Abstract
This chapter is directed at examining this gap in everyday practices and is a step towards bridging thoughts and action of consumers towards sustainable social change. Utilizing a qualitative approach, purchasing practices of consumers with strong beliefs about ethical consumption are critically assessed to examine how individuals think and act with respect to their purchasing decisions. The findings of this chapter suggest that transparency and communication of the ethical investment of consumers in purchasing and consuming ethical products needs to be more pronounced for thoughts to reflect in ethical conscious practices.
TopBackground
Ethical consumption literature has a long and consistent history in outlining the necessity of including ethics-based principles and morality in business decisions and economic arrangements. It has strongly presented itself to counter the inequities and power imbalances in market systems. Historically, the debate gained momentum and strength with the spread of global capitalism. As economic globalization spread across the world coupled with modern means of communication, it increasingly brought in focus the inequalities in these systems of exchange and the need to reform capitalism to allow for its flourishing and continued expansion to different parts of the world. The rapid industrialization and mass production with its drive for profits led to the relevance and introduction of conversations around consumerism with a rising movement towards it during the industrial revolution (Berend, 2015; Cowan et al., 2009).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Alternative Consumerism: Focusing on social and ecological concerns in consumption, and not solely the economic ones.
Social Sustainability: Addressing the concerns and needs of a society and culture including social equity and justice for more inclusive socio-economic arrangements for conducting business and trade.
Gender: A binary social construction that socially aligns all male bodied individuals into masculine identity and all female-bodied into feminine identity. All that is male, is not female and all that is female, is not male.
Qualitative Research: Understanding social logic through deep analysis of people’s own words and communication.
Reputational Capital: The reputation of an organization is also one of its strong assets in present times. Reputation is an important investment and a source of profit for business organizations.
Sociology: Examination of human societies and cultures to discern patterns in thoughts and action of consumers.
Fair Trade: A movement that is aimed at reforming the inequities in international trade through keeping ethics and fair principles of business at the center of trade.
Ethical Consumption: Making socially informed choices about consumption and purchasing behavior.