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Interventions for Circular Consumption : A Review of Food Waste and Clothing Consumption Studies with Insights From Social Practice Theory

Mesiranta, Nina ; Närvänen, Elina ; Vänskä, Martta ; Ainasoja, Mari ; Mattila, Malla ; Laitala, Kirsi ; Samsioe, Emma LU ; Haugsrud, Ingrid ; Fuentes, Christian LU orcid and Throne-Holst, Harald , et al. (2026) In Circular Economy and Sustainability 6.
Abstract

Shifting everyday consumption from linear to circular is a key sustainability challenge, and interventions targeting households and consumers are increasingly promoted as a means to support this transition. However, much remains unclear about the theoretical assumptions that underpin such interventions and how these shape their design and outcomes. This article presents a systematic literature review of interventions aimed at changing everyday consumption towards circularity in two high-impact domains: food waste and clothing consumption. After a screening process, 84 peer-reviewed intervention studies were analysed. The findings show that most interventions draw on behaviourist approaches, while the use of social practice theory... (More)

Shifting everyday consumption from linear to circular is a key sustainability challenge, and interventions targeting households and consumers are increasingly promoted as a means to support this transition. However, much remains unclear about the theoretical assumptions that underpin such interventions and how these shape their design and outcomes. This article presents a systematic literature review of interventions aimed at changing everyday consumption towards circularity in two high-impact domains: food waste and clothing consumption. After a screening process, 84 peer-reviewed intervention studies were analysed. The findings show that most interventions draw on behaviourist approaches, while the use of social practice theory remains limited. In the second stage of the analysis, focus was put on the subset of practice-theoretical intervention studies (n = 5) to examine how they conceptualise practice change. As a result, we provide a refined categorisation of practice-theoretical intervention strategies. The article contributes by synthesising intervention research across two circular consumption domains and by advancing conceptual tools for analysing and designing practice-theoretical interventions, with implications for future research, policy, and practice.

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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
keywords
Circular economy, Clothing, Consumption, Food waste, Intervention, Social practice theory, Systematic literature review
in
Circular Economy and Sustainability
volume
6
article number
300
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • scopus:105042300748
ISSN
2730-597X
DOI
10.1007/s43615-026-01042-7
project
Service Studies Consumption
Circular Activities to transform household towards material efficiency
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2026.
id
be7ade54-1023-4964-b464-0338c61a19c2
date added to LUP
2026-07-01 12:26:29
date last changed
2026-07-10 11:03:01
@article{be7ade54-1023-4964-b464-0338c61a19c2,
  abstract     = {{<p>Shifting everyday consumption from linear to circular is a key sustainability challenge, and interventions targeting households and consumers are increasingly promoted as a means to support this transition. However, much remains unclear about the theoretical assumptions that underpin such interventions and how these shape their design and outcomes. This article presents a systematic literature review of interventions aimed at changing everyday consumption towards circularity in two high-impact domains: food waste and clothing consumption. After a screening process, 84 peer-reviewed intervention studies were analysed. The findings show that most interventions draw on behaviourist approaches, while the use of social practice theory remains limited. In the second stage of the analysis, focus was put on the subset of practice-theoretical intervention studies (n = 5) to examine how they conceptualise practice change. As a result, we provide a refined categorisation of practice-theoretical intervention strategies. The article contributes by synthesising intervention research across two circular consumption domains and by advancing conceptual tools for analysing and designing practice-theoretical interventions, with implications for future research, policy, and practice.</p>}},
  author       = {{Mesiranta, Nina and Närvänen, Elina and Vänskä, Martta and Ainasoja, Mari and Mattila, Malla and Laitala, Kirsi and Samsioe, Emma and Haugsrud, Ingrid and Fuentes, Christian and Throne-Holst, Harald and Tölg, Réka}},
  issn         = {{2730-597X}},
  keywords     = {{Circular economy; Clothing; Consumption; Food waste; Intervention; Social practice theory; Systematic literature review}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{06}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Circular Economy and Sustainability}},
  title        = {{Interventions for Circular Consumption : A Review of Food Waste and Clothing Consumption Studies with Insights From Social Practice Theory}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s43615-026-01042-7}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s43615-026-01042-7}},
  volume       = {{6}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}