Individuals have a multitude of possibilities by means of their decisions to influence ecological, social and economic developments at the regional, national and global level. Nina Langen elaborates differences and similarities of forms of ethical behaviour, such as ethical consumption and charitable giving in general and investigates whether German consumers differentiate between different types of ethical behaviour in particular. Choice experiment, latent class analysis, information display matrix and item-based attitude assessment allow the comparison of stated and revealed preferences as well as an analysis of the relevance of ethical product features within the context of different product and process attributes. The dissertation provides insights into a research field that becomes more and more relevant and improves the understanding of the interdependencies as well as consumers’ assessment of the possibilities of ethical behaviour.

Dr. Nina Langen obtained her Ph.D. in agricultural economics from the University of Bonn. She conducted her Ph.D. studies at the Center for Development Research in the Department of Economic and Technological Change and at the Institute for Food and Resource Economics in the Department of Agricultural and Food Market Research, both at the University of Bonn.