Sustainability in Everyday Life - Integrating Environmental, Social and Economic Goals

Transition toward sustainable society requires behavior change. Finnish university students (n = 210) assessed their own achievements in implementation of sustainable development (SD). The informants rated statements of SD according to their thinking and estimated implementation behavior in their own daily lives. The data were collected between autumn 2008 and spring 2009 using a theory-grounded semantic differential technique. A measurement instrument was created in which 36 variables of environmental, economic, and social sustainability were balanced. These variables were indicators of SD implementation. Seven orthogonal factors (dimensions, aspects) emerged from the ratings of sustainability in daily life after principal axis factoring and varimax rotation: (1) responsible global citizenship, (2) life cycle approach, (3) advanced consumerism, (4) health and community, (5) recycling, (6) strong local business, and (7) post-materialism. These seven themes are discussed in this article. A model of sustainable behavior in a high consumption society is created.