Clothing disposal in a collectivist environment: A mixed methods approach

Abstract

Although consumers' clothing-disposal behavior is of considerable interest, studies thus far focus only on developed, individualistic societies. This study aims to contribute to the topic by discussing clothing-disposal behavior in the developing, collectivist society of Ecuador, a Latin American country. This study uses a mixed methods exploratory approach to understand the variables that determine the quantity of clothes that consumers dispose of from their households. Five themes arise from the qualitative results: gender, the purchase and receipt of clothing, collectivism at the personal level, the tendency to retain clothing, and the method and frequency of disposal. This study further supports these themes and their respective hypotheses in the quantitative phase.