The Development of a Quantitative Measurement Scale to Assess Romanian Knowledge and Attitude Towards Sustainability and Sustainable Clothing

In the recent years, sustainability has received great emphasis, focusing on balancing environmental conservation with economic growth. While different approaches towards sustainability tend to focus on green, ethical, and political consumption practices, there is still a significant gap in the green literature regarding measurement tools for assessing individuals' comprehension and attitudes toward sustainable clothing consumption. To address this highlighted issue, our study proposes the development of a quantitative measurement scale created to evaluate sustainability, knowledge, and attitudes among Romanian consumers. The designed scale includes dimensions related to general sustainability concepts, sustainable clothing practices, and attitudes towards sustainable clothing. Conducted in Romania, our study investigates a sample of 1,087 respondents. With the help of the statistical method Exploratory Factor Analysis, we have determined the construct validity of the scale, showing strong reliability and validity, with high internal consistency and significant correlations between the found dimensions. The main contribution of our study consists of the usefulness brought with this novel tool for both researchers and practitioners to explore knowledge and attitudes toward sustainability and sustainable clothing. The application of the Sustainable Clothing Measurement Scale comes with the potential to assist consumer behaviour studies, along with policy initiatives, and educational activities that have the purpose of promoting or shaping sustainable practices within the textile industry and beyond. Nonetheless, this study offers insights to advocate for the continuous process of developing or discovering different sustainability initiatives in the context of consumer behaviour and industry practices by putting forward a measurement scale for understanding sustainable clothing consumption and closing in the literature’s gap.