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Framing Sustainable Consumption in Different Ways: Policy Lessons from Two Participatory Systems Mapping Exercises in Hungary

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Abstract

Sustainable consumption as a complex phenomenon at the boundaries of different (ecological, economic, social) systems requires theoretical approaches that do justice to its complex causality and dynamism. Participatory systems mapping offers a tool to achieve this purpose. Its policy relevance lies in its ability to include diverse views, multiple actors, and offer options for policy intervention. The research reported here applied participatory systems mapping in order to define and identify system boundaries for sustainable consumption and uncover perceived causal relationships among the determining factors of sustainable consumption. By revealing the mental models of an expert and a conscious consumer panel on sustainable consumption in general, we can shed light on the cognitive constructions of sustainable consumption and identify most important boundaries that were chosen and their implications on policy-making. The expert panel framed the boundaries as lack of sustainable consumption, while the conscious consumer panel employed a positive framing as strong communities in sustainable consumption. The two panels also differed in their focus on scale: Experts targeted the national scale, while conscious consumers concentrated at the local scale.

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Notes

  1. The full original report is available in Hungarian, see Király et al. (2013), be accessed at http://nfft.hu/assets/NFFT_mt_16_fenntarthato_eletmod_2013.pdf

  2. Other researchers apply very similar categories, e.g., Pape et al. (2011) discusses three key types of policy instruments: legislative, economic, and communicative. However, Wolff and Schönherr (2011) adds a fourth type, in addition to regulatory, economic, and communicative policy instruments, procedural and instruments of societal self-regulation is also proposed.

  3. However, one might be critical towards this assumed causal relationship based on some recent empirical findings by Csutora (2012).

  4. Note that while the expert panel has interpreted “critical mass” in economics terms by relating it to effective demand, the conscious consumer panel has applied a broader understanding of critical mass in terms of human agency.

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Acknowledgements

The authors appreciate the financial support this research has received from the National Council for Sustainable Development (NCSD), Hungary. Special thanks goes to Gábor Bartus, Head of NCSD Secreatriat acknowledging the organisational and intellectual assistance members of the Environmental Social Science Group (ESSRG) have provided them.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Corvinus University of Budapest, Fővám tér 8., Budapest, 1093, Hungary

    Gabriella Kiss, György Pataki, Alexandra Köves & Gábor Király

  2. Environmental Social Science Research Group, Rómer F. u. 38., Budapest, 1024, Hungary

    György Pataki

  3. Budapest Business School, Buzogány u. 10-12., Budapest, 1049, Hungary

    Gábor Király

Authors
  1. Gabriella Kiss
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  2. György Pataki
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  3. Alexandra Köves
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  4. Gábor Király
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Correspondence to Gabriella Kiss.

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Kiss, G., Pataki, G., Köves, A. et al. Framing Sustainable Consumption in Different Ways: Policy Lessons from Two Participatory Systems Mapping Exercises in Hungary. J Consum Policy 41, 1–19 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-017-9363-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-017-9363-y

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