Minimizing rebound effects in the circular economy: The role of behavioral and contextual factors in addressing imperfect substitution

Cossey, Jozef [UCL] Perilleux, Anaïs [UCL]

Rebound effects threaten to undermine the environmental potential of circular economy strategies. However, the existing literature on the consumer side of the circular economy provides little guidance on how these adverse behavioral impacts might be mitigated. This paper reviews intentional, behavioral and structural approaches to behavior change and empirically assesses their explanatory power in predicting the displacement of primary production by circular products in the context of carsharing. We find convenience considerations, structural contextual changes as well as the interaction between them to be the main levers to addressing imperfect substitution. We conclude by discussing how minimizing the rebound effects of circular products would benefit from the simultaneous introduction of measures that decrease the convenience of linear consumption patterns.