Barriers and Motivators of Household Water-Conservation Behavior: A Bibliometric and Systematic Literature Review

Water scarcity, aggravated by growing demands, represents a significant challenge for humanity. Promoting household sustainable water-consumption behaviors has become vital. The Community-Based Social Marketing (CBSM) framework stands out among many strategies to promote water conservation. However,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Water (Basel) 2023-12, Vol.15 (23), p.4114
Main Authors: Sanchez, Carolina, Rodriguez-Sanchez, Carla, Sancho-Esper, Franco
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Behavior
Bibliometrics
Environmental psychology
Households
Keywords
Literature reviews
Marketing
Marketing research
Miller, E
Research methodology
Social marketing
Social media
Sociodemographics
Systematic review
water
Water conservation
water shortages
water stress
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Summary:Water scarcity, aggravated by growing demands, represents a significant challenge for humanity. Promoting household sustainable water-consumption behaviors has become vital. The Community-Based Social Marketing (CBSM) framework stands out among many strategies to promote water conservation. However, many interventions in this domain often neglect significant theoretical insights, leading to gaps in addressing key social and contextual drivers of behavior. This study conducts a systematic and bibliometric literature review aimed at identifying determinants underlying household water-conservation behaviors. This review encompasses 155 papers published from 1984 to early 2023. Our findings show that this is a highly multidisciplinary field of study with a marked increase in research attention discerned post-2010, particularly from water-stressed regions. Furthermore, our findings also reveal an often-overlooked integration of guiding theories and an over-reliance on self-reported measures in prior research. Factors such as attitude, perceived efficacy, emotions, and habits emerge as pivotal in understanding water conservation. However, while attitudes have been extensively analyzed in previous research, the other factors deserve greater attention from researchers. Inconsistencies in demographic predictors further hint at potential moderating roles. This paper offers valuable insights for designing effective household water-conservation interventions through a social marketing lens.
ISSN:2073-4441
2073-4441
DOI:10.3390/w15234114