Environmental buying decisions: A Kenyan perspective

Abstract

This study is for the purpose of determining the environmental buying decisions among tertiary students in Kenya. Global awareness on environmental concerns has led scientists to study human behaviour as it relates to environmental issues. In Kenya there have been sporadic activities that are aimed at taking care of the environment or raising the awareness of the extent of environmental degradation in certain areas. However there is a lack of a clear coordinated plan or policy to address environmental issues. This could be due to lack of sufficient exposure of people to the growing environmental problems consequently the population has not developed habits of taking care of the environment. The specific objectives of the study were to: determine the environmental buying decisions made by tertiary students and to establish how some socio-demographic factors influence the buying decisions that tertiary students make. The study employed both quantitative and inferential methodology to achieve the objectives and also test the hypothesis. The target population of the study was all the students at Strathmore University Madaraka campus, in Nairobi, Kenya and a sample of 203 respondents was drawn. The study concluded that age is a key factor when making buying decisions regarding the issue of the environment. The results indicated that the more the older the person the more the individual will consider the environmental issues when making a decision to purchase an item The study also noted that the decision to be environmentally conscious lies on an individual but not whether one is a man or a female. The study also concluded that the level of income does not seem to influence the buying decisions that people make. Having used a convenient sample may hinder the possibility of generalising the findings to the broader population.

This study is for the purpose of determining the environmental buying decisions among tertiary students in Kenya. Global awareness on environmental concerns has led scientists to study human behaviour as it relates to environmental issues. In Kenya there have been sporadic activities that are aimed at taking care of the environment or raising the awareness of the extent of environmental degradation in certain areas. However there is a lack of a clear coordinated plan or policy to address environmental issues. This could be due to lack of sufficient exposure of people to the growing environmental problems consequently the population has not developed habits of taking care of the environment. The specific objectives of the study were to: determine the environmental buying decisions made by tertiary students and to establish how some socio-demographic factors influence the buying decisions that tertiary students make. The study employed both quantitative and inferential methodology to achieve the objectives and also test the hypothesis. The target population of the study was all the students at Strathmore University Madaraka campus, in Nairobi, Kenya and a sample of 203 respondents was drawn. The study concluded that age is a key factor when making buying decisions regarding the issue of the environment. The results indicated that the more the older the person the more the individual will consider the environmental issues when making a decision to purchase an item The study also noted that the decision to be environmentally conscious lies on an individual but not whether one is a man or a female. The study also concluded that the level of income does not seem to influence the buying decisions that people make. Having used a convenient sample may hinder the possibility of generalising the findings to the broader population.