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function of a product ultimately serves to meet a range of human needs. While its
primary, technical function of many or most products typically relate to only one of
the physical basic needs, e.g. mobility, housing, or food, it always contributes also
to meet other, psychological basic needs, such as for example affection, participation, and identity (Max-Neef 1991). The relevance for consumption decisions to
meet also needs such as “identity” can be illustrated by the relevance that brands
have in clothes consumption decisions. This example also illustrates that it will be
an individual judgment how well a product meets these “soft” needs.
3.2 Person or Household Level: Sustainable Lifestyles
Moreover, it should be highlighted that needs fulfilment is often done rather by
complex activities, that involve different products in a specific combination that
create a new quality, rather than by simply consuming each of them: a simple
walk in the park may involve a combination of outdoor clothing, maybe an
umbrella, a bus trip to reach the park and for the way back, using the restaurant
service to have a cake or ice-cream etc. and – important in the context of secondary consequences – involve an individually decided period of time. While the
distance walked and the life time of the shoes have some relevant causal relation,
otherwise the duration of many activities can be largely independent from the
actual consumption of goods. Particularly the fulfilment of higher needs are less
directly related to product consumption, other than more basic needs such as
food and shelter.
In view of efforts to a more sustainable consumption and lifestyles, it is important to consider that very different activities – using possibly also the same amount
of the household resources, but with a hugely different environmental impact – may
still contribute to the same degree to the needs fulfilment and happiness for the same
individual person. Using leisure time and money for meetings our “soft” needs can
differ as much as taking a longer motorbike ride, playing a game on a smartphone,
or practicing yoga, depending on the person’s preference. Also meeting our physical
basic needs can be done in different ways, while again using the same amount of the
other household resources. One of the possibly most widely discussed component
of sustainable consumption is eating vegetarian versus a meat-rich diet. As another
example, for the need shelter/housing, zero-energy houses have much lower overall
life cycle impacts than less well designed and insulated houses, possibly at the same
total cost of ownership.
On the next more complete level, we look at the entire consumption of a person
or it’s household. We agree with the literature that the individual will aim at optimizing the use of his or her household resources to achieve a maximum fulfilment
of the needs. Which needs are considered how relevant and how well the individual
understands which products best contribute to fulfil these needs, is obviously different for each individual.
M.-A. Wolf and K. Chomkhamsri
function of a product ultimately serves to meet a range of human needs. While its
primary, technical function of many or most products typically relate to only one of
the physical basic needs, e.g. mobility, housing, or food, it always contributes also
to meet other, psychological basic needs, such as for example affection, participation, and identity (Max-Neef 1991). The relevance for consumption decisions to
meet also needs such as “identity” can be illustrated by the relevance that brands
have in clothes consumption decisions. This example also illustrates that it will be
an individual judgment how well a product meets these “soft” needs.
3.2 Person or Household Level: Sustainable Lifestyles
Moreover, it should be highlighted that needs fulfilment is often done rather by
complex activities, that involve different products in a specific combination that
create a new quality, rather than by simply consuming each of them: a simple
walk in the park may involve a combination of outdoor clothing, maybe an
umbrella, a bus trip to reach the park and for the way back, using the restaurant
service to have a cake or ice-cream etc. and – important in the context of secondary consequences – involve an individually decided period of time. While the
distance walked and the life time of the shoes have some relevant causal relation,
otherwise the duration of many activities can be largely independent from the
actual consumption of goods. Particularly the fulfilment of higher needs are less
directly related to product consumption, other than more basic needs such as
food and shelter.
In view of efforts to a more sustainable consumption and lifestyles, it is important to consider that very different activities – using possibly also the same amount
of the household resources, but with a hugely different environmental impact – may
still contribute to the same degree to the needs fulfilment and happiness for the same
individual person. Using leisure time and money for meetings our “soft” needs can
differ as much as taking a longer motorbike ride, playing a game on a smartphone,
or practicing yoga, depending on the person’s preference. Also meeting our physical
basic needs can be done in different ways, while again using the same amount of the
other household resources. One of the possibly most widely discussed component
of sustainable consumption is eating vegetarian versus a meat-rich diet. As another
example, for the need shelter/housing, zero-energy houses have much lower overall
life cycle impacts than less well designed and insulated houses, possibly at the same
total cost of ownership.
On the next more complete level, we look at the entire consumption of a person
or it’s household. We agree with the literature that the individual will aim at optimizing the use of his or her household resources to achieve a maximum fulfilment
of the needs. Which needs are considered how relevant and how well the individual
understands which products best contribute to fulfil these needs, is obviously different for each individual.
M.-A. Wolf and K. Chomkhamsri