Need for Status as a Motive for the Conspicuous Consumption of Cause-Related Goods

In other words, humans perceive their possessions to be a representation of their identity or self. Display in the form of possessions, attire, or actions represent a person’s perceived or actual place in society, be it related to character traits, religious affiliations, professional associations, or even wealth and social standing. One of the recognized phenomenon of display as a representation is conspicuous consumption, defined as the intentional display of expensive goods by the nouveau-riche to indicate financial status (Veblen 1899). The concept has been inextricably linked with luxury goods, but conspicuous displays, whether of wealth or other affiliations, are a way of signaling belonging to any social group (Ashforth and Mael 1989) or possessing certain individual qualities (Connelly et al. 2011). Corporations and consumers are driven by a desire to be seen as responsible members of society and hope to thus command social respect. In essence, companies and consumers engaging in prosocial behavior may not be doing so for purely altruistic reasons (Basil and Weber 2006). It is possible that the purchase of visible luxury items and of items visibly associated with a social cause are both motivated by similar mechanisms of an attempt to be seen as belonging to a desirable social group.