Determinants of Young Adult Consumers’ Environmentally and Socially Responsible Apparel Consumption

Abstract

Social and environmental responsibility of apparel sector has been drawing rising attention of policymakers and researchers in recent years. One possible solution to curb the detrimental effects caused by the clothing industry is to invoke more responsible demand of its heavy users, such as young clothing customers. This study aims to examine a model of the determinants of environmentally and socially responsible clothing consumption of young adult customers in a developing economy. The study has been performed on a convenience sample of 439 respondents in Serbia, by means of structured online survey. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), followed by two-step structural equation modeling procedure (SEM)—implying an examination of a measurement model, followed by testing of structural relationships—has been performed within data analysis. Results of the study indicate green consumption values as the most influential determinant of responsible apparel consumption, followed by conscious consumption and receptivity to green communication. Findings of the study contribute to the body of knowledge on responsible consumption and provide directions for practitioners and policymakers. Study limitations are noted and future research directions are provided.

Green Consumerism in Young Adults: Attitudes and Awareness in University Students in Johannesburg, South Africa

“…However, previous studies highlighted that the likelihood of visiting companies with green initiatives and the general consumer green behavior depends on gender and levels of income [121][122][123]. Similarly, a study conducted on factors that influence consumers to purchase in companies with green initiatives found that gender has a significant relationship with companies participants are likely to purchase in, with women purchasing in companies with green initiatives more than men [124]. These results have contributed to the literature pertaining to green consumerism.…”

Using Social Network Analysis to Identify the Critical Factors Influencing Residents’ Green Consumption Behavior

“…However, this method can only demonstrate whether the research factors have a significant impact on green consumption, but cannot determine the degree of influence of the factors. That is to say, this method cannot provide detailed information on the importance of various factors in SEM, nor can it identify which are the critical influencing paths in the influencing factor index [53,54]. Therefore, having constructed the influencing factor system, we used the Delphi method to screen and optimize the initial set of influencing factors, and formed the final influencing factor system of residents' GCB.…”

Attributes influencing responsible tourism consumer choices: Sustainable local food and drink, health-related services, and entertainment

“…The current research complements Jain et al's (2022) study in India because Spain's tourists have quite different characteristics. Other prior investigations have been limited by their cross-sectional nature (Vlastelica et al, 2023), as well as samples made up of participants from a single country, so longitudinal studies are needed to fill this gap. The present research provides a starting point for future longitudinal studies.…”

“…Responsible consumption is an integral part of the United Nations' sustainable development (SD) goals as it contributes to the achievement of long-term SD (Jain et al, 2022;Patwary, 2023). Consumers who incorporate social and environmental values into their buying decisions engage in responsible consumption regardless of the sector in which their purchases take place (Do Paço et al, 2019;Vlastelica et al, 2023). Individuals' values reflect their personal objectives and influence how their beliefs are expressed through responsible behavior (Yuriev et al, 2020).…”

“…Stakeholder theory (ST) suggests that implementing sustainability policies generates value for tourism companies, the local communities in which these firms operate, and tourism consumers. These tourists' positive relationship with destinations' environments and their attributes (e.g., resi-dents and local suppliers' products) is extremely important as tourism consumer satisfaction benefits locals and tourism activity providers (Alderighi, Bianchi, & Lorenzini, 2016;Björk & Kauppinen-Räisänen, 2019;Line & Hanks, 2016;Vlastelica et al, 2023).…”