Knowledge Agora



Similar Articles

Title Consumption Work in the circular economy: A research agenda
ID_Doc 312
Authors Hobson, K; Holmes, H; Welch, D; Wheeler, K; Wieser, H
Title Consumption Work in the circular economy: A research agenda
Year 2021
Published
Abstract Circular Economy frameworks have become central to debates and interventions that aim to reduce global resource use and environmental despoilment. As pathways to both systemic and micro-scale transformations, there remain many challenges to making Circular Economy actionable. One such challenge is facilitating the emergence of the 'circular consumer'. Here, we are all encouraged to shift everyday practices to consume new products and services and/or participate in the 'Sharing Economy': all of which are claimed, in some prominent debates, to automatically offer more 'convenience' for the consumer. In response, this paper argues that viewing such debates through the lens of Consumption Work offers a different picture of what it takes to be, and what we need to know about, the circular consumer. Consumption Work refers to the labour integral to the purchase, use, re-use and disposal of goods and services. This paper argues that the nature and scope of such work has been underplayed in Circular Economy debates to date, and that becoming a circular consumer requires varied and unevenly distributed forms of Consumption Work, which in turn, has significant implications for the success of Circular Economy. This paper thus proposes a research agenda into this topic, outlining five, inter-related, critical issues that a Circular Economy research agenda must address, including questions of who undertakes Consumption Work; to what ends; and how its multiple forms are coordinated within and beyond the household.
PDF

Similar Articles

ID Score Article
475 Camacho-Otero, J; Boks, C; Pettersen, IN Consumption in the Circular Economy: A Literature Review(2018)Sustainability, 10, 8
1917 Greene, M; Hobson, K; Jaeger-Erben, M Bringing the circular economy home - Insights from socio-technical perspectives on everyday consumption(2024)
2730 Hobson, K; Lynch, N Diversifying and de-growing the circular economy: Radical social transformation in a resource-scarce world(2016)
28889 Hobson, K 'Small stories of closing loops': social circularity and the everyday circular economy(2020)Climatic Change, 163.0, 1
28978 Rabiu, MK; Jaeger-Erben, M Appropriation and routinisation of circular consumer practices: A review of current knowledge in the circular economy literature(2022)
3343 Milios, L RETRACTED: Engaging the citizen in the circular economy: Transcending the passive consumer role(2022)
905 Gonella, JDL; Godinho, M; Campos, LMD; Ganga, GMD People's awareness and behaviours of circular economy around the world: literature review and research agenda(2024)
28555 Colley, K; Hague, A; Chen, JY; Lorenzo-Arribas, A; Wooldridge, T; Somervail, P; Sánchez, GM; Assefa, S; Bender, F; Craig, T Putting people at the centre of the circle: an agenda for behavioural research on the circular economy(2024)
2912 Sutcliffe, TE Consumption work in household circular economy activities: findings from a cultural probe experiment(2022)Journal Of Cultural Economy, 15, 5
20335 Wethal, U; Hoff, SC Circular additions to linear systems? Exploring Norwegian households ' engagement with circularity in everyday life(2024)
Scroll