Environmental perceptions and sustainable consumption behavior. The disparity among South Africans

South Africa has the highest level of inequality globally and has been labeled a country of two nations. With a small share of highly affluent people and a mass at the bottom of society struggling to escape poverty, these two vastly different socioeconomic status groups have also been characterized by race, gender, and geographical location. However, very little evidence exists of the varying environmental perceptions among people in these different economic and social positions in South Africa. By using the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) Environment III dataset for 2010, the study assessed the impact of sociodemographic factors on the environmental perceptions and sustainable consumption behavior of South Africans. The results show that environmental concerns are highest among those with low socioeconomic status and Africans. Since these individuals make up the majority of the most vulnerable in society, it supports the exposure to degradation hypothesis in a South African context. Contrastingly sustainable consumption behavior is highest among those with high socioeconomic status suggesting a strong post-materialist effect on pro-environmental consumption. From a policy perspective, environmental policymakers in South Africa could take note of the strong environmental concerns among those more vulnerable to daily environmental degradation and provide further incentives and support their transition to sustainable consumption behavior changes that would assist in environmental protection.