Climate change and consumption : Analyzing perceptions of morally loaded behaviors among young consumers

• Lately it has been argued that climate change must become a morally loaded issue in order for consumers and societyto begin to tackle climate unfriendly behaviors. However, few studies deal with the issue of why environmental problems ingeneral and climate change in particular are not viewed as moral issues and also how different moral issues are related toeach other in a consumption context. In particular, perceptions of to what degree an issue is morally relevant, and how thisperception is related to environmental and climate related consumption behaviors, as well as individual values, are problemsaddressed in this paper. The purpose of this paper is then to analyze and present how young consumers view different typesof morally loaded behaviors and relate these perceptions to environmentally significant consumption behaviors in general,and climate related behaviours in particular. The initial analysis shows that out of eleven problems, poverty (hunger and lackof drinking water), the environmental situation, and climate change were perceived as the most serious ones. Further on, often factors the respondents associated climate change primarily to rising carbon dioxide levels, the thawing of glaciers andrising sea levels. Correlational analysis of the initial data material shows that young consumers with norms related to climatechange are more prone to decrease their climate unfriendly behavior. However, norms related to social situations such ashelping others, are viewed as more morally loaded than norms related to environmental issues and climate change. Theexplanation might be that environmental and climate change issues are perceived as more abstract than everyday normssurrounding social behaviors. 

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Företagsekonomi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Business Administration (hsv//eng)

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

kon (subject category)