From moral concerns to market values: how political consumerism shapes markets
Résumé
This chapter draws on the economic sociology literature and considers the effects ofpolitical consumer activism on market structures and practices. Its main argument is thatactivists who employ market-based tactics provide markets with alternative valuations ofproducts, corporate reputations, and economic activities that challenge existing marketvalues. These contentious forms of valuation modify the structure of opportunities formarket operators, leading some companies to change practices or products, which may inturn influence market competition. Moreover, the new normative framing of marketvalues by civil society may convince states to regulate corporate behaviour. Thisperspective reveals conditions in which normative concerns emerge about marketactivities and may be progressively integrated into market practices. This works througha complex mechanism of changes in the valuation of market entities, actors, andactivities. Markets could then be locations for the emergence of moral economies thatcan challenge existing economic practices.