Gustatory Function in Acute COVID‐19 ‐ Results From Home‐Based Psychophysical Testing

Objective Gustatory function during COVID-19 is self-reported by around 50% of patients. However, only a few studies assessed gustation using psychophysical testing during acute infection. The objective of this study is to test gustatory function on threshold tests in the very first days of COVID-19. Methods Psychophysical testing consisted of validated and blinded tests for olfaction (NHANES Pocket Smell Test) and gustation (Taste Strips Test). These test kits were sent to home-quarantined patients and self-administered using a detailed instruction sheet. Results A total of 51 patients were included in this study. Testing was performed 6.5 ± 2.7 days after sampling of respiratory swabs. At this time 37% of patients stated to currently experience a gustatory impairment. The mean Taste Strips score was 10.0 ± 3.4 with 28% scoring in the range of hypogeusia. Interestingly, no significant difference in the results of gustatory testing could be observed between the group with subjectively preserved gustation and the group with self-rated taste impairment. Conclusion During the very first days of COVID-19, psychophysical gustatory testing revealed hypogeusia in 28%. This is far lower than patients' self-reports. Different from previous studies, we did not find clear evidence for an impairment of only certain taste qualities

Ethical Consumption in Germany. A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Determinants of Fair Trade Consumption (2000–2010)

Diese Studie analysiert im Rahmen einer Sekundäranalyse Einflussfaktoren selbstberichteten „Fair Trade“(FT)-Konsums in Deutschland und verwendet dafür Querschnittsdaten einer Bevçlkerungsumfrage zum Thema „Umweltbewusstsein in Deutschland”. Theoretische Ansätze, bei denen vor allem die finanziellen Restriktionen der Konsumenten relevant sind, werden um Einflussfaktoren ergänzt, die die soziale Funktion ethischen Konsums in den Blick nehmen. Auf der Basis von sechs aufeinanderfolgenden Umfragen zwischen 2000 und 2010 werden Einflussfaktoren für selbstberichtete Zahlungsbereitschaft und Präferenz für FT-Produkte untersucht. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die finanziellen Ressourcen bei der Erklärung des Konsums von FT-Produkten nicht zu vernachlässigen sind. Jedoch finden sich auch Hinweise, dass spezifische FT-Einstellungen, allgemeines Umweltbewusstsein sowie Solidarität und Religiosität als persönliche Werte wichtige Einflussfaktoren darstellen. Die Studie zeigt zudem die Relevanz des Statuskonsums für den Konsum ethischer Produkte auf.The study investigates determinants of self-reported Fair Trade (FT) consumption in Germany. Narrow conceptions of social action according to which economic constraints are decisive are complemented with theoretical considerations that point to the social function of ethical consumption. The effects of income, social status, attitudes, and personal values are analyzed. For the empirical analyses, cross-sectional data from the biennial general population survey, “Environmental Awareness in Germany”, are used. The results based on six consecutive surveys from 2000 to 2010, suggest that the resource dependence of FT consumption cannot be ignored, for income has proved to be a relevant determinant in almost all multivariate models. However, the findings also lead to the conclusion that social status, the FT specific attitude, general environmental concerns as well as solidarity and religiousness are important determinants. The study points to FT consumption as a form of middle- and upper-class distinction

Do Information, Price, or Morals Influence Ethical Consumption? A Natural Field Experiment and Customer Survey on the Purchase of Fair Trade Coffee

We address ethical consumption using a natural field experiment on the actual purchase of Fair Trade (FT) coffee in three supermarkets in Germany. Based on a quasi-experimental before-and-after design the effects of three different treatments – information, 20% price reduction, and a moral appeal – are analyzed. Sales data cover actual ethical purchase behavior and avoid problems of social desirability. But they offer only limited insights into the motivations of individual consumers. We therefore complemented the field experiment with a customer survey that allows us to contrast observed (ethical) buying behavior with self-reported FT consumption. Results from the experiment suggest that only the price reduction had the expected positive and statistically significant effect on FT consumption

Do contexts matter for willingness to donate to natural disaster relief?

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG-geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich. - This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively

Consumer Behavior in Moral Markets. On the Relevance of Identity, Justice Beliefs, Social Norms, Status and Trust in Ethical Consumption

This article addresses ethical consumer behavior and uses the purchase of Fair Trade (FT) coffee to gain insights into determinants of ‘moral behavior’ in the marketplace. Our primary concern is to clarify which theoretical concepts and determinants are more useful than others in explaining FT consumption. We compare the explanatory power of consumer budget restrictions, consumer identity, social and personal norms, social status, justice beliefs, and trust. Our second aim is methodological; we contrast data on self-reported consumption of FT coffee with experimental data on hypothetical choices of different coffee products. To gain insights into the robustness of our measurement and findings, we test our propositions using two samples of undergraduate students from Germany and the United States. Our data show that consumer identity and personal norms are the major determinants of FT consumption in both samples, the results from survey-based data and from our experimental data are similar in this regard. Further, we demonstrate that studies based on a limited number of determinants might overestimate effects; the effect of justice beliefs for instance vanishes if other determinants are taken into account

Prix, morale et consommation éthique : une expérience de terrain doublée d’une enquête consécutive sur l’achat de produits écologiques

