BOOK REVIEWED ANDRECEIVED

Book reviews in this article: Microwave—the Cooking Revolution. By Jenny M. Webb. The Consumer's Guide to Local Government. Ed. by Martin Minogue for the National Consumer Council. Junior Home Economics. By A.Moloney. Sex Roles. By S. Weitz.     

BOOKS RECEIVED

Estimating UK Energy Demand for the Year 2000: A sectoral Approach. By J. H. Cheshire and A. J. Surrey. The Child as Consumer. Bibliography by Jarmila Lentink. The Microwave Cookbook. By Jenny M. Webb. Textles.     

Rectifying Consumer Protection Law and Establishing of a Consumer Court in Indonesia

Journal of Consumer Policy - In 2001, Indonesia established the Consumer Dispute Resolution Body (CDRB) based on the instruction of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) in 1999 to provide consumers...     

Book reviews

Book reviewed in this article Consumer Psychology for Marketing. Foxall, Gordon R. Goldsmith, Ronald E. London: Routledge. The Consumer Revolution: Redressing the Balance John, Robin (Ed.), in association with the Consumer Association. London: Hodder and Stoughton. Television and the Viewer Interest Jeremy Mitchell and Jay G. Blumler (Eds) London: John Libbey & Co.     

Dissemination of Consumer Law and Policy in Brazil: The Impact of EU Law

Journal of Consumer Policy - This paper analyses the influence of European Law on Brazilian Consumer Law. It starts by describing the general features of Brazilian Consumer Protection law,...     

A Methodology for Profiling Consumers' Decision-Making Styles

Consumers use a variety of decision-making styles. This paper conceptualizes eight basic characteristics of these styles and develops a Consumer Styles Inventory to measure them empirically. Factor analysis of the Consumer Styles Inventory validates these eight consumer characteristics. A valid and reliable method for presenting a Profile of Consumer Style, based on measures of the eight style characteristics, is described. Unique findings of the research are discussed, and applications of the Consumer Styles Inventory in consumer education, consumer research, and family financial counseling are suggested.     

Regret and performance uncertainty in consumer repeat choice

The role of regret on consumer choices has been well recognized in risky purchasing contents. Rather than outcome comparison, regret should also be contingent on the extent of consumer expectation uncertainty on performance. To explore this issue, the paper first draws some propositions based on a Bayesian updating model assuming consumer expectation as a kind of distribution. By two experiments, we show that consumers change their choice intention for alternatives with different performance uncertainty even though zero disconfirmation and no regret are experienced. Consumer experience and risk attitude moderate the change pattern.     

Regulating Unfair Trade Practices: an Analysis of the Past and Present Indian Legislative Models

The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) which for the first time incorporated detailed provisions as to unfair trade practices (UTPs) in India has now been repealed and succeeded by the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 which has included the same substantive definition of UTPs. This article analyses the law as to UTPs under the repealed MRTP Act including the cases decided thereunder and compares it with the structure of the Consumer Protection Act with the objective of evaluating whether the present Consumer Dispute Redressal Agencies under the Consumer Protection Act have adequate substantive provisions and effective procedural competence to ward off UTPs. Our analysis of legislative provisions and decided cases shows that the present system of protection against UTPs under the Consumer Protection Act is blighted by a strict and restrictive definition of consumer; lack of in-house enquiry and investigation system, incompetency of traders and trade associations to pursue cases, and lack of inherent power of the Consumer Dispute Redressal Agencies to suo motu take up matters. The article uses analytical and statistical methods to quantify, in terms of actual effect, these drawbacks which significantly hamper the present system and suggests various means to improve the functioning of the system so as to effectively deal with UTPs.     

Are Apparel Trade Restrictions Regressive?

Consumer welfare losses from apparel trade restrictions are estimated across different household income levels using Hicksian Equivalent Variations. The 1980–1992 Consumer Expenditure Survey, the 1980–1992 Consumer Price Index, and the 1990 ACCRA Cost of Living Index were used. For price differences under 45 percent, consumer welfare loss from higher apparel prices due to trade restrictions is greater as a percent of total expenditures for wealthy households than for poor households. Apparel trade restrictions, therefore, have a progressive effect.     

Private International Consumer Law in MERCOSUR: The Influence of European Regulations on Its Creation

Journal of Consumer Policy - This article aims to analyse whether the MERCOSUR rules that comprise Private International Consumer Law, in terms of definition, international jurisdiction, and...     

Romancing the alpaca: Passionate consumption, collection, and companionship

With their inquisitive nature, apparent intelligence, and aesthetic appeal, alpacas draw humans to them. This article spotlights alpaca breeders in an exploration of collecting as passionate consumption [BelkRussell, W. Collecting in a Consumer Society. London: Routledge, 1995.] and consumers' relationships with their animal companions [Hirschman Elizabeth. Consumers and their animal companions. Journal of Consumer Research 1994; 20 (March): 616-32.; Holbrook MB. Stephens DL. Day E. Holbrook SM. Strazar G. A collective stereographic photo essay on key aspects of animal companionship: The truth about dogs and cats. Academy of Marketing Science Review 2001; (1) 1-16.]. Multiple data sources provide stories of alpaca ownership. These sources comprise books, newspaper clips, and magazine articles about alpacas, as well as the author's own experiences as an alpaca breeder over the past 10 years. Building from Belk's work on collection, this article both introduces the idea of dynamic-and-transforming collections and illustrates how passionate consumption can lead to rejuvenation and re-enchantment with life. By concentrating on consumption experiences, this work adds to the growing body of consumer research that moves beyond a narrow focus on purchase behavior.     

