Do Anti-Consumption Practices Lead to Well-being? The Mediating Role of Time Orientation

This study investigates the relationship between anti-consumption and subjective well-being, as well as the function of time orientation as a mediator. People have always carefully considered how and how much they consume (Newholl et al., 2015). Veblen's 1899 critique of conspicuous consumption and Thoreau's Calvinist material morality of efficiency, frugality, and self-responsibility, which paved the way for the voluntary simplicity movement of the 19th century, are examples of such deliberations (Rudmin and Kilbourne 1996). Numerous consumer culture scholars have recently acknowledged the intensification of consumerism as a socio-cultural and economic practice, as well as the expansion of market logics for governing society under neoliberal capitalism (Kravets et al., 2018). Miles (2018) and Eckhardt et al. (2018) emphasize that consumer culture is associated with increased individuation and feelings of emptiness, whereas sustainability scholars emphasize the need for society to consume less (Evans 2017) in light of our current environmental challenges. Similarly, such ethical, political, and/or ecological concerns motivate consumers who can afford consumerism to choose to reduce their consumption levels; this is a form of anti-consumerism. Anti-consumption includes intentional, volitional behaviors and attitudes against consumption (Chatzidakis and Lee 2013; Cromie and Ewing 2009; Hutter and Hoffmann 2013; Lee et al. 2009).

Current research suggests that anti-consumption may have a positive effect on wellbeing at both the societal and individual levels (Hoffmann and Lee, 2016; Lee and Ahn, 2016). In fact, a meta-analysis has confirmed the association between certain anti-consumption-based behaviors (e.g., voluntary simplicity) and subjective well-being (Rich et al., 2017). Nevertheless, contradictory evidence suggests a more complex picture. There is evidence that anti-consumption can have a negative (Iyer and Muncy, 2016) or neutral (Seegebarth et al., 2016) effect on happiness under specific conditions. Additional research suggests that such effects may depend on specific conditions, such as an individual's perception of control over consumption (Iyer and Muncy, 2016) or a consumer's cognitive need (Hüttel et al., 2020). Different anti-consumption practices and anti-consumption values have also been distinguished (Seegebarth et al., 2016; Oral and Thurner, 2019). Therefore, a better comprehension of the effect of anti-consumption on well-being and how this effect occurs is required; this paper addresses one of these research gaps. Moreover, existing research indicates that how consumers perceive and utilize their time can impact their subjective wellbeing (Rudd et al., 2019). Determining the time-related conditions under which anti-consumption may impact subjective well-being necessitates a review of the vast literature on time. Despite the abundance of research indicating that how consumers spend and perceive time influences consumption behavior, there is little cross-fertilization between time and anti-consumption research, which is another research gap that this work addresses.