Ethical Consumption? There's an app for that: Exploring the role of crowd sourced mobile technologies in everyday consumption practices

It has been suggested that the advent of new mobile phone application technologies that consumers can consult while shopping, and advances in web platforms towards user-generated information, may help to close the attitude-behaviour gap cited in ethical consumption research. This thesis explores this potential through a case study of the Buycott app and evaluates Buycott’s potential to act as a source of information for consumers and to influence change in consumer behaviour. The research employed a combination of methods including content analysis, surveys, focus groups, journals and one key informant interview. Participants were found to interact with and interpret the app’s information in complex ways, often resulting in a distrust of user-generated information, and made constant negotiations between the recommendations of the app and other factors. This study concludes that the complex interaction of technologies and everyday consumption practices requires further exploration and provides recommendations on the future directions of consumer apps.