Agent-based insight into eco-choices: Simulating the fast fashion shift

IF 6.3 2区经济学 Q1 ECOLOGY

Ecological Economics Pub Date : 2025-10-16 DOI:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2025.108824

Daria Soboleva, Angel Sánchez

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Fashion is a powerful force in the modern world. It is one of the most accessible means of self-expression, thereby playing a significant role in our society. Yet, it is plagued by well-documented issues of waste and human rights abuses. Fast fashion in particular, characterized by its disposable nature, contributes extensively to environmental degradation and CO2 emissions, surpassing the combined outputs of France, Germany, and the UK, but its economic contributions have somewhat shielded it from criticism. In this paper, we examine the demand for fast fashion, with a focus on Spain. We explore the individual decision-making process involved in choosing to buy fast fashion and the role of awareness regarding working conditions, environmental consequences, and education on sustainable fashion in influencing consumer behavior. By employing Agent-Based Modeling, we investigate the factors influencing garment consumption patterns and how shifts in public opinion can be achieved through peer pressure, social media influence, and government interventions. Our study revealed that government interventions are pivotal, with the state’s campaigns setting the overall tone for progress, although its success is conditioned by social media and polarization levels of the population. Importantly, the state does not need to adopt an extremely proactive stance or continue the campaigns indefinitely to achieve optimal results, as excessive interventions yield diminishing returns.

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基于代理的生态选择洞察：模拟快速时尚转变

时尚是现代世界的一股强大力量。它是最容易获得的自我表达方式之一，因此在我们的社会中扮演着重要的角色。然而，它饱受浪费和侵犯人权问题的困扰。特别是快时尚，其特点是一次性的，对环境恶化和二氧化碳排放的贡献很大，超过了法国、德国和英国的总和，但其经济贡献在一定程度上使其免受批评。在本文中，我们研究了对快时尚的需求，重点是西班牙。我们探讨了个人在选择购买快时尚产品时的决策过程，以及对工作条件、环境后果和可持续时尚教育的认识在影响消费者行为中的作用。本文采用基于主体的模型，研究了影响服装消费模式的因素，以及如何通过同伴压力、社交媒体影响和政府干预来实现公众舆论的转变。我们的研究表明，政府干预至关重要，国家的运动为进步奠定了总体基调，尽管其成功取决于社交媒体和人口的两极分化程度。重要的是，国家不需要采取极端积极的立场，也不需要无限期地继续进行运动，以达到最佳效果，因为过度干预会产生递减的回报。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Ecological Economics 环境科学-环境科学

CiteScore

12.00

自引率

5.70%

发文量

313

审稿时长

6 months

期刊介绍： Ecological Economics is concerned with extending and integrating the understanding of the interfaces and interplay between "nature''s household" (ecosystems) and "humanity''s household" (the economy). Ecological economics is an interdisciplinary field defined by a set of concrete problems or challenges related to governing economic activity in a way that promotes human well-being, sustainability, and justice. The journal thus emphasizes critical work that draws on and integrates elements of ecological science, economics, and the analysis of values, behaviors, cultural practices, institutional structures, and societal dynamics. The journal is transdisciplinary in spirit and methodologically open, drawing on the insights offered by a variety of intellectual traditions, and appealing to a diverse readership. Specific research areas covered include: valuation of natural resources, sustainable agriculture and development, ecologically integrated technology, integrated ecologic-economic modelling at scales from local to regional to global, implications of thermodynamics for economics and ecology, renewable resource management and conservation, critical assessments of the basic assumptions underlying current economic and ecological paradigms and the implications of alternative assumptions, economic and ecological consequences of genetically engineered organisms, and gene pool inventory and management, alternative principles for valuing natural wealth, integrating natural resources and environmental services into national income and wealth accounts, methods of implementing efficient environmental policies, case studies of economic-ecologic conflict or harmony, etc. New issues in this area are rapidly emerging and will find a ready forum in Ecological Economics.