It is plausible that also the effects of trait affect on PEB may be mediated by other factors, including environmental concern (EC) and perceived consumer effectiveness (PCE). Hence, the aim of this paper is to investigate both the direct and indirect influences of trait affect on PEB through EC and PCE, which are key to systematic behaviours towards the environment. 2. Research background and hypotheses Axelrod and Lehman (1993, p. 153) define PEB as those "actions that contribute to the preservation and/or conservation of the environment". More recently, Stern (2000, p. 408) defined environmentally significant behaviour as "behaviour that has a positive impact on the availability of materials or energy and that positively alters the structure and dynamics of ecosystems or the biosphere". These concepts include actions aimed at avoiding damaging, or rehabilitating, the environment, which can be performed individually or collectively, and which impact directly or indirectly upon it. Following the pioneering work of Gardner and Stern (1996), and similarly to Stern (2000), Lee, Kim, Kim and Choi (2014) classify such actions into three broad categories of PEB: green purchases (the purchase of recycled goods or non-toxic substances), good citizenship (the minimisation of energy consumption, water conservation, along with the reduction of waste production and promotion of recycling), and environmental 4 activism (environmental group membership). In line with Milfont and Duckitt (2004, 2010) and Zhao, Gao, Wu, Wang and Zhu (2014), this study approaches PEB as being comprised of both green purchases and good citizenship behaviour, as detailed in the methodology. 2.1 Affect and pro-environmental behaviour Forgas and George (2001) argue that individuals' thinking and behaviours take place in an affective context, and that it is through cognition that the latter influences individuals' judgments and behaviours. Affect has most commonly been structured around a positive and negative valence (e.g., Thoresen et al., 2003). Positive affect (PA) concerns the extent to which individuals describe themselves as feeling joyful, energetic, alert, enthusiastic or fully concentrated. Negative affect (NA) comprises emotions such as fear, anxiety and sadness (Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988). Early research suggested that individuals high in PA process negative information in a superficial way (Isen, 2008). More recently, a considerable amount of research has proved otherwise (e.g., Isen, 2008). These works have shown that PA enhances thoroughness in processing both positive as well as negative information (Aspinwall, 1998). In this context, individuals scoring higher on PA tend to "approach their environment with more favourable expectations, and display a stronger willingness and enthusiasm to seek out and actively engage in various life events" (Kuiper, McKee, Kazarian, & Olinger, 2000, p. 480). Conversely, individuals with higher levels of NA tend to perceive the world surrounding them in a negative manner (Kuiper et al., 2000), and...
Consumer credit is a central feature of modern living, having been an important topic of research for some time. In contrast, mindfulness has only recently gained research prominence. Our study develops a model that links individuals' mindfulness with their credit intentions/use, and that further proposes money attitudes as a mediator variable. Broad support for the model is provided by a sample of students from a Portuguese University and a second sample composed of adult US residents. The results suggest that mindfulness might play a significant role in shaping consumers' money attitudes and credit intentions/use. Additionally, the study suggests that the relationships of mindfulness and money attitudes with credit are only significant when credit is directed toward the purchase of nonbasic products. These results yield a number of considerations for future research and for institutions promoting financial education, which could lead to improved debt management and greater financial well‐being.
This paper proposes that the type of an individual's motivational forces underlies his/her willingness and ability to acquire financial literacy (FL), whose outcomes ultimately shape consumers' well-being. Specifically, we study the FL of young adults, relying on regulatory focus (RF) theory, which considers two motivational systems, namely a prevention and a promotion system. Using a sample of 682 students from a Portuguese public university we examine the relationship between RF and FL, considering the mediating effect of money attitudes (MA). To test the research hypotheses we rely on structural equation modelling. The results provide support for our predictions. Prevention is negatively related to FL, and promotion is positively related to it. Moreover, prevention positively relates to power-prestige, distrust, and anxiety, and negatively relates to retention-time, whereas promotion is positively associated with retention-time and negatively with distrust. The relationship between RF and FL is partially mediated by MA. Hence, this study tests a number of novel relationships, yielding relevant policy implications.
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