Motivating sustainability through morality: A daily diary study on the link between moral self-control and clothing consumption

Abstract

Extensive research has documented the frequent gap between people's intentions to perform environmentally significant behavior and their actual behavior. Despite this, limited research has empirically unpacked the processes and conditions under which people's environmental considerations influence behavior and when they do not. The present research sought to meet this research need by investigating the influence of moral and environmental considerations on purchasing decisions related to clothing consumption. In doing so, we embedded environmental considerations within the broader concept of morality and drew upon self-control research to develop a conceptual model of moral self-control comprising moral considerations, conflict, resistance, and purchase. The conceptual model was assessed using data from a large two-week diary study (N = 594; nobs = 7,880) conducted in the United Kingdom. A multilevel path model at the within-person level revealed that moral considerations were associated with stronger conflict experiences, more frequent attempts to resist clothing desires, and less frequent clothing purchasing. These findings highlight the processes through which moral (and environmental) considerations exert their influence on clothing purchasing decisions, as well as help pinpoint when and why people sometimes fail to act in accordance with their moral and biospheric values.