What consumers really think about sustainable fashion: A computational analysis of online discussions

This study investigates consumer perceptions of sustainable fashion by analyzing online discussions. It aims to bridge the gap between consumer understanding and industry practices by providing insights to guide companies and policymakers in developing more effective sustainability strategies. Adopting a data-driven, computational social science approach, this study analyses more than 116,000 posts and 283,000 comments from 20 Reddit communities focused on fashion and sustainability. Advanced natural language processing techniques, including topic modelling and sentiment analysis, are employed to uncover key themes and sentiment trends. The analysis identifies six key themes in consumer perceptions: product lifecycle management, material sourcing, size standardization, quality vs. price considerations, social responsibility, and consumer influence. Notably, discussions of circular design principles and innovative materials were largely absent from consumer conversations. While overall sentiment is predominantly positive, waste management and material sourcing evoke the least positive reactions, highlighting critical areas for industry improvement. By leveraging large-scale, real-world consumer discussions rather than traditional surveys, this study offers a novel perspective on sustainable fashion, capturing authentic consumer discourse and uncovering insights that may not emerge through conventional research methods.