ORIGINAL RESEARCH
How Reference Dependence and Network
Embeddedness Shape Residents’ Food
Waste Behavior? Evidence from China
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College of Economics and Management, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China
Submission date: 2023-05-20
Final revision date: 2023-08-03
Acceptance date: 2023-10-01
Online publication date: 2023-12-04
Publication date: 2024-01-22
Corresponding author
Mingxing Luo
College of Economics and Management, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China
Xiu Cheng
College of Economics and Management, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2024;33(2):1287-1298
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ABSTRACT
Reducing food waste is an important initiative to ensure food security and mitigate climate change.
Previous studies have largely ignored the influence of reference points on food waste behavior and
the role of human-to-human relational interactions, failing to capture their role in guiding residents’
food waste behavior (RFWBs). To address this gap, this study proposes a model that examines
the role of reference dependence, normative internalization, and symbolic expectations in RFWBs, while
introducing network embeddedness as a moderating variable. Using data collected from 981 respondents
online, ordinary least squares were used to test the hypotheses. The results showed that reference
dependence and normative internalization had a positive effect on reducing RFWBs with regression
coefficients of 0.178 and 0.293 respectively, while symbolic expectations also had a positive effect on
RFWBs with a regression coefficient of 0.227. Additionally, Network embeddedness played a significant
moderating role in reference dependence, normative internalization, and symbolic expectations with
RFWBs. This paper is theoretically innovative and the relevant findings fill the current research gap
in the field of food waste, providing guidance and reference for government departments to formulate
policies and promote residents to implement food waste reduction behaviors.