A Matter of Principle: Comparing Norm-Based Explanations for Fair Trade Consumption

P. Schenk ()
Additional contact information
P. Schenk: University of Lucerne

Journal of Consumer Policy, 2019, vol. 42, issue 3, No 4, 397-423

Abstract: Abstract Research on fair trade consumption has proliferated in recent years. However, to date, systematic comparisons of the various theoretical models attempting to explain the purchase of fair trade products are rare. The present paper addresses this gap by comparing three theories which explain fair trade consumption by reference to a personal norm: The norm-activation model (NAM), the value-belief-norm (VBN) theory, and the value-identity-personal norm (VIP) model. Using data from a random sample of the general population in Zurich (Switzerland), the paper compares the explanatory power and the causal structures of these theories with structural equation models. The results show that the value-identity-personal norm (VIP) model explains the largest amount of variance in the purchase of fair trade products, followed by the value-belief-norm (VBN) theory. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that values influence the personal norm via specific beliefs (awareness of consequences and ascription of responsibility), as specified in VBN, as well as via the more general concept of an identity as a critical consumer, as hypothesized by VIP. In contrast, the results do not support the moderator-formulation of the NAM. The paper therefore concludes that VIP and VBN both represent valuable theories specifying complementary mechanisms for explaining fair trade consumption, whereas there is no evidence for the NAM as an explanation of fair trade consumption.

Keywords: Fair trade consumption; Theory comparison; Norm-activation model; Value-belief-norm theory; Value-identity-personal norm model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10603-018-9401-4 Abstract (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kap:jcopol:v:42:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s10603-018-9401-4

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... es/journal/10603/PS2

DOI: 10.1007/s10603-018-9401-4

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Consumer Policy is currently edited by Hans Micklitz, John Thøgersen, Lucia A. Reisch, Alan Mathios and Christian Twigg-Flesner

More articles in Journal of Consumer Policy from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().