Paper to be published in the Review of Business Research, 2005 THE UTILITY OF DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES IN DESCRIBING THE ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR OF HOUSEHOLDS IN AUSTRALIA

The use of demographic variables has demonstrated mixed results as a basis for the description of environmentally conscious consumer behaviour. This paper empirically examines the consumption of petrol and electricity against income, education level, occupation status and age. The results from a nationally representative sample in Australia showed no support for the “typical” demographic profile of the environmentally concerned consumer, but confirmed the utility of demographic variables for describing environmentally conscious consumer behaviour. Income was found to be positively correlated with consumption. The results are compared with the US and Canadian studies.