Es ist eine grundlegende Frage der empirischen Konsumforschung, inwieweit ökonomische und moralische Anreize ethisches Konsumhandeln beeinflussen. Bisherige Studien beruhen größtenteils auf Befragungsdaten und selbstberichtetem Verhalten. Aufgrund der Tendenz zu sozial erwünschten Antworten in Befragungen kann es sein, dass die Handlungsrelevanz moralischer Auffassungen überschätzt und jene von Preisanreizen unterschätzt wird. Der Beitrag präsentiert ein Feldexperiment zum Kauf ökologischer Produkte, in dem der Effekt einer Preisreduktion und einer Normaktivierung getestet wird. Es handelt sich um eine Replikation des Feldexperiments zum Kauf von Bio-Eiern, das zuerst von Andreas Diekmann durchgeführt wurde. Allerdings wurde das Experiment um eine Kundenbefragung und eine Beobachtung des tatsächlichen Kaufverhaltens der Befragten erweitert. Im Feldexperiment zeigt sich ein starker Effekt der Preisreduktion, aber kein Effekt der Normaktivierung. Die Befragungs- und Beobachtungsdaten zeigen hingegen starke Effekte sozialer Normen bezüglich des selbstberichteten und des tatsächlichen Kaufverhaltens der Befragten. Im Feldexperiment vermag es der moralische Appell jedoch nicht, die nicht bereits ökologisch überzeugten Konsumentinnen und Konsumenten zu aktivieren. Insgesamt belegen die Befunde die Wichtigkeit von monetären Anreizen bei der Förderung von ethischem Konsum insbesondere bei jenen Konsumenten, deren Kaufverhalten nicht bereits durch starke moralische Normen motiviert ist.It is a fundamental question of consumer research to what extent economic and moral incentives affect ethical consumption behavior. So far most studies have used self-reported behavior from survey data. Due to socially desirable response behavior, effects of moral norms might be overestimated and price effects underestimated. The paper presents a field experiment on the purchase of ecological products in which the effect of a price reduction and norm activation (moral appeal) is tested. This study is a replication of a field experiment on the purchase of organic eggs presented by Andreas Diekmann. The original study design is extended with a customer survey and documentation of observed purchase behavior of respondents. The field experiment shows a strong effect of the price reduction and no effect of the norm activation. In the survey, however, there are strong norm effects on both self-reported and observed purchase behavior of respondents. But the moral appeal in the field experiment does not activate those consumers who are not already concerned about the environment and animal welfare. Taken together, these findings show the importance of monetary incentives for the promotion of ethical consumption especially for those consumers whose purchasing behavior is not motivated by strong moral norms.La question de l’influence des incitations économiques et morales sur la consommation éthique est une question fondamentale de la sociologie empirique de la consommation. Les études réalisées jusqu’à présent reposent en grande partie sur les propres déclarations des personnes interrogées sur leur comportement. En raison de la tendance à donner des réponses socialement désirables, il est possible que de telles enquêtes surestiment l’influence des conceptions morales sur l’action et sous-estiment celle des incitations économiques. Cet article présente une expérience de terrain sur l’achat de produits écologiques comparant l’effet d’une baisse de prix et de l’activation d’une norme. Cette expérience reproduit l’expérience de terrain sur l’achat d’œufs bio réalisée pour la première fois par Andreas Diekmann. Elle a cependant été complétée par une enquête auprès des clients et une observation de leur comportement d’achat réel. Il ressort de cette expérience que la baisse de prix a une forte incidence, contrairement à l’activation de la norme qui est dénuée d’effet. Les données d’enquête et d’observation révèlent par contre une forte incidence des normes sociales sur le comportement d’achat déclaré et réel des enquêtés. Dans le cadre de cette expérience, l’appel à des normes morales n’est toutefois pas en mesure d’activer les consommatrices et les consommateurs dépourvus de convictions écologiques. Dans l’ensemble, les résultats attestent l’importance des incitations monétaires pour l’encouragement de la consommation éthique, notamment chez les consommateurs dont le comportement d’achat n’est pas déjà motivé par des fortes normes morales

Not in my kitchen? : Ethnic discrimination and discrimination intentions in shared housing among university students in Germany

This article looks into the scope and causes of both ethnic discrimination intentions and discriminatory behaviour in the sphere of close private interactions. In practice, German students' willingness to move into flats which would be shared with a Turkish student is analysed by conducting a direct survey, a factorial survey and a field experiment. Results show that, independent of the method used, ethnic discrimination against Turks does not, overall, play a substantial role among university students looking for a place to stay. However, data from the factorial survey and from the field experiment reveal that ethnic discrimination does occur in specific scenarios: while male applicants, in particular, prefer places inhabited by females, this is only the case if the females are German. In sum, our analyses demonstrate that the gender dimension needs to be taken into account when investigating discrimination intentions and ethnic discrimination in the field of close private interactions

Ethical Consumption and Social Context: Experimental Evidence from Germany and the United States

This research examines the role of social context in ethical consumption, specifically, the extent to which anonymity and social control influence individuals' decisions to purchase organic and Fair Trade coffee. Our research design overcomes biases of prior research by combining framing and discrete choice experiments in a survey. We systematically vary coffee growing method (organic or not), import status (Fair Trade or not), flavor, and price across four social contexts that vary in degree of anonymity and normative social control. The social contexts are buying coffee online, in a large grocery store, in a small neighborhood shop, and for a meeting of a human rights group. Subjects comprise 1,103 German and American undergraduate students. We find that social context indeed influences subjects' ethical consumer decisions, especially in situations with low anonymity and high social control. In addition, gender, coffee buying, and subjective social norms trigger heterogeneity regarding stated ethical consumption and the effects of social context. These results suggest previous research has underestimated the relevance of social context for ethical consumption and overestimated altruistic motives of ethical consumers. Our study demonstrates the great potential of discrete choice experiments for the study of social action and decision making processes in sociology