control. Environmental concern positively impacts consumers’ attitudes towards bringing reusable bags for shopping. Results of this study could provide valuable insights into plastics management and policy design to promote consumers’ green shopping behaviors. For instance, the finding that perceived behavioral control is the greatest contributor to consumers’ intention to bring reusable bags highlights the importance of clearing reusable bag preparation and use barriers.

Is Female a More Pro-Environmental Gender? Evidence from China

“…The other three pro-environmental psychology variables include support for plastic ban policies, attitudes towards reducing plastics (reduce), and intention to bring a reusable bag for shopping (reuse and recycle), respectively. The intention to bring a reusable bag for shopping was measured by the scale developed by Wang and Li [40]. The sampling question is "I am willing to bring a reusable bag for shopping".…”

Environmental Concern, Environmental Knowledge, and Residents’ Water Conservation Behavior: Evidence from China

“…The purpose of this study is to explore the influential factors of Chinese residents' water conservation behaviors. Existing studies have discussed the psychological and knowledge-related influential factors of pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors [6,12]. For instance, based on the Theory of Planned Behavior proposed by Ajzen [26], existing studies found a positive relationship between people's subjective norms and water conservation behavior [27][28][29].…”

“…Environmental concern refers to the degree to which people are aware of environmental problems and their willingness to solve these problems [30]. As mentioned by Wang and Li [12], environmental concern exhibits an individual's strong attitude towards protecting the environment. Previous research has highlighted the importance and significance of environmental concern in explaining individuals' pro-environmental behaviors [31][32][33][34].…”

“…Water conservation is regarded as a typical pro-environmental behavior [6]. Many efforts have been made to study the influential factors of multiple pro-environmental activities [1,11,12], such as reusing plastic bags [13], green purchase behavior [14,15], energy savings [16], and energy sustainability policy design [17]. However, little research has been conducted regarding determinants of household water conservation behavior, especially in developing countries [18].…”

“…Water 2022, 14, 2087 2 of 12 Previous studies suggest that except for socio-demographic variables, whether people choose to conduct green behaviors is mainly affected by psychology and knowledge factors [20,21]. Regarding the psychological drivers of pro-environmental behaviors, existing studies indicate that environmental concern is a powerful one [6,22,23].…”