• International Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.39-50
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• 2010

This paper compares a cross-cultural and gender differences and similarities about consumer ethical perceptions and behaviors, and ethical ideologies between Korean and the US college students. It also examines the relationships between consumers' ethical perceptions and behaviors, and the relationships between consumer ethics and ethical ideologies. This research provides some evidence that supports the premise that consumer ethics is influenced to an extent by consumers' nationality and gender. The differences are not universal, however, and could perhaps be described as situational. The American college consumers were found to be more idealistic and relativistic than the Korean college consumers. But the differences were minor The American male college consumers were found to be more idealistic than the American female college consumers. The ethical consumer groups were found to be more idealistic and less relativistic than were the unethical consumer groups. Perceptions were positively related to behaviors in the consumer ethics. But the magnitude of impacts is different between the nations and in the dimensions of consumer ethics.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.891-901
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• 2004

This study is to investigate the degree of consumers' non-ethical perceptions and behaviors, and to explore related variables such as demographic variables, idealism and relativism. The data used in this study were obtained by surveying 237 college students from 10th through 24th of October, 2002 in Kimhae city. We conducted a statistical analysis of the data, using percentiles, frequencies, means, t-test, ANOVA, and Multiple Regression. Consumers' non-ethical perceptions and behaviors were measured by modifying Consumer Ethics Scale(CES, Muncy & Vitell, 1992). The CES scale comprises 4 sub-factors: actively benefiting from illegal activity(CES1), passively benefiting(CES2), actively benefiting from questionable action(CES3), no harm/no foul(CES4). Average scores of consumers' non-ethical perceptions and behaviors marked below a mid-value, which means that most of the students are basically ethical. The related variable of consumers' non-ethical perceptions was idealism. The related variables of consumers' non-ethical behaviors were idealism and the amount of discretionary money. The results show that most of the participants are basically ethical as a consumer. However, the results related with the CES4 sub-factor which includes consumer attitudes toward copyrights of consumer softwares and music CDs tell us that they are relatively non-ethical. This claims an importance of consumer education to college students in regards to intellectual property.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.1015-1023
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• 2006

This study examined the levels of consumers' non-ethical behaviors in the marketplace and the factors affecting each category of them. The data were collected from 222 adults in Busan and Gyeongnam areas through a self-administered questionnaire. Frequencies, Cronbach's alpha, Pearson's correlation analysis and multiple regression analyses were conducted by SPSS Windows. The results from this study were as follows: First, respondents showed the highest level of non-ethical behavior in the no harm/no foul category, while the lowest level in the actively benefiting from questionable behavior category. Second, as the results of multiple regression analyses, age was significant in all categories of non-ethical behaviors. In addition, religion, consumer knowledge and consumer role attitudes were found to be significant in some categories. These results imply that the consumer ethics should be included in the consumer education for more effective consumer behaviors of young generation.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.165-178
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• 2003

The purpose of this study was to understand the consumer non-ethical behavior and the interaction with salespersons and their relationships. For this purpose, adults in Chunlabuk-do were surveyed and 675 questionnaires were analyzed using SPSS statistical program. The results of the analysis were as follows: 1. Three dimensions of the consumer non-ethical behaviors were the unconscience, the illegality, and the deception. Two dimensions of the interaction with salespersons were the passive and the assertive interactions. 2. There were two clusters respectively; ethical and non-ethical groups for the consumer non-ethical behavior/ passive and assertive groups for the interaction with salespersons. 3. Generally, the more educated and the older persons were, the less they tended to be ethical and the more passively they tended to interact with the salespersons. 4. There were significant differences between the clusters of consumer non-ethical behavior and those of interaction. The non-assertive interaction group were found more in the non-ethical group and the assertive interaction group more in the ethical groups.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.75-86
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• 2007

This study investigated the differences of consumers' perception toward immoral shopping behavior when they shop in apparel retail stores by consumer characteristics such as ethical ideology and gender. Forsyth's(1980) ethical ideology measuring idealism and relativism was used. Three hundred twenty-five college students enrolled at a large university located in a metropolitan area participated in the study. These students were divided into four groups on the basis of their ethical ideology: situationist, subjectivist, exceptionist, or absolutist. A series of factor analyses revealed three factors of immoral shopping behaviors: shoplifting, active immoral shopping behaviors, and passive immoral shopping behaviors. The four groups significantly differed in regard to their perceptions toward active immoral shopping behaviors and passive immoral shopping behaviors. T-tests revealed that females tended to perceive shoplifting and passive immoral shopping behavior factor worse than males. The results of this study would be used for developing consumer educational programs and retail training programs.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.801-817
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• 2011

