Sustainable Consumption Research and the Role of Marketing: A Review of the Literature (1976–2021)
Issued Date
2022-04-01
Resource Type
eISSN
20711050
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85127911170
Journal Title
Sustainability (Switzerland)
Volume
14
Issue
7
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Sustainability (Switzerland) Vol.14 No.7 (2022)
Suggested Citation
Haider M., Shannon R., Moschis G.P. Sustainable Consumption Research and the Role of Marketing: A Review of the Literature (1976–2021). Sustainability (Switzerland) Vol.14 No.7 (2022). doi:10.3390/su14073999 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/84283
Title
Sustainable Consumption Research and the Role of Marketing: A Review of the Literature (1976–2021)
Author(s)
Author's Affiliation
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
There is a causal relationship between existential dangers to our biosphere and our unsustainable consumption practices. For more than three decades, academics and researchers have explored ideas to make consumption practices sustainable. Still, a practical and widely accepted solution to the problem is missing. This review aims for a theoretical and structural understanding of the literature to identify future avenues for marketing, to explore and increase its contribution to consumption sustainability research. The review used bibliometric and integrative review methods to synthesize knowledge. The review found that sustainable consumption research has proliferated since 2015, indicating a heightened interest in the field. There are four major schools of thought in sustainable consumption research, employing three interdependent micro, meso, and macro levels of analysis to understand consumption practices. By focusing on individual consumption behaviors, this review recommends that consumption sustainability be repositioned as a means of attaining a better quality of life for consumers. It involves reforming the consumer mindset toward progress based on pro-social and pro-ecological choices, training consumers in mindful consumption practices, and providing them with an infrastructure for consuming with a mindful mindset. It is recommended that marketing should refine itself as a pro-social discipline, with consumer well-being as its primary goal, and to become a leader in reshaping quality of life in terms of non-financial standards.