Dimensions of ethical consumption: A systematic review and future outlook

Abstract

UN's sustainable development goals view ethical consumption as a multi‐dimensional construct addressing production and consumption‐related sustainability challenges. The present study is the first to assimilate the five dimensions of ethical consumption—concern for environment, love of organic, preference for fair trade, regard for animal welfare, and anti‐consumption/boycott movements—in a single review. This framework‐based review using Theory‐Context‐Characteristic‐Methods (TCCM) and employing Scientific Procedures and Rationales for Systematic Literature Reviews (SPAR‐4 SLR) protocol, thoroughly synthesizes the state of knowledge, identifies research gaps and proposes directions for future research in ethical consumption. The authors review 123 articles from 2000 to 2024 sourced from SCOPUS by thoroughly examining antecedents, mediators, moderators, outcome variables, and interrelationships for all five dimensions. The authors recommend applying new consumer personality theories instead of familiar frameworks, adopting qualitative methods and longitudinal designs with multicultural and cross‐national focus, and testing novel mediation and moderation mechanisms in clarifying interrelationships.