Information on the study
Goals of the study
This study aims to get an overview of the clothes in our wardrobes and our motivations for buying, using and disposing of clothes. This data is used to:
- Develop a national database on the contents and developments in our wardrobes, which participating academic institutions will use to investigate how consumers can be supported in sustainable decision-making.
- Monitor progress on the national targets the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management set for sustainable materials, reuse and recycling.
- Develop and test behavioural interventions that support sustainable consumer behaviour.
- Revalue our clothes and perhaps rediscover hidden "clothing treasures".
Implementation of the study
The research is carried out by Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, in collaboration with various academic institutions (MBO, HBO and WO). If you received the invitation to participate from your institute, it means that also your institute joined! This is great, because it gives us a good overview of the contents of the wardrobes of Dutch consumers.
The study consists of filling in a questionnaire consisting of four parts:
- A general section with questions about the "owner" of the clothes.
- The audit (counting garments and reporting changes in your wardrobe).
- Deep dives: here, you answer more detailed questions on 2 of your favourite items and 2 garments you want to discard.
- Concluding questions
The time it takes to complete the questionnaire depends on the size of your wardrobe. Based on preliminary research, we estimate that an average wardrobe takes about 60 minutes to audit. Please take the device with the questionnaire to your wardrobe to conduct the audit. Participation in the study is voluntary. You can save your answers to the questionnaire as a PDF. In this way, you have a good overview of all your garments.
Processing of the data
The answers to this questionnaire are stored by Rotterdam Universitty of Applied Sciences for 10 years in a secured digital environment. These answers are anonymous. The questionnaire asks for personal data, such as the name of the academic institution, age and cultural background. Because these are categories, the chance that the answers can be traced back to a person is minimal. This information is needed to develop a database and appropriate behavioural interventions. You will not be asked for contact information, nor will your IP address be stored. Upon request, the participating academic institutions will receive all anonymised data from the study, i.e. from all institutions together. The name of the educational institution is not shared, therefore, your data is anonymous.
Contact
For more information about this study, please contact Dr. Mirella Soyer, Professor of Behaviour for Circular Transitions at the Research Centre Business Innovation of Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences (m.p.n.c.soyer@hr.nl).
