Consumer education: creating consumer awareness among adolescents in Botswana

Abstract

Senior secondary schools’ students in Botswana were studied to determine their awareness of consumer rights and responsibilities and their perceptions of consumer behaviour and consumer education. Recommendations will inform the refinement of consumer education teaching in Botswana as well as other secondary education programmes. A questionnaire suitable for this study was used to collect data. Responses from 3107 students were received. Descriptive statistical analysis was used to determine frequencies and central tendencies. Chi‐square tests were computed to examine relationships among variables by gender, class level, and school location. Two‐thirds of the students correctly identified consumer rights and responsibilities. Female students were more likely to identify consumer rights and responsibilities than males. Students agreed that they were informed on consumer issues and females were more likely to be informed than males. Topics identified to be taught in consumer education included consumer rights and responsibilities, purchasing decisions, advertising and others. The delivery methods identified were classes in school, workshops, radio and television programmes, and consumer youth clubs. Consumer education programmes were found to have an impact on adolescents because most of them were aware of consumer rights and responsibilities and acted as informed consumers on most consumer issues.

Primary School 4th Grade Students’ Opinions of Conscious Consumerism

“…The researcher in question states in his study of conscious consumerism that the students got high scores from the scale. Besides, in their study Makela and Peters (2004) indicate that consumer education has a positive impact on students' awareness of consumer rights and responsibilities. In addition; in his study, Ekström (2007) (Ferman, 1993).…”

Lack of Consumer Awareness: A Major Challenge for Electricity Consumer Protection in Nigeria

“…This is a vital tool for consumer protection. As suggested by Makela and Peters (2004) and Gallagher (2002) consumer education and awareness would assist in developing responsible business behavior in the Nigerian electricity market.…”

“…At the African level, the example of Botswana and Kenya are quite instructive. In Botswana, consumer education is incorporated into the secondary school and university educational curriculum since 1990 (Makela & Peters, 2004). While consumer education is a priority to the UN, the EU and even in some African countries such as Botswana, it is not the case in the Nigerian context.…”

Conscious Consumerism Education in Social Studies Courses: Reflections of an Action Research

“…In this context, children with basic consumer rights need to be educated on conscious consumption to make informed and conscious purchasing decisions (Consumer Affairs Victoria, 2003;Sánchez, Campa & Hernández, 2008). This education also aims to ensure that children engage in responsible consumption and use their economic resources responsibly, to improve their consumption-related knowledge and skills, to raise their awareness of sustainable consumption and to teach them how to claim their rights as consumers (Makela & Peters, 2004;McGregor, 2005;Kayali, 2008;Kaynak & Akan, 2011).…”

“…Consumer education, which is one of the crucial topics in education, has been addressed in various studies. In related studies, consumer education was found to be effective in raising students' awareness of consumer rights and responsibilities (Makela & Peters, 2004;McGregor, 2010;Danilane & Marzano, 2014) and preventing conspicuous consumption (Unay, 2012). In addition, it has been reported that children whose awareness is raised during consumer education at school are effective in their parents' purchasing decisions (Ekström, 2007).…”