Key words: fashion consumption, ethical consumption, responsible consumption, slow fashion

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An Analysis on Responsible Consumption Patterns of Fashion Students- with the Case of Turkey Şölen Kipöz 1 Esra Enes 2 Global fashion, today, promises a democratic access to all goods for the consumers and ever increasing consumption levels due to a global supply chain, lower prices and increasing variety in the goods offered. This fast fashion system has created a placebo effect of economic growth. However, he ethical cost of over consumption is seen not only by psychologically unsatisfied people buying irrelevant and unnecessary goods, but in the negative effects of the fashion system on environment and on society. Consequently, with developing awareness on ecological and ethical issues, the role of consumption in this destructive fashion system has been brought in to focus leading to more reflective attitude in consumption patterns. To analyse the level of this awareness, this study focuses on consumer behaviour and consumption patterns of students. A comparative analysis is made between the students from private and state universities, through evaluation of questionnaire results using SPSS Package programme. The participant students of the survey are especially selected from Fashion and Textile departments, to investigate the effects of fashion education on their consumer behaviour. Variables of responsible consumption patterns are examined through analysis of consumer profile, consumer behaviour and post-consumption behaviour. Key words: fashion consumption, ethical consumption, responsible consumption, slow fashion Introduction Responsible fashion consumption is one of the core components of a sustainable fashion system, along with design and production processes. In addition to shorter lifecycles of fashion products, the rapid circulation of the global supply chain creates an ever-increasing pace of production and consumption of goods. What excess creates not only environmentally irresponsible consumption behavior due to biodegradable waste, sent to landfills to be burned or buried. It also creates problems of social justice. As Busch states; more people may have access to cheap clothes today, but the mechanism of inclusion and exclusion are still pervasive (Busch 2012, 9). While 1 Izmir University of Economics, Department of Fashion and Textile Design, Assoc. Prof. Dr. 2 Izmir University of Economics, Design Studies Program, Phd Student, Mersin University, Textile Department, Instructor 1

some can buy more clothes in lower prices, others who are produce these clothes in developing countries are paying for this with their lives. Depending on the extent to how consumers are acknowledge the consequences of their buying behavior on the natural and social environment, they are likely to adapt more responsible consumption patterns. Even though designers or fashion professionals are generally much more aware of design and production processes of the fashion system, they are also themselves fashion consumers. How does this specialized knowledge affect their consumption behavior, and how likely are they to be more responsible than an ordinary consumer? These questions highlights the importance of knowledge of ethical fashion consumption, motivated the authors to investigate consumption patterns of Turkish fashion design students. There are two main obstacles in Turkish university students making ethical choices ; firstly despite being one of the most important clothing suppliers to European countries by 1970s, Turkey has only very recently started to develop a sustainable design and consumption culture. Turkey is grounded in an autochthonous sustainable textile and clothing culture, due to local values and crafts based in Anatolian culture, nevertheless the development of fashion industry in terms of design, production and consumption pattern has not developed in a way to reflect a sustainable fashion culture. Second obstacle is the need for knowledge and maturity among consumers, in order to adopt an ethical and responsible consumption attitude, which renders young consumers vulnerable to a lack of knowledge and interest in ecological fashion. In spite of these obstacles, in this study young consumers studying fashion in Turkish universities were selected to determine their potential instrumental role in the adoption of responsible consumption patterns by future generations. Thus, the study, following a discussion on the transition from mainstream to ethical fashion consumption to a responsible one, explores responsible fashion consumption behaviors of students. Data was collected on their opinions using a questionnaire, distributed in two universities - private university in İzmir and state university in Mersin. 2

Consumptionism in Fashion Veblen described the role of fashion as being relevant to an elite group in society referred to as the leisure class, only a selected part of the society could access to fashion and being fashionable was associated with being wasteful and conspicuous. Simmel also pointed out the influence of the elite class on adjacent classes in diffusion of fashion. However, Blumer s criticism of Simmel s view of the elite exclusively deciding on new fashion brought about the concept of collective selection of a new style through incipient taste of the fashion-consuming public. (Braham 2010, 355). Blumer s view on fashion as an act of collective mood, taste and choice that defined fashion-consuming public paved the way for the democratization of the fashion system. However, the process of making fashion accessible to all inevitably brought the freedom of limitless consumption, which created continuous consumer dissatisfaction following purchases of desired products (Bocock 1997, 75). The father of modern advertising Earnest Elmo Calkins, coined the term style obsolescence to explain how products that we use become artificially obsolete before they are worn out. By categorizing goods as used and used up, (Calkins 1930), he addressed consumption engineering which had the effect of transforming the used, such as motor cars or safety razors, in to the used up such as toothpaste or soda biscuit. As a result we now use up the kind of goods we formerly use. The cycle of fashion has become shorter with the emergence of fashion pluralism as Davis noted (1992,107). In the global fashion industry, this diversity is accompanied by fast fashion systems, which produce an unlimited production capacity, and unlimited consumption of fashion, the most instrumental actors of an unsustainable system. For Rebecca Arnold, consumption itself is a problem (2009,102). However, current consumption patterns are strongly connected with industrial manufacturing systems (Niinimaki 2013). As product manufacturing become quicker and costs fell, consumers are encouraged to consume more (Brook, 2015). The lower cost production facilities in developing countries facilitate the reduction of prices and wasteful consumption. Current consumption is calculated as 400% more than the figure for 20 years ago, and fashion consumption accounts for 40% more of total global expenditure (Morgan 2015). Regardless of the appropriation of clothes to personal identities, wardrobes and lifestyles, consumers orientation of buying more 3

clothes (Hilton in Kipoz 2015) creates an addictive, but temporary opulence effect on consumers. Ethical and Responsible Fashion Consumption It is clear that we cannot consider introducing a sustainable fashion system without examining the economic dimension, which is the main reason for consumption. Consumers are becoming more responsible actors in fashion (Niinimaki 2010), and today there is a growing consciousness in understanding environmental effects of present industrial production and consumption. In their analysