CURRENT ISSUE
Editor-in-chief:
Prof. Johannes (Joost) Platje
Deputy Editor-in-chief
Prof Kazim Baris Atici, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey
Co-Editor:
Prof Ali Emrouznejad, University of Surrey, United Kingdom
Dr. Wim Westerman, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
Vol. 10, No.1, March 2026, 7-18
Received: 30.11.2025, Revised: 14.02.2026, Accepted: 02.03.2026
Consumer Barriers to the Circular Economy: a managerial perspective on the “value-action gap”
Author: Jeyhun AMRAHOV
Faculty of Management, WSB Merito University, Gdańsk, Poland
Aim: The purpose of this paper is to analyze the “Value-Action Gap” in the context of the Circular Economy (CE). While European consumers increasingly express concern for environmental sustainability, their purchasing behavior often remains linear. The aim is to identify the specific structural and behavioral barriers that prevent consumers from adopting circular behaviors and to propose managerial strategies to overcome them.
Design / Research methods: This article employs a conceptual review methodology, synthesizing literature from behavioral economics, consumer psychology, and green marketing. It applies the “Attitude-Behavior Gap” theoretical framework to the specific context of circular business models.
Conclusions / findings: The analysis reveals that the primary obstacles to circular consumption are not educational, but structural. Consumers face a “trust deficit” regarding used goods, economic disincentives due to the low cost of new linear products, and cognitive fatigue associated with behavioral change.
Originality / value of the article: This paper shifts the focus from “educating the consumer” to “redesigning the value proposition.” It provides a novel framework for managers to use Product-as-a-Service (PaaS) and behavioral nudges to align circular behaviors with consumer convenience.
Implications: Managers must stop relying on “green guilt” marketing and instead compete on convenience and risk reduction. Policymakers must support standardization in secondary markets to build trust.
Keywords: : Circular Economy, Value-Action Gap, Consumer Behavior, Green Marketing, Product-as-a-Service.
JEL: M31, Q56, D12.
Vol. 10, No.1, March 2026, 19-69
Received: 21.12.2025, Revised: 21.02.2026, Accepted: 23.03.2026
Managing risk in the Forever Society – a primer
Author: Laurenc L. DEVITA
Research Centre for System Risk Management, USA
Aim: To describe a methodology for looking at human actions in the context of a sustainable society.
Research methods: Reviewed data on the health of the ecosphere, and a consideration of efforts to describe and mediate ecosystem degradation.
Conclusions: A methodology is needed to context the complex global system and it’s subordinate and constituent systems with consequences for violating sustainable goals.
Originality / value of the article: It provides a means of linearizing the complexity of systems which uses the carbon dioxide molecule as the base unit of analysis, and locates humans within the context of resource use. Using the concept of Energy Return on Energy Investment to evaluate variables simplifies analysis.
Implications of the research: A global effort to consider the basin of sustainability is needed.
Limitations of the research: This paper is a primer, and uses a hypothetical project to explore the methodology and concepts. It uses commonly available data to discuss the global system. A next step would be to use the methodology with data on an actual project or social system.
Keywords: Energy Return on Energy Investment; Maximum Power Principle; surplus of nature; basin of sustainability; sustainability debt; ecosystem value; externalities; carbon dioxide; carbon cost.
JEL: Q01, Q20, Q40, Q51, Q54, C02
