North Carolinian Apathy

Towards the Effects of

Mass Consumerism
Samantha Quiroz-Gutierrez
Photo: Vice News
 27%
Labor constitutes production costs for
garment manufacture compared to only
10 percent in manufacturing as a whole
(Ryuta Adachi, Lo)
 ● Identifying the Gap
PURPOSE ●
●
Background on the issue
Research Question

● Design and Protocol

METHODS ●
●
Survey Instrument
Analytic Procedure

RESULTS ●
●
Demographic Characteristics
The Significant Relationships

● Conclusions
CONCLUSIONS ●
●
Limitations
Further Study
PURPOSE
Apparel industry growth

Source: United States International Trade Commission

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

$5.9 billion
In 2016, $5.9 billion imported from Bangladesh: woven apparel,
knit apparel, miscellaneous textile articles, headgear and
footwear.

(Office of the United States Trade Representative)

Working Conditions in Bangladesh
● Exposure to cotton dust, fibers, metal fumes etc… →
cause a wide range of physical and psychological
health problems (R. Sultana et al, 2012)
● Unionization is discouraged through the selection
of “informers”
○ Rat on workers conspiring towards unionization in
exchange for pay increases or promotion (Feldman
1992)

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Consumer Cynicism
● Helm, Amanda; Moulard, Julie Guidry; Richins, Marsha
● International Journal of Consumer Studies
● They are likely to go out of their way to punish and
reward companies as part of their perceived role as
marketplace shapers
○ boycotting, socially conscious purchase decisions,
retaliation against firms viewed as harmful, and
conscious efforts to make other consumers more
aware.
PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS
Attachment Styles and Ethical
Behavior
● Muncy-Vitell Consumer Ethics Scale
○ Items can be grouped into three distinct categories:
■ (1) downloading copyrighted materials/buying
counterfeit goods
■ (2) recycling/environmental awareness
■ (3) doing the right thing/doing good

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

 (The Muncy–Vitell Consumer Ethics Scale: A
Modification and Application)
PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS
The “gap”
● Two types of consumers
● Does the community know that they are
contributing to this issue, and if they
know, do they care enough to change
their behavior?

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

 “ Would Americans be willing to change
their buying habits in the garment industry
if informed about the conditions that
factory workers in Southeastern Asian
nations such as Bangladesh endure?”

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

METHODS
Method
● Survey
○ Population v. sample
● Structure
○ Demographics (5)
○ Literature
○ Survey Questions (6)

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Method
● Distribution techniques
○ Social media
○ Direct solicitation via email
● Effectiveness of distribution techniques

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

RESULTS
Data Distribution
● 60 responses
● Average age: 33.133
● 68.3% Female, 31.7% Male
● Median annual income before taxes
○ $75,000 to $99,999

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Data Figure 2.1 Survey: Were you aware of the
conditions described in the previous section?

Yes
No
Somewhat

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Data Figure 2.2 Survey: After reading the information,
would you choose to purchase a garment that is
made in the United States if the garment costs
more money to purchase?

Yes
No
Maybe

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

DISCUSSION
Conclusions
● VA, SC, GA, AZ, MO, or MD.
● Correlation between income levels and
response to question in Figure 2.2
● Positive correlation exists, but is extremely
weak
● Lack of knowledge of the problem
○ Once educated, many change opinion

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Limitations
● Lower income levels are
underrepresented in the sample
● Gender ratio is extremely uneven
○ Study of Psychological Gender
Differences (Avia, 2014)

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Further inquiries
● Repeated with more outreach to lower
income communities to determine how
income affects buying decisions
● Better representation of males in the
sample

PURPOSE METHODS RESULTS CONCLUSIONS

Bibliography
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2004, pp. 34–45., doi:10.1353/nwsa.2004.0042.

Albert, Lumina S., and Leonard M. Horowitz. “Attachment Styles and Ethical Behavior: Their Relationship and Significance in the Marketplace.”

Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 87, no. 3, 2008, pp. 299–316., doi:10.1007/s10551-008-9918-6.

Avia, María Dolores, and Mª Luisa Sánchez-Bernardos. “Gender and Psychological Differences: Gender and Subjectivity.” Psychopathology in

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Helm, Amanda E., et al. “Consumer Cynicism: Developing a Scale to Measure Underlying Attitudes Influencing Marketplace Shaping and

Withdrawal Behaviours.” International Journal of Consumer Studies, vol. 39, no. 5, 2015, pp. 515–524., doi:10.1111/ijcs.12191.
Bibliography
Kumar Panday, Pranab and Shelley Feldman. "Mainstreaming Gender in Politics in Bangladesh: Role of Ngos." Asian Journal of Political Science,

vol. 23, no. 3, Dec. 2015, pp. 301-320. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/02185377.2015.1055772.

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62, no. 3, 2005, pp. 267–275., doi:10.1007/s10551-005-7058-9.

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Thank you! Questions?