Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Addressing the ecological crisis requires demand-side mitigation, but sufficiency strategies which aim to limit consumption are regarded as detrimental to well-being, creating a barrier to necessary change. This study investigated the Collegium Academicum (CA) student home where shared living is practised with a strong focus on sufficiency, characterised by large communal areas and self-organised infrastructures. We examined whether such sufficiency settings can relate to a changed perspective on shared living and sufficiency compared to ordinary shared living environments. Data from 159 residents—73 from the CA and 86 from a standard student home—revealed that CA residents found greater meaning in shared living, showed more positive attitudes towards sufficiency, and stronger shared living intentions. Specific experiences of shared living had a delayed positive effect on perceived meaningfulness. These findings suggest that sufficiency settings can strengthen sufficiency-oriented lifestyles. Future research should investigate these settings using rigorous pre-post study designs.
Source: Environmental Psychology Open
DOI: 10.69805/epo.v29.a24
Authors: Tilmann Hüppauff, Marcel Hunecke
Institution: Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts
Language: English
Subfield: Urban Studies
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W4411565019