Ethical Consumer Behaviour

Ethical Consumer Behaviour

The Oxford Dictionaries’ definition of ethics reads, “A set of moral principles, especially ones relating to or affirming a specified group, field, or form of conduct.” In the vernacular, ethics is widely acknowledged as what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ in human behaviour. It is important to note, that there are no absolute standards. Defining one example of behaviour as ethical and another as unethical is the fruition of an individual’s moral judgement, and as such is likely to differ from person to person. In reckoning with this, it can be argued that ethical purchase behaviour differs from person to person, due to itself also being the outcome of moral judgement.

Corporate responsibility could be held responsible for the rapid growth of the ethical evident over the past few decades. As the US became more of an economic superpower towards the end of the Cold War, corporations began finding themselves under increasing amounts of pressure and media scrutiny. Soon firms began advertising their new socially responsible campaigns and stressed the importance of the as to be benefit to the overall social good that expected from such an initiative. With that, the ethical market emerged into the competitive force it is today. It has been forecasted by the Co-op Bank that spending on ethical food and drink incurred a threefold increase between 1998 and 2000. Over the past decade, numerous certification schemes have emerged, combined with the media spotlight, these schemes can be held accountable for the growing recognition and respect for ethical produce.

Traditionally, economists have told us that when we go shopping, we are searching for the cheapest product we can afford. Sometimes however, people tend to boycott a particular brand or company due to slander in the media. In the book, The Ethical Consumer, (Harris R, 2005) it is argued that a niche market will emerge, through the overall demands of an industry. In this book, each purchase...