The effect of consumption values on environmental concern and sustainable consumption: An application

Consumers' choices affect production processes and cause global consequences. It's important to be able to determine in which direction consumer behavior is progressing, especially in this period when the impact of sustainability increases in every field. Consumption Values Theory tries to explain consumer behavior with the help of functional, social, emotional, conditional and epistemic values. While trying to understand consumer behavior, it's also important to determine consumers' current concern for the environment and understand their intentions and behaviors towards sustainability. There are studies that address environmental concern and sustainable consumption along with consumption values. However, there are limited studies examining the mediating role of environmental concern in the effect of consumption values on sustainable consumption intention. The study aimed to examine the effect of consumption values on environmental concern and sustainable consumption intention. Additionally, it was aimed to examine the mediating role of environmental concern in the effect of consumption values on sustainable consumption intention and the effect of sustainable consumption intention on behavior. The sample of the study consists of consumers living in the Eastern Marmara Region. 530 surveys were evaluated in the study and the data obtained was analyzed using SPSS and AMOS programs. As a result of the analysis, it was found that emotional conditional value and epistemic value have a significant and positive effect on both environmental concern and sustainable consumption intention. In addition, it has been observed that sustainable consumption intention has an impact on sustainable consumption behavior and that environmental concern has a partial mediator role in the relationship between consumption values (emotional conditional and epistemic value) and sustainable consumption intention. It is expected that the study findings will guide marketing studies in terms of explaining which values affect consumers' environmental concerns and sustainable consumption intentions and the role of environmental concern in the value-intention relationship.