The Impact of Engagement in the Circular Economy on Consumer Well-being: A Review of Outcomes and Salient Contexts

Abstract The Circular Economy (CE) offers a pathway to more sustainable consumption and production, requiring product users to engage in CE behaviors, such as recycling, reuse, and repair. Despite these behaviors being essential for sustainability and quality of life, the impact of CE behaviors and adjacent conditions on product users’ well-being (defined here in terms of three outcomes: affective, cognitive, and developmental) remains insufficiently understood. CE behaviors involve several constructs, namely Reduce (e.g., making do), Own (e.g., purchasing high-quality products and repairing), and Access (e.g., renting and sharing), impacting product user well-being through different mechanisms. This literature review identifies: (1) the types of well-being outcomes associated with engagement in CE behaviors; and (2) the specific activities (e.g., repairing and making do) and conditions (e.g., motivation and cost) that influence these outcomes. The findings from the literature review highlight the potential for CE behaviors to enhance well-being and inform the design of effective CE and sustainability strategies. However, the review also reveals problematic aspects with the current state of knowledge, such as the significant variation in well-being constructs employed across studies, complicating direct comparisons and synthesis. This indicates a need for a more comprehensive, unified framework for assessing consumer well-being. Other proposed future research directions include distinguishing the direct effect from the indirect of CE behaviors on well-being.