Habitual and Value-guided Purchase Behavior

Abstract

Society increasingly requests that individuals adopt environmentally benign behavior. Information campaigns purported to change people's attitudes are often regarded as prerequisites to installing such changes. While such information may be a necessary step, it is not sufficient by itself. We argue that many everyday behaviors with environmental consequences are habitual, and that little attention is given to information directed toward changing these habitual behaviors. In other instances, behavior is guided by values in a more reflective process. However, other information besides environmental consequences may draw a person's attention and affect behavioral choice. Using surveys and experimental studies targeting consumer behavior, we studied under what conditions different kinds of information is likely to influence people with varying levels of environmental concern. Based on results from these studies, implications for behavioral change are discussed.

Customer Response to Carbon Labelling of Groceries

“…Anecdotal feedback from shop assistants suggests that many customers were genuinely concerned for the environment and interested to see carbon labelling in practice, but the contribution from "idle curiosity" cannot be estimated and should not be discounted, as the reasons for purchase decisions are many and varied (Biel et al 2005;Grankvist et al 2007;Pedersen and Neergaard 2005;Radas et al 2008).…”

Prestige and environmental behaviors: Does branding matter?

“…The literature shows a disparity between expressed environmental attitudes and subsequent purchases ( Wicker, 1969 ;Mainieri et al , 1997 ;Biel et al , 2005 ). Mainieri et al (1997) offer several explanations for the inconsistencies including low correlations among environmental behaviors, different levels of specifi city in the measures of attitudes and behaviors, the effects of extraneous variables, and a lack of measurement validity and reliability.…”

Assessing the Effects of Certification Networks on Sustainable Production and Consumption: The Cases of FLO and FSC

“…However, neither governmental, nor non-governmental campaigns calling for more sustainable consumption, nor "victim blaming" by ascribing the damage caused by consumption to individuals have succeeded in fostering large-scale changes in individual or collective consumption patterns towards more sustainable alternatives (Biel et al 2005;Jackson 2006). Two reasons have to be distinguished.…”