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Political consumerism is turning the market into a site for politics and ethics. It is consumer choice of producers and products on the basis of attitudes and values of personal and family well-being as well as ethical or political assessment of business and government practice. In the face of economic globalization and a regulatory vacuum, consumers increasingly take responsibility in their own hands, making the market an important venue for political action through their decisions of what to purchase. This book opens the readers' eyes to a new way of viewing everyday consumer choices and the role of the market in our lives, illuminating the broader theoretical and historical context of concerns about sweatshops, responsible coffee, and ethical and free trade. Contemporary forms of political consumerism - boycotts, labelling schemes, stewardship certification, socially responsible investing, etc. - are described and evaluated. Individual actions are shown to be important in the complexity of globalization.

Political Virtue and Shopping: Individuals, Consumerism, and Collective Action

Foreword Preface WHY POLITICAL CONSUMERISM When Products Become Political Controversies over Politicizing Consumer Choice Changing Political Landscape Consumer Choice as Politics Political Agency of Consumer Private and Public Virtue Traditions of Political Consumerism Political Consumerism as Individualized Collective Action Renewing Democracy and the Political Community through Political Consumerism HISTORY OF POLITICAL CONSUMERISM Going Back in Time Boycotting Boycott: History of the Term Boycotts in Revolutions: The Constitutional Significance of Everyday Goods Boycotting Food for Social Justice: Contrasting American and European Experience An Early "No Sweat" Labeling Scheme Use of Political Consumerism by Labor Unions Boycotting for Civil Rights International Boycotts and Economic Sanctions Problematic Political Consumerism: Dilemmas of Market-Based Collective Action Political Consumerism and Democracy CONTEMPORARY FORMS AND INSTITUTIONS Politics in the Global Marketplace Regulating Industry and the Role of Political Consumerism Consumer Boycotts Today Seals of Approval Labeling Schemes Stewardship Certification Schemes Socially Responsible Investments Characteristics of Contemporary Political Consumerism A STUDY OF POLITICAL CONSUMERISM TODAY: THE CASE OF GOOD ENVIRONMENTAL BUY IN SWEDEN Why Study Sweden? Comparing with the Past Opening Up Sweden for Green Political Consumerism Good Environmental Choice Type I Eco-Label Political Agency of Green Political Consumerism Middle-Class Women as Green Political Consumer Agents Market-Based Bridging and Bonding: A New Evolving Swedish Model? SHOPPING WITH AND FOR VIRTUES Why Virtues Today? Responsible Shopping, Social Capital, and Trust Political Consumerism Criticized A Great Transformation? Market-Based Political Responsibility and New Actor Categories Appendix 1: The Political Business of Consumerism: A New Research Agenda for the Social Sciences Why Study Political Consumerism? Research Challenge Bibliography Secondary Sources Printed Primary Sources Internet Sources Interviews