A qualitative examination of urban vs rural sustainable consumption behaviours of energy and water consumers in the emerging Egyptian market

Abstract

Purpose The study aims to investigate the differences among urban and rural consumers in terms of their energy and water sustainable consumption behaviour levels and drivers and also empirically blueprint conceptual frameworks highlighting urban and rural consumer drivers to consume sustainably. Design/methodology/approach This research follows an exploratory design using a qualitative approach; 14 in-depth interviews followed by one focus group were conducted with urban consumers; on the other hand, 18 in-depth interviews followed by one focus group were conducted with rural consumers. Findings The findings show that no differences exist among urban and rural consumers in terms of both their sustainable consumption levels and their drivers to consume sustainably; such findings were encapsulated in the form of one conceptual framework pertinent to both urban and rural consumers; it has the following relevant factors: consumers’ attitudes toward conservation, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, self-preference, public media influence, perceived economic value and perceived moral obligation to be relevant antecedents of conservation behaviour, which – in turn – drives sustainable purchase behaviours with the moderating effect of socio-demographic variables. Originality/value This paper contributes to extant literature as it provides evidence for the drivers of sustainable consumption behaviours of urban versus rural consumers in emerging countries; it also tentatively answers the question of whether the socio-demographic variables infer a difference in consumers’ sustainable consumption; finally, it studies sustainable consumption from a novel perspective with a focus on the relationship between its two pillars.

Investigation of urban versus rural energy and water conservation behavior in Prishtina, Kosovo

“…In the context of water conservation, Willis et al (2011) and Chaudhary et al (2017) found that residents who had very positive water conservation and environmental attitudes exhibited greater intention to save water than those with moderately positive attitudes. Marzouk (2019) found a difference in exhibiting attitude toward energy and water conservation intention based on income level, household size and area of living (urban versus rural). Additionally, Sun et al (2018) found that the urban population was more likely to exhibit energy conservation behavior intention based on their pro-environmental attitude.…”

“…The urban and rural populations were included in the equation of the TPB to predict the contrasting energy and water conservation behaviors (Arbabi and Mayfield, 2016; Hori et al , 2013; Nair, 2015). Finally, Marzouk (2019) uses the area of living, place of domicile or geographical location to find the difference between the urban and rural population in predicting the energy and water conservation behavior intention in the Egyptian market.…”

The Ideas of Sustainable and Green Marketing Based on the Internet of Everything—The Case of the Dairy Industry

“…If customers want sustainable businesses (and goods or services), they also require sustainable marketing. As a part of sustainable development, this concept aims to increase productivity to prevent damage to ecosystems or the degradation of natural resources [27]. That is why sustainable marketing is part of the broader sustainable development area.…”

The gender difference in behaviour and intentions of households toward water saving practices in Katchi Abadis of Lahore, Pakistan

“…Other literature to observe the trend of water utilization in the household, discovered that older inmates utilized excessive water than houses with few children, and fewer income households (Marzouk, 2019). If there are more members of the family, water consumption is more, even larger homes utilized more water.…”