The Impact of Crisis on Consumers’ Value Systems -Psychological Pathways to Sustainable Behavior-

Through the recent pandemic, this study examined the theory of awe, which explains that external crises affect people’s value systems and consequential behaviors. During the pandemic, some consumers expressed a growing interest in equity, while others pursued the consumption of materialistic items, such as luxurious fashion goods. According to the theory of awe, both of these phenomena could be coping responses to the crisis. Based on this, we attempted to understand the psychological processes behind the pandemic’s effect on these two different consumers value systems thereby influencing sustainable consumption intentions: one through the new ecological paradigm (NEP) that emphasizes consumers’ increased consciousness, and the other through materialism that emphasizes consumers’ self-centered side. The results obtained from a survey of 382 U.S. consumers revealed that the degree of pandemic experience increased consumers’ NEP and materialism, which also increased their economic and ethical CSR expectations. These CSR expectations then enhanced consumers’ sustainable consumption intentions. As sustainable consumption and CSR are important agendas for the fashion industry, this study will provide useful insights for researchers and practitioners in the fashion field.