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Bags for life: The embedding of ethical consumerism

Yeow, Pamela, Dean, Alison, Tucker, D. (2014) Bags for life: The embedding of ethical consumerism. Journal of Business Ethics, 125 (1). pp. 87-99. ISSN 0167-4544. E-ISSN 1573-0697. (doi:10.1007/s10551-013-1900-2) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:35234)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1900-2

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to understand why some ethical behaviours fail to embed, and importantly what can be done about it. We address this by looking at an example where ethical behaviour has not become the norm, i.e. the widespread, habitual, use of ‘bags for life’. This is an interesting case because whilst a consistent message of ‘saving the environment’ has been the basis of the promotion of ‘bags for life’ in the United Kingdom for many years, their uptake has only recently become more widespread and still remains at low levels. Through an exploratory study, we unpack some of the contextual barriers which may influence ethical consumerism. We do this by examining the attitudes which influenced people to start using ‘bags for life’, and how people persuade others to use ‘bags for life’. We use a case study analysis to try and understand why ethical behaviour change has stalled and not become sustained. We find that both individuals and institutions play a significant interaction role in encouraging a sustained behavioural change towards ethical consumerism.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1007/s10551-013-1900-2
Uncontrolled keywords: Attitude-intention-behaviour gap, embedding behaviour change, environment plastic bags, ethical consumerism
Subjects: H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Divisions: Divisions > Kent Business School - Division > Kent Business School (do not use)
Depositing User: Catherine Norman
Date Deposited: 17 Sep 2013 08:56 UTC
Last Modified: 17 Aug 2022 10:56 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/35234 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Yeow, Pamela.

Creator's ORCID:
CReDIT Contributor Roles:

Dean, Alison.

Creator's ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7135-8585
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