Toward a theory of ethical consumer intention formation: re-extending the theory of planned behavior
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THEORY/CONCEPTUAL
Toward a theory of ethical consumer intention formation: re-extending the theory of planned behavior William Sun 1 Received: 12 October 2018 / Accepted: 7 August 2019 # The Author(s) 2019
Abstract What drives consumers to purchase or not purchase ethical products remains something of a puzzle for consumer behavior researchers. Existing theory—particularly the widely applied theory of planned behavior (TPB)—cannot fully explain ethical purchase decisions. This article contends that not only is the original TPB limited in its applicability to ethical purchasing contexts but also subsequent modifications to it have been generally unfitting. This study advances the literature by taking a different approach to recharacterize and re-extend the original components of the TPB in order to make it more relevant and effective for explaining and predicting ethical consumer decisions. This new theoretical framework of intention formation features four determinants (attitude, subjective norm, moral identity, and perceived behavior control) and a key moderator (level of confidence), and thereby possesses better explanatory and predictive abilities to understand ethical consumer decisions. Keywords Ethical consumer behavior . Ethical consumer purchase decision . Ethical consumer intention formation . Moral identity . The theory of planned behavior
Introduction Consumer intention to purchase ethical products has been attracting increased attention among ethical consumerism and consumer ethics researchers (Andorfer and Liebe 2012; Papaoikonomou et al. 2011). Ethical products can be defined in different ways (e.g., Bray et al. 2010; Lewis and Potter 2011; Szmigin et al. 2007), but, in general, they are defined as products or brands that contain certain ethical attributes or are associated with particular ethical values and claims, such as issues concerning human rights, the environment, and animal welfare (Doane 2001; Harrison et al. 2005; Prothero et al. 2011). In the literature, the term “ethical” in relation to a product is often interchangeable with “social or ecological responsibility,” though strictly speaking, the concept of ethics is different from corporate social responsibility (CSR). In a review of the different origins of the business ethics and CSR movements, Donaldson and Fafaliou (2003) find that ethics refers to general norms of behavior for business, including all * William Sun [email protected] 1
Leeds Business School, Leeds Beckett University, Portland Cresent, Leeds LS1 3HB, UK
aspects of a business’s operations that relate to dominant values in a culture and society. Broadly, they argue that “everything [a] business does is ethically relevant” (Donaldson and Fafaliou 2003, p. 94). On the other side, CSR is narrowly defined as the social obligations of corporations. In this sense, CSR is a part of business ethics that focuses on the role and impacts of business in and on society and natural environments. In this article, social responsibility is included in the definition of “ethical,
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