A multiple-item scale for measuring “sustainable consumption behaviour” construct: Development and psychometric evaluation

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop a reliable and valid scale with desirable psychometric properties and sufficient level of reliability and validity to measure sustainable consumption from consumer perspective. Design/methodology/approach: In achieving this objective: the domain of the construct is specified; items are generated through qualitative interviews; the initial scale is purified, and finally it is validated. A survey yielded 1,002 complete, usable questionnaires in order to run the analysis. Data were splitted in half. First half was utilised for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and the second half of the data were utilised to run confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The initial pool of item was tested using EFA via SPSS version 23. The CFA was conducted using SmartPLS-3.2.7 to confirm the dimensionality of sustainable consumption behaviour (SCB) scale. Findings: The EFA result revealed that SCB is a three-dimensional construct which is consisted of 24 items. The scale includes: quality of life; care for environmental well-being; and care for the future generation. The CFA confirmed the dimensionality, reliability and validity of the SCB scale. Research limitations/implications: This sustainable consumption scale can be used to determine individual’s level of responsibility towards living a quality life, environment welfare, as well as responsibility towards sustainability of the future generation. It is expected that this initiative will stimulate further research on regional, cultural and demographic differences in understanding sustainable development. Practical implications: Marketing practitioners may benefit from this scale by understanding the SCB of the socially and environmentally conscious consumers. It may eventually assist them to shape their strategies to meet the increasing demands of environmentalists. Originality/value: The notion of sustainable consumption received significant research attention in present decade. It is regarded as one of the major catalysts of the sustainable development. However, in most cases sustainable consumption phenomenon is discussed from greater economic perspective and not much effort has been paid to consider it from consumer’s perspective. Furthermore, there is a lack of readily available scale to measure this construct in the existing literature.