Are you up for fair-trade products? Vertical dimension as a metaphorical representation of virtuous consumption

Frederic Basso (), Julien Bouille and Julien Troiville
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Frederic Basso: LSE - London School of Economics and Political Science
Julien Bouille: LIRIS - Laboratoire interdisciplinaire de recherche en innovations sociétales - UR2 - Université de Rennes 2

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Abstract: This article examines vertical dimension as a metaphorical representation of ethical consumption by testing the connection between ethical consumption and high verticality, and its implications for consumers when considering fair-trade products. This research first shows that the representation of ethical consumption in terms of high verticality manifests in a strong implicit association between moral virtues underpinning fair-trade consumption (e.g., justice, solidarity) and "up" (Study 1). This research then demonstrates that consumers explicitly associate fair-trade products with an elevated position (Study 2), and that a match between fair-trade products and increased physical elevation results in heightened altruistic behavior (Study 3). In addition, this article reveals that greater familiarity with fair-trade products enhances this metaphorical representation and its downstream effects on altruistic behavior (Studies 2 and 3). The theoretical and managerial implications of the present research are discussed in conclusion.

Keywords: Fair trade; Ethical consumption; Conceptual metaphor; Verticality; Altruistic behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021-10
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-isf
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-03331808v1
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Published in Journal of Business Research, 2021, 135, pp.508-518. ⟨10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.06.050⟩

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Journal Article: Are you up for fair-trade products? Vertical dimension as a metaphorical representation of virtuous consumption (2021)
Working Paper: Are you up for fair-trade products? Vertical dimension as a metaphorical representation of virtuous consumption (2021)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-03331808

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.06.050

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