The Effects of Culture on Consumers’ Response to a Carbon Tax and Container Deposit Scheme: A Sustainable Consumption Study

Abstract

As the temperature of the planet rises, governments are adopting measures to curb human activities that contribute to global warming. Introducing policies that people would adopt and to achieve the desired outcome is, however, a growing challenge. This situation is not quite unexpected particularly in multicultural societies where people have diverse cultural values and attitudes towards environmental issues and policies. Extant literature has cited the importance of cultural influence on the decisions individuals make. Through vertical socialization, individuals learn the values and behaviours that society expects of them. The current study examines the impact of cultural factors on consumers’ response to a carbon tax and cash incentives on consumer preference. Data obtained from an online survey involving 294 respondents in a discrete choice experiment was analysed using an ordered logit approach. The focus of the experiment was on the choice of soft drinks in three pack types namely glass, PET and aluminium cans which have different levels of carbon emission. A comparison of the estimated ordered logit models would show that the effects of a carbon tax and cash incentives on pack type choice do tend to vary according to the consumer’s cultural heritage and social identity. The implications of the above findings on policy and possibly industry practice are discussed. Future research directions, particularly in the context of container deposit schemes which are growing in popularity are also explored.



Author Information
Anna Evangelista, Western Sydney University, Australia
Maria Estela Varua, Western Sydney University, Australia

Paper Information
Conference: IICSEEHawaii2018
Stream: Consumption, Production & Waste

This paper is part of the IICSEEHawaii2018 Conference Proceedings (View)
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Posted by James Alexander Gordon