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Towards sustainable living in Australia’s multicultural society: An exploration of cultural differences in attitudes to environment and consumption behaviours By Christina Yion Ping Ting Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Swinburne Institute for Social Research | Faculty of Health, Arts and Design Swinburne University of Technology |Melbourne, Australia Ethics approved by Swinburne’s Human Research Ethics Committee SUHREC Project No. 2010/233 see Appendix F Acknowledgements My sincere thanks go to Swinburne University of Technology for giving me the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to begin and complete this research journey. I also thank the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) for granting me a CSIRO Flagship Collaboration Fund Postgraduate Top Up Scholarship (Water for a Healthy Country Flagship), as well as the Swinburne Institute for Social Research for ensuring I had a desk, a continuous flow of coffee and tea, and many opportunities for social interactions and discussions. This research would not have been possible without the generosity, trust and openness of the participants interviewed in this study. Interviews with these individuals about their everyday lives and lived experiences were a privilege for me as a researcher, and I have learned a great deal through this process. Without their willingness to be involved, and their generosity in sparing their precious time, I would not have been able to achieve the outcomes of this study. My sincere thanks go also to my supervisors Professor Peter Newton, Dr Wendy Stone, Dr Leonie Pearson and Associate Professor Kathy Arthurson, whose expertise and input have been invaluable. Peter, as my principal supervisor, has been instrumental in guiding this work to completion. I thank him for his insights and constructive feedback, and for his patience, continuous support and trust in my capacity to compete this research journey. This did not wane, even when I had to attend to family matters. I thank Wendy for agreeing to become my supervisor when Leonie and Kathy left the university’s employment. Wendy’s ongoing support and enthusiasm has been encouraging. I thank Leonie and Kathy for their trust in the initial stages of this process. I am extremely fortunate to have had the support of a fine supervisory team. My gratitude to Dr Denny Meyer for her expert advice on the statistical methods and Dr Robyn Sampson for her ‘magical formatting touches’. Thanks are also due to Dr Jillian Graham for her assistance in copy-editing this thesis. i My heartfelt gratitude goes to the many others who contributed in various ways. The support of the administrative staff of Swinburne University and SISR has been unfailing, and I truly appreciate it. I would also particularly like to thank Professor Julian Thomas and Associate Professor Ellie Rennie of SISR for their continuous support, Associate Professor Karen Farquharson and Dr Tim Moore for their encouragement and support, and fellow students and colleagues at SISR – especially Grace Lee and Yee Man Louie – for conversations and laughter in the corridors. I dedicate this thesis to my family: Kong Kim Leng, Mary, Anna, Henrietta, Stephen, and niece, Evelyn Sheu, and especially to my late father Ting Chung King (for his kindness, patience and generosity), Duncan (for his expertise in IT and media) and Professor Frank Fisher (for teaching and sharing his ‘systems thinking’). I also dedicate it to my friends: Magdalen Scully, Martina Ting, Chan Miew Leng and Jessie Png. My family and friends have all kept me in touch with the important things in life, and imparted meaningful life lessons, including to treasure life itself. ii iii Declaration This is to certify that this thesis contains no material that has been accepted for the awarding to the candidate of any other degree or diploma, except where due reference is made in the text of the thesis. To the best of my knowledge, this thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the text of the thesis. Where the work is based on joint research or publications, the contributions of the respective workers or authors are disclosed and referenced in the thesis. The thesis has been copy-edited and proof-read by Dr Jillian Graham (Articulate Writing Solutions), whose services are consistent with those outlined in Section D of the Australian Standards for Editing Practice (ASEP). Christina Yion Ping Ting July 2015 iv v Abstract Increasing population and consumption, climate change and resource depletion are confronting issues for the world in the 21st century. In order to mitigate the resultant environmental impacts, there is a need to target individual consumption behaviours so that they align with more sustainable living – to adopt a simpler lifestyle that supports low-resource and low-carbon consumption. Individual behavioural factors (such as attitudes and intentions towards resource saving actions), structural socio- economic factors such as income and household size, and dwelling size and type have been found to influence individual and household consumption levels. When individuals understand how these sets of factors influence their consumption levels, they are in a position to consider changes in behaviour directed towards more sustainable lifestyles that have less impact on the environment. For an increasingly multicultural Australia, with its high affluence and urban livability – high consumption and an ecological footprint (EF) which is one of the largest in the world – understanding these conventional factors is necessary but not sufficient. Its population is increasingly more heterogeneous due to migration from different countries and cultures, especially from Asian, non-English speaking countries. As culture impacts on a spectrum of behaviours and activities, there is a need to develop a deeper understanding of the influence of migrants’ ethnic cultures on their post- migration consumption. Ethnic culture in this research refers to the distinctive cultures of different ethnic groups, and to the separation of these cultures from the broader host society’s cultural context. This thesis aims at a deeper analysis – at individual and household levels – of cultural influences on post-migration consumption behaviour of China-born migrants in Melbourne, Australia. These are compared with those of members of the host community. An explanatory model for individual consumption behaviour (measured by the ecological footprint) that includes a range of determinants (conventional and cultural) is developed. vi Quantitative and qualitative methods are applied in studying 61 China-born migrants and 72 Australia-born residents of the suburb of Box Hill in Melbourne. These focus on a range of consumption categories including energy, food, water, transport and waste management. Development of cultural indicators such as the CALD Index and acculturation level add insights into lived and cultural experiences, providing a greater depth of understanding of individuals’ behaviours and values in relation to consumption and sustainability. vii viii Table of Contents Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................... i Declaration .................................................................................................................. iv Abstract ....................................................................................................................... vi Table of Contents ........................................................................................................ ix List of Tables............................................................................................................ xiii List of Figures ............................................................................................................ xv Abbreviations ........................................................................................................... xvii Chapter 1 Pathway to Understanding Consumption in Multicultural Australia .............................................................................................. 1 1.1 The CALD Index ........................................................................ 9 1.2 Thesis outline ............................................................................ 13 1.3 Structure of the thesis ................................................................ 14 Chapter 2 Exploring Consumption and its Determinants .............................. 17 2.1 The challenge to sustainable living ........................................... 17 2.1.1 Approach to sustainable living ................................... 19 2.1.2 Assessment of consumption as a holistic approach .... 21 2.1.3 Consumption behaviour and environmental impact ... 21 2.1.4 Established determinants of consumption .................. 22 2.1.5 Individual structural attributes .................................... 23 2.1.6 Individual behavioural attributes ................................ 29 2.1.7 Household context ...................................................... 34 2.1.8 Dwelling context ......................................................... 36 2.1.9 Summary of review of past research ........................... 39 2.2 Migration, multiculturalism and consumption in Australia ...... 40 2.2.1 Ethnicity .....................................................................

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