College Students and the Environment

Abstract

Partly as a result of increased social and political pressure, many managers have found it necessary to carefully examine the impact of the irises' activities on the environment. Concerns over pollution, waste disposal, package design and composition, product materials and ingredients, and various cause-related promotional options are among the issues managers are tackling with increasing regularity. Proactive marketing managers have sought out ways to use these issues to their advantage. As so-called green marketing has become more common, a range of studies has addressed the characteristics of the ecologically conscious consumer. The majority of these studies have looked at the demographic characteristics of the green consumer. These studies have resulted in a characterization of green consumers as young, educated, wban, middle- to high-income, and most likely female. However, a review of this research shows that these results are somewhat equivocal. A few studies have outlined possible psychographic traits that describe green consumers. Among those traits used to describe these consumers are liberal, altruistic, environmentally concerned, and possessing a belief that individuals can make a difference in the fight against environmental deterioration. Given the significant growth in both green marketing management and green consumption since much of this earlier research was conducted, the present study seeks to replicate and extend earlier work to determine who tomorrow's green consumers are. Specifically, using a sample of college students, this research sought to integrate the findings of Stem, Dietz, and Kalof (1993) in a replication of Roberts (1996). An accurate understanding of the characteristics that describe these green consumers will aid green marketers in positioning themselves into the 21 • 1 century.