The conscious consumer: taking a flexible approach to ethical behaviour

This paper considers the ethical purchasing of what is described as conscious consumers. Conscious consumers remain a work in progress, and present a complex mix of behaviours; while seeking ethical alternatives, other social and economic forces impact on their behaviour (e.g. family, convenience, price) such that positive ethical choices are not always made. Examining ethical consumption in this way reveals the competing priorities, para-doxical outcomes, and the nature of compromises reached in real decision processes. We identify two areas of theory relevant to the conceptualization of such consumers, exibility and dissonance theory. A qualitative study of participants identied as conscious consumers was undertaken. As anticipated, the participants revealed a range of often contradictory behaviours regarding their ethical purchases. The relevance of exibility and dissonance theory to their behaviour is discussed.