Abstract:

Serious environmental and social problems, notably global warming, pollution, biodiversity loss, natural disasters, and the increase in poverty, among others, have encouraged the consumption of environmentally friendly products and amplified actions in favor of the most vulnerable population. This is why sustainable purchasing behavior has received increasing attention from academia, companies, and other professionals in the field. According to the literature, environmental and social concerns significantly increase consumer loyalty to more sustainable products. This article aimed to analyze the relationship between environmental and social concerns and sustainable consumption from the perspective of students attending higher education in Portugal and to verify whether the effect differs according to the students' nationality. Participants were selected using a non-random sampling technique. The empirical study was conducted in Portugal between October 2024 and January 2025. The questionnaire, distributed online, contained, in addition to sociodemographic variables, the dimensions of social concern, environmental concerns, and sustainable consumption from Hamza et al (2023). For all dimensions, a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) was used. The sample consisted of students attending Portuguese higher education institutions who voluntarily consented to participate in this study. A total of 675 valid responses were considered, of which 493 responses were from students of Portuguese nationality and 182 were responses from students of other nationalities. The data were edited and processed using the Jamovi statistical program version 2.7.12.0. First, descriptive statistics were calculated. Subsequently, confirmatory factor analysis was used, and finally, a multiple regression model was estimated. The results showed that, regardless of nationality, environmental and social concerns were positively associated with sustainable consumption. For students of Portuguese nationality, these variables explained 61.6% of sustainable consumption, while for students of other nationalities, the value recorded was 70.2%. Furthermore, social concerns took precedence over environmental ones, registering a greater effect for students of other nationalities compared to national students. Sustainable consumption has been a growing concern that gained prominence from the 1990s onwards. Minimizing environmental pollution and waste, while reducing social inequality, are concerns for everyone, including the productive sector, whose focus should be on meeting the needs of consumers, who can be important drivers of sustainability by opting for more responsible business practices.

Keywords:

Social concerns, environmental concerns, consumer, sustainability, Portugal.