The purpose of this research was to explore the levels of ethical consumption of the college students and classify their types on ethical consumption behaviors. This research was conducted with university students living in Gwangju. Statistical analysis was achieved by using t-test, one-way ANOVA, Duncan's multiple range test, $X^2$, and Ward' hierarchical cluster analysis with a total of 761 questionnaires. The research results are summarized as follows: First, the overall ethical consumption average mark of college students was 3.14. Second, all surveyed college students were classified into five types based on the means scores of three dimension ethical consumption behaviors. A total 16.7% of students belonged to Type 1 (named as entire region active group) where students scored high points on three dimension ethical consumption behaviors. Type 2 (named as entire region average group) had about 41.6% of students whose scores were the average mark level in three dimension ethical consumption behaviors. Type 3 (named as future-oriented group) occupied 13.9% and this group scored low on the ethical consumption in commercial transaction but high on the ethical consumption for the future generation. Type 4 (named as commercial transaction oriented group) occupied 9.1% and this group scored low on the ethical consumption for contemporary humankind and the ethical consumption for the future generation but high on the ethical consumption in commercial transaction. Type 5 (named as entire region passive group) had 18.7% of students whose scores of three dimension ethical consumption behaviors were low.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to examine the ethical attitudes of consumers in consumption situations by using the consumer ethics scale(CES). Self-administrated questionnaires were completed by 492 consumers, and the resulting data were analysed by frequency, chi-square, one-way ANOVA, factor analysis, reliability analysis, and cluster analysis. We found four different groups of consumers were identified according to their ethical attitudes in consumption situations: 1) the unethical onlooker consumer group, 2) the socialized unethical consumer group, 3) the ethical consumer group, and 4) the severely unethical consumer group. The unethical onlooker consumer group was most widespread prevalent among university students who were in their 20s and down or under, and who received spending money from their parents, and the socialized unethical consumer group was most prevailing prevalent among the higher educated consumers. The women who consumers slightly outnumbered men in an the ethical consumer group, slightly outnumbered the men who did, and many of the university-educated large income earners fell into this group consumed in that way as well. The severely unethical consumer group was quite uncommon among those who were at the age of 41 and up over, and not many of the higher educated people and larger income earners consumed in an the severely unethical consumer group, either. Thus, it's proven this study proves that in terms of the propensity to consume, the consumers' were different from one another in ethical attitudes and behaviors differ according to their demographic characteristics.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.113-121
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• 2015

This study is to identify that the efforts of business ethics build customer loyalty, and it makes customers lead to purchase behavior in the viewpoint of grasping convergence effect. The survey has proved that ethical management influences consumers' purchase behaviors, and consumers' image perception and trust on corporate play parameter role in that process. This results imply that corporate's ethical management gives increase in revenue and reputation to corporate. So managers must recognize business goes on when the social legitimacy is approved by the public, and make efforts to arrange systems and programs to foster ethical management. In the future study, it is required that an analysis to differentiate target range and level of implementation of ethical management and research associated with ethical issue of high public interest.

• The Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.15-34
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• 2022

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to grasp the concept of ethical consumption that is inevitably one of the behaviors of consumption and to find factors affecting ethical consumption. The most special idea of this study is including motive in the research model. And motive will influence the factors affecting the intention to behave. Research design, data, and methodology: Considering variables affecting ethical consumption, we first adopted the T theory of Planned Behavior. There are three variables of attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavior control in the model. In addition to variables used in the Planned Behavior Theory, ethical duty, self-identity, motive, neutralization, ambivalence are included in the study. Questionnaires are made for survey, and investigation was conducted from 1th March to 11th of March. Total 360 copies are used for analysis. SPSS version 23 was used for analysis. Results: Study results show that first, the variables of attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, ethical duty, self-identity are turned to be statistically significant factors affecting ethical consumption intention. In this study, we defined the ethical consumption as voluntary, self-sacrifice needed, and additional efforts required behavior, therefore motive thought to be needed at fist for individual consumer to form intention. For neutralization and ambivalence, neutralization does not affect ethical consumption directly or indirectly, but we found ambivalence has moderating effect while motive affecting attitude, perceived behavior control, self-identity and has moderating effect while attitude, subjective nom, perceived behavior control, self-identity affects intention. Ambivalence means individual consumer's thought or preoccupation toward ethical consumption, in other words, consumer may have fiendly or unfriendly, positive or negative impression to it. Overall, motive and ambivalence are important factors for ethical consumption. Motive plays some role from the start influencing main factors affecting ethical consumption. Ambivalence also functions by moderating variables. Thinking of ambivalence taking account of essence of ethical consumption, some consumers may have pretext or justification for not doing ethical consumption which may again annoy themselves. Conclusions: In conclusion, for intention to ethical consumption to be formed motive should be activated beforehand and ambivalence should be considered. Negative ambivalence toward ethical consumption should be removed and positive ambivalence should be developed.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.13 no.7
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• pp.33-40
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• 2015

Purpose - This study aims to find out what impacts large retailers' behaviors appearing when they promote the strengthening of their market dominating power in the trade relations with small and medium suppliers or in the market can have on consumers. Research design, data, methodology - This study analyzed negative information (news) on large retailers (Lotte Mart, E-Mart and Homeplus) based on the monthly data over the past five years from 2008 to 2012 and also analyzed the correlation between dependent variables that are likely to affect sales through large retailer economic index, Results - This study conducted a correlation analysis on the time lag of the factors that have an impact on the negative information and sales of large retailers in order to analyze how consumers respond to the choice of large retailers' store (store sales) when they perceived negative information about the un- ethical behaviors of large retailers. Conclusions - Unfair and negative information on large retailers appeared significant for the hypothesis that sales will be affected by the image of large retailers and change of consumer attitudes.