IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/amu/wpaper/2015-01.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Economics of Ethical Consumption

Author

Listed:
  • Martha A. Starr

Abstract

Although there has been little economic research on 'ethical consumption' in a general sense, work on its various aspects is growing. This paper reviews economic research on ethical consumption, examining both demand-and supply-side aspects. It is argued that the most promising way to see ethical consumption through an economic lens is via models with heterogeneous consumers, in which some have strong intrinsic motivation to adopt ethical-consumption practices, others will adopt if they perceive a practice to be becoming a social norm and its extra costs are moderate, and others still will be impervious to it. Implications for the spread of ethical consumption and its ability to affect change are considered.

Suggested Citation

  • Martha A. Starr, 2015. "The Economics of Ethical Consumption," Working Papers 2015-01, American University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:amu:wpaper:2015-01
    DOI: 10.17606/fyyp-8622
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.17606/fyyp-8622
    File Function: First version, 2015
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.17606/fyyp-8622?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Raluca Dragusanu & Daniele Giovannucci & Nathan Nunn, 2014. "The Economics of Fair Trade," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 28(3), pages 217-236, Summer.
    2. Kjell Arne Brekke & Gorm Kipperberg & Karine Nyborg, 2010. "Social Interaction in Responsibility Ascription: The Case of Household Recycling," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 86(4), pages 766-784.
    3. Dastrup, Samuel R. & Graff Zivin, Joshua & Costa, Dora L. & Kahn, Matthew E., 2012. "Understanding the Solar Home price premium: Electricity generation and “Green” social status," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(5), pages 961-973.
    4. Nyborg, Karine & Howarth, Richard B. & Brekke, Kjell Arne, 2006. "Green consumers and public policy: On socially contingent moral motivation," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 351-366, November.
    5. He, Na & Bernard, John C., 2011. "Differences in WTP and Consumer Demand for Organic and Non-GM Fresh and Processed Foods," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 40(2), pages 218-232, September.
    6. Batte, Marvin T. & Hooker, Neal H. & Haab, Timothy C. & Beaverson, Jeremy, 2007. "Putting their money where their mouths are: Consumer willingness to pay for multi-ingredient, processed organic food products," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 145-159, April.
    7. Viola Muster, 2011. "Companies Promoting Sustainable Consumption of Employees," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 34(1), pages 161-174, March.
    8. Shoshanah Inwood & Jeff Sharp & Richard Moore & Deborah Stinner, 2009. "Restaurants, chefs and local foods: insights drawn from application of a diffusion of innovation framework," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 26(3), pages 177-191, September.
    9. Fredrik Carlsson & Jorge García & Åsa Löfgren, 2010. "Conformity and the Demand for Environmental Goods," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 47(3), pages 407-421, November.
    10. Sexton, Steven E. & Sexton, Alison L., 2014. "Conspicuous conservation: The Prius halo and willingness to pay for environmental bona fides," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 303-317.
    11. Chris Arnot & Peter C. Boxall & Sean B. Cash, 2006. "Do Ethical Consumers Care About Price? A Revealed Preference Analysis of Fair Trade Coffee Purchases," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 54(4), pages 555-565, December.
    12. He, Na & Bernard, John C., 2011. "Differences in WTP and Consumer Demand for Organic and Non-GM Fresh and Processed Foods," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association, vol. 40(2), pages 1-15, August.
    13. van den Bergh, Jeroen C.J.M., 2008. "Environmental regulation of households: An empirical review of economic and psychological factors," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(4), pages 559-574, July.
    14. Eriksson, Clas, 2004. "Can green consumerism replace environmental regulation?--a differentiated-products example," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 281-293, September.
    15. Markus Kitzmueller & Jay Shimshack, 2012. "Economic Perspectives on Corporate Social Responsibility," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 50(1), pages 51-84, March.
    16. Maguire, Kelly B. & Owens, Nicole N. & Simon, Nathalie B., 2004. "The Price Premium for Organic Babyfood: A Hedonic Analysis," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 29(1), pages 1-18, April.
    17. Starr, Martha A., 2009. "The social economics of ethical consumption: Theoretical considerations and empirical evidence," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 38(6), pages 916-925, December.
    18. Gallagher, Kelly Sims & Muehlegger, Erich, 2011. "Giving green to get green? Incentives and consumer adoption of hybrid vehicle technology," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 1-15, January.
    19. Daniel Jaffee & Philip Howard, 2010. "Corporate cooptation of organic and fair trade standards," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 27(4), pages 387-399, December.
    20. Colin F. Camerer & Ernst Fehr, "undated". "Measuring Social Norms and Preferences using Experimental Games: A Guide for Social Scientists," IEW - Working Papers 097, Institute for Empirical Research in Economics - University of Zurich.
    21. Brekke, Kjell Arne & Kverndokk, Snorre & Nyborg, Karine, 2003. "An economic model of moral motivation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(9-10), pages 1967-1983, September.
    22. Videras Julio R & Owen Ann L, 2006. "Public Goods Provision and Well-Being: Empirical Evidence Consistent with the Warm Glow Theory," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 5(1), pages 1-40, April.
    23. Røpke, Inge, 2009. "Theories of practice -- New inspiration for ecological economic studies on consumption," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(10), pages 2490-2497, August.
    24. Loureiro, Maria L. & Hine, Susan E., 2002. "Discovering Niche Markets: A Comparison Of Consumer Willingness To Pay For Local (Colorado Grown), Organic, And Gmo-Free Products," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Southern Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 34(3), pages 1-11, December.
    25. Karen Hills & Jessica Goldberger & Stephen Jones, 2013. "Commercial bakers and the relocalization of wheat in western Washington State," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 30(3), pages 365-378, September.
    26. John Thompson & Bob Doherty, 2006. "The diverse world of social enterprise: A collection of social enterprise stories," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 33(5/6), pages 361-375, May.
    27. Liu, Yizao, 2014. "Household demand and willingness to pay for hybrid vehicles," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 191-197.
    28. Abbott, Andrew & Nandeibam, Shasikanta & O'Shea, Lucy, 2013. "Recycling: Social norms and warm-glow revisited," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 10-18.
    29. Kahn, Matthew E., 2007. "Do greens drive Hummers or hybrids? Environmental ideology as a determinant of consumer choice," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 54(2), pages 129-145, September.
    30. Leonie A. Venhoeven & Jan Willem Bolderdijk & Linda Steg, 2013. "Explaining the Paradox: How Pro-Environmental Behaviour can both Thwart and Foster Well-Being," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 5(4), pages 1-15, March.
    31. Timothy K. M. Beatty & Peter Berck & Jay P. Shimshack, 2007. "Curbside Recycling In The Presence Of Alternatives," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 45(4), pages 739-755, October.
    32. repec:feb:natura:0061 is not listed on IDEAS
    33. Andreoni, James, 1989. "Giving with Impure Altruism: Applications to Charity and Ricardian Equivalence," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 97(6), pages 1447-1458, December.
    34. Grischa Perino & Luca A. Panzone & Timothy Swanson, 2014. "Motivation Crowding In Real Consumption Decisions: Who Is Messing With My Groceries?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 52(2), pages 592-607, April.
    35. Alison Alkon, 2008. "From value to values: sustainable consumption at farmers markets," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 25(4), pages 487-498, December.
    36. W. Kip Viscusi & Joel Huber & Jason Bell, 2011. "Promoting Recycling: Private Values, Social Norms, and Economic Incentives," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(3), pages 65-70, May.
    37. Emma Waight, 2013. "Eco babies: reducing a parent's ecological footprint with second-hand consumer goods," International Journal of Green Economics, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(2), pages 197-211.
    38. ÅSA Lindman & Kristina Ek & Patrik S�derholm, 2013. "Voluntary citizen participation in carbon allowance markets: the role of norm-based motivation," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 13(6), pages 680-697, November.
    39. Shigeru Matsumoto, 2014. "The Opportunity Cost of Pro-Environmental Activities: Spending Time to Promote the Environment," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 35(1), pages 119-130, March.
    40. Chang, Jae Bong & Lusk, Jayson L., 2009. "Fairness and food choice," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(6), pages 483-491, December.
    41. Josée Johnston & Michelle Szabo, 2011. "Reflexivity and the Whole Foods Market consumer: the lived experience of shopping for change," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 28(3), pages 303-319, September.
    42. Luigino Bruni & Stefano Zamagni (ed.), 2013. "Handbook on the Economics of Reciprocity and Social Enterprise," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 14159.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ceccantoni, Giulia & Tarola, Ornella & Zanaj, Skerdilajda, 2018. "Green Consumption and Relative Preferences in a Vertically Differentiated International Oligopoly," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 129-139.
    2. Brian Chi-ang Lin & Siqi Zheng & Marie Briguglio, 2016. "Household Cooperation In Waste Management: Initial Conditions And Intervention," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(3), pages 497-525, July.
    3. Christophe Charlier & Ankinée Kirakozian, 2020. "Public policies for household recycling when reputation matters," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 523-557, April.
    4. Brian Chi-ang Lin & Siqi Zheng & Ankinée Kirakozian, 2016. "One Without The Other? Behavioural And Incentive Policies For Household Waste Management," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(3), pages 526-551, July.
    5. Cecere, Grazia & Mancinelli, Susanna & Mazzanti, Massimiliano, 2014. "Waste prevention and social preferences: the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 163-176.
    6. McFadden, Jonathan R. & Huffman, Wallace E., 2017. "Willingness-to-pay for natural, organic, and conventional foods: The effects of information and meaningful labels," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 214-232.
    7. Briguglio, Marie & Delaney, Liam & Wood, Alex, 2018. "Partisanship, priming and participation in public-good schemes," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 136-150.
    8. Damiano Fiorillo & Luigi Senatore, 2020. "Pro-social behaviours, waste concern and recycling behaviour in Italy at the end of the 1990s," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 22(2), pages 127-151, April.
    9. Fiorillo, Damiano & Senatore, Luigi, 2016. "Self Image and Environmental Attitude and Behavior," MPRA Paper 74888, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Burani, Nadia & Mantovani, Andrea, 2020. "Non-linear pricing and conscious consumption," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    11. Delgado, Michael S. & Harriger, Jessica L. & Khanna, Neha, 2015. "The value of environmental status signaling," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 1-11.
    12. Yokoo, Hide-Fumi & Kawai, Kosuke & Higuchi, Yuki, 2018. "Informal recycling and social preferences: Evidence from household survey data in Vietnam," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 109-124.
    13. D'Amato, Alessio & Mancinelli, Susanna & Zoli, Mariangela, 2016. "Complementarity vs substitutability in waste management behaviors," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 84-94.
    14. Mark Hudson & Ian Hudson & Jason D. Edgerton, 2013. "Political Consumerism in Context: An Experiment on Status and Information in Ethical Consumption Decisions," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 72(4), pages 1009-1037, October.
    15. Mikołaj Czajkowski & Nick Hanley & Karine Nyborg, 2014. "Social norms, morals and self-interest as determinants of pro-environment behaviour," Working Papers 2014-17, Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw.
    16. McFadden, Brandon R. & Malone, Trey, 2018. "How will mandatory labeling of genetically modified food nudge consumer decision-making?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 186-194.
    17. Agnès Festré & Pierre Garrouste & Ankinée Kirakozian & Mira Toumi, 2017. "The Pen Might Be Mightier than the Sword: How Third-party Advice or Sanction Impacts on Pro-environmental Behavior," GREDEG Working Papers 2017-15, Groupe de REcherche en Droit, Economie, Gestion (GREDEG CNRS), Université Côte d'Azur, France, revised Aug 2017.
    18. Marco A. Marini & Ornella Tarola & Jacques-François Thisse, 2020. "Is Environmentalism the Right Strategy to Decarbonize the World?," Working Papers 2020.31, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    19. Matsumoto, Shigeru, 2020. "Do individuals free ride on participation in environmental policies? Personal values and waste management practices," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    20. Burani, Nadia & Mantovani, Andrea, 2024. "Environmental policies with green network effect and price discrimination," TSE Working Papers 24-1513, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE), revised Jul 2024.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ethical consumption; consumption ethics; socially responsible consumption; corporate social responsibility; sustainable consumption; consumer behavior; pro-social behavior; consumer economics;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • D11 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Theory
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • A13 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Social Values
    • A12 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Other Disciplines
    • Q5 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:amu:wpaper:2015-01. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Thomas Meal (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.american.edu/cas/economics/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.