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ABSTRACT
The increased levels of consumption that have accompanied our consumer-oriented culture have also given rise to some consumers questioning their individual consumption choices, with many opting for greater consumption simplicity. This link between consideration of actual consumption levels and consumer choices is evident among a group of consumers known as ethical consumers. Ethical consumers consider a range of ethical issues in their consumer behavioral choices. Particularly prevalent is voluntary simplification due to concerns for the extent and nature of consumption. Through the presentation of findings from two qualitative studies exploring known ethical consumers, the relationship of consumer attitudes to consumption levels, and how these attitudes impact approaches to consumer behavior, are discussed. (c) 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
In much of the developed world consumption has moved beyond its primary utilitarian function of serving basic human needs. This situation has provided marketing with a central role in cultural life, as individuals use consumer goods to create an identity, build relationships, and structure psychological events (Lunt & Livingstone, 1992). Peter Corrigan introduces his Sociology of Consumption thusly: "Although consumption takes place in all human cultures, it is only in the present [20th] century that consumption on a truly mass scale has begun to appear as a fundamental, rather than merely epiphenomenal, charac teristic of society" (1997, p. 1). These developments have provided the premise for many consumers' growing critique of their own consumption as displayed in their purchase or nonpurchase behavior. Thus, as society has increasingly been described as a consumer culture, the notions of consumers as voters, consumers as activists and dissenters, and consumers as voluntary simplifiers and downshifters have appeared. It is this shift in consumer attitudes with regard to their voluntarily simplified levels of consumption that have an important impact on marketing practices, and are the focus of the present article. Understanding of consumer attitudes and behavior with regard to their voluntarily reduced consumption levels is limited. Some research has focused on specific dimensions of reduced consumption, such as downshifting (Schor, 1998); voluntary simplicity (Etzioni, 1998); and consumer selection of more ethical alternatives, including environmental products (e.g., Friedman, 1996; Mintel Special Report, 1994; Smith, 1990; Strong, 1997). But the relationship between ethical concerns and voluntary simplicity has been neglected. The...