Towards Sufficiency in Consumer Electronics? Consumers’ Perceptions of Longevity Strategies for Postponing Product Replacement

The circular economy highlights the need to slow resource use by making products last longer. Although various longevity strategies have been proposed, it remains unclear whether consumers perceive these strategies as effective. This paper draws on literature on lifetime extension strategies and behavioural theories to investigate the extent to which consumers perceive these strategies as effective in postponing replacement. A survey of 617 consumers examined the perceived effectiveness of 13 product lifetime extension strategies across four product categories using ANOVAs. Durability and reliability emerged as the strategies perceived to be most effective. Preventing functional problems during product use is particularly important for postponing product replacement, as such problems appear to be prominent triggers for replacement. However, consumers remain unconvinced about the effectiveness of most other strategies. Correlational analyses revealed that satisfaction with lifetimes is negatively correlated with perceived strategy effectiveness, suggesting that consumers are less likely to search for lifetime-extending strategies as they do not see lifetime as a concern. These findings underscore the need for design/policy interventions to strengthen durability and enhance awareness of lifetime-extending strategies.