Sustainable Consumption Intentions Among Portuguese University Students: A Multidimensional Perspective

This study examines sustainable consumption intentions among university students in Portugal, a generation increasingly recognized for their ecological awareness but often constrained by structural and social barriers. Within this context, this study explores psychological and behavioral determinants of sustainable consumption and peer recommendation using an integrative framework based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), the Value–Belief–Norm theory (VBN), and the SHIFT model. Drawing on a survey of 324 students from diverse academic backgrounds, we analyzed how environmental beliefs, consumer habits, and activism influence sustainable consumption intention and recommendation. The analysis, conducted using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), reveals that environmental beliefs significantly predict both consumer intention and habitual behavior, which in turn affect activism and sustainable consumption. Notably, intention emerges as a key mediator between individual motivations and peer recommendation, while activism and habits do not exert direct influence on recommendation behavior. These findings underscore the importance of moral values, routine behavior, and motivational pathways in shaping sustainable practices, while highlighting the persistent gap between awareness and consistent advocacy. This study offers theoretical and practical insights into how structural and psychological factors can reinforce youth engagement with sustainability.