Using the Survey of Consumer Finances: Some Methodological Considerations and Issues

We identify and present original analyses of four methodological issues related to using Survey of Consumer Finances data sets and illustrate these issues with recent articles published in this journal. The issues are recognizing that the respondent is not necessarily the household head, reporting race and ethnicity in conformity with Survey of Consumer Finances and federal standards, using the repeated‐imputation inference method to combine the five implicates in each survey year’s data set, and discussing the use of weighted or unweighted data in multivariate analysis. We found a considerable variation in how authors dealt with these issues, which could hinder replication or comparison of research results. Authors and reviewers should consider methodological issues related to the Survey of Consumer Finances more carefully.     

BOOK REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article Mayer, Robert N., The Consumer Movement: Guardians of the Marketplace. Sheth, Jagdish N. and Elizabeth Hirschman (editors), Research in Consumer Behavior Levine, David, Needs, Rights, and the Market.     

搭建会展平台 促进消费升级

2021年5月7日至10日,首届中国国际消费品博览会(以下简称:消博会)将在海南举办。目前距开幕以不到一个月。消博会是继中国国际进口博览会后近些年我国面向世界自主创办的又一个主场经贸外交活动,从中不仅体现出我国坚持对外开放的决心,还向世界展示中国围绕以“双循环”发展为理论基础的战略实践。更重要的是,中国正在进一步通过会展平台,促进国内经济发展与国外经贸对接。     

Riding the Wave: Consumer Economics and the Consumer Movement in the United States

The development and current state of the scholarly field of Consumer Economics in the United States is discussed in relation to the Consumer Movement and other forces that have impinged upon it. Membership in the American Council on Consumer Interests, the scholarly organization for consumer economists, is used as one measure of the size and health of the field. Other forces impinging on the field that are discussed include: the baby boom induced increase in the demand for college education; the subsequent decline in the support for higher education as higher education costs rose throughout the 1980s and 1990s; the decline in the Federal Government's support for consumer research and consumer education; and the development of competing organizations.     

Book reviews

Book reviews in this article: Bibliography of Consumer Law within the European Community — 1983–88. Maniet, F. (Ed.) Electronic Funds Transfer and Consumer Protection. Bourgoignie, Th. & Goyens, M. (Eds.)     

Practical conditions for Home and Consumer Studies in Swedish compulsory education: a survey study

The aim of the study was to map the field of internal and external conditions that Swedish Home and Consumer Studies teachers and pupils have contend with. A questionnaire was constructed and delivered online in November 2010. It contained 27 question covering teacher qualification, quality of premises and equipment, lesson time and collaboration, and the use of national syllabi. A total of 385 persons across the country answered the questionnaire; about 21% of those teaching Home and Consumer Studies in Swedish compulsory school during the school year 2009–2010. These respondents taught in a total of 392 compulsory schools, which equalled about 22% of the schools teaching grades 7–9 in Sweden. Almost a quarter (23%) of the teachers lacked formal training for Home and Consumer Studies. Respondents without an appropriate degree qualification included those trained as nursery school teachers, dietitians and civil engineers. As regards classrooms, while 88% of respondents reported access to fully equipped kitchens with stoves, sinks and work surfaces, 5% used regular classrooms and the remainder were obliged to come up with alternative solutions, such as using portable kitchens in regular classrooms or conducting their lessons in the school restaurant. This study raises many questions about the quality of Home and Consumer Studies provision in a number of schools. The local deficiencies in the nationally decided frame factors for Home and Consumer Studies found by the present study gives us reason to doubt that all pupils achieve the overall learning goals of ‘knowing in practice’ and making informed choices utilizing environmental, economic and health perspectives. This might affect the health and economy of the individuals in the long run, with implications for the national economy and public health. On the basis of these findings, we therefore recommend that current conditions for Home and Consumer Studies and how the subject should operate in schools become a focus for national debate.     

Service Markets: The Effects of Competition Policy and Consumer Protection

This article outlines the current status of Competition Policy (Monopolies and Mergers; Anti-Competitive Practices; Restrictive Trade Practices) and Consumer Protection (Legislation; Consumer Protection Agencies; Voluntary Codes of Practice) in services markets. The relative neglect of services markets until recently is reflected in the fragmented and patchwork systems, mechanisms and agencies available in this important sector of the economy and further developments are likely.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article: Duncan, Greg J., et al. Years of Poverty, Years of Plenty–The Changing Economic Fortunes of American Workers and Families David B. Eastwood. The Economics of Consumer Behavior Murray, Charles. Losing Ground: American Social Policy a1950–1980 Maital, Sharone and Shlomo Maital. Economic Games People Play Pitts, Robert E., Jr. and Arch G. Woodside (eds.). Personal Values and Consumer Psychology Ester, Peter et al. Consumer Behavior and Energy Policy: Selected/Edited Proceedings of the Ist International Conference