Why do people buy green products? A new study (h/t: Charlotta Mellander) finds that green purchases are less about energy savings or cost savings and more about image. Prius owners pay a significant premium over many conventional fuel-efficient cars. When asked about the top motivating factors behind their purchase, the comment, “makes a statement about me” was at the top of the list, while “higher fuel economy” came in third, and “lower emissions,” fifth. The authors argue that status plays a big role in green purchases.
Because biologists have observed that altruism might function as a “costly signal” associated with status, we examined in three experiments how status motives influenced desire for green products. Activating status motives led people to choose green products over more luxurious non-green products. Supporting the notion that altruism signals one’s willingness and ability to incur costs for others’ benefit, status motives increased desire for green products when shopping in public (but not private), and when green products cost more (but not less) than nongreen products.
July 12th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
What a joke. Then again, any Prius driver that thinks he/she is actually making a difference needs to get a clue (and a bike).
July 13th, 2009 at 7:42 am
You’d know all about this is you checked out “The Goodes”, which skewers SWPLs and their motivations perfectly. Really awesome social satire from Mike Judge, of “Office Space/ Beavis and Butthead/ Idiocracy/ King of the Hill” fame.
Not the funniest show, but the best satire out there right now since Obama was elected.
July 13th, 2009 at 7:44 am
Recently I really feel the number of Prius is growing. Now starting tax-incentives for buying green car in Japan, but that’s not all. Honda challenged to release new Hybrid ‘Insight’ in very reasonable price, but already Prius had become ‘the brand name of Hybrid’. It’s image is strong enough for consumer.
July 13th, 2009 at 9:01 am
[...] Richard Florida [...]
July 13th, 2009 at 9:39 am
To me, the survey answers are a bit flawed. A person who genuinely has weighed the difference the car will make for the environment (not to mention the economy) answering that the car “makes a statement about me,” while another person who has instead weighed the difference the car will make for their own (self-)image could check off that same response.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:31 pm
Richard, totally off-topic, but I thought you would be interested in the piece listing the top states for online pornography consumption. Your critics of the creative class who would classify them as social reprobates and pure bohemians might take note that none of the top states for online pornography consumption are creative class states; quite the contrary: http://www.cnbc.com/id/31905302?slide=1
August 27th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
[...] Florida dubs this modern day version of “keeping up with the Joneses” the “Prius Effect” after Toyota’s popular hybrid vehicle. And while there most certainly is strange bit [...]