FACTORS AFFECTING INTENTION OF YOUNG PEOPLE TO REDUCE FOOD WASTE IN ALL-YOU-CAN-IT RESTAURANTS IN CAN THO CITY

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the factors affecting the intention to reduce food waste in all-you-can-eat restaurants among young people in Can Tho City. The research model is built based on the combination of two main theoretical models: The Theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the Normative activation model (NAM). In addition, a latent variable, social media usage (SMU) was added to the model in order to explore its impact on the intention to reduce food waste (INT). This study opted for a convenient sampling method, yielding a sample size of 603 respondents. AMOS-SEM was then used to analyse the data. Based on the results, it was found that Awareness of consequences (AC) and Ascription of responsibility (AR) have a positive effect on Personal Norms (PN). Besides, Social media usage (SMU) has a positive effect on Attitude (AT). Furthermore, Attitude (AT), Subjective norms (SN), and Personal Norms (PN) have a positive effect on Intention to reduce food waste (INT). Moreover, PN mediated the relationship between AC and INT as well as AR and INT, while AT mediated the effect between SMU and INT. Nevertheless, the results indicated that Perceived behavior control (PBC) has no impact on the intention to reduce food waste of young people in Can Tho City. From the above findings, some managerial implications are discussed to increase young people's intention to reduce food waste. Keywords: food waste, all-you-can-eat restaurant, intention.