Abstract

Though, small businesses are vital globally, they contribute to environmental and social challenges such as deforestation, pollution, use of polythene bags, poor working conditions, child labour and health hazards. Thus, it is vital to understand the concept of sustainability intention of small business owners. The purpose of this study therefore was to assess how altruism towards others influences sustainability intention of small business owners in Uganda. The study adopted a cross sectional design. A sample of 384 small businesses in Kampala was selected and self-administered questionnaire used to collect data. Statistical package for social science (SPSS) was used to process and analyze data from the respondents through correlation and regression analysis to determine the predicting power of altruism towards others on sustainability intention. The study findings revealed that altruism towards others significantly predicts the sustainability intention of small business owners. It is therefore recommended that small business owners should always be empathetic and sympathetic to the people and be mindful of conserving the environment for better long term profit gains.

Key words: Altruism towards others, sustainability intention, small businesses, business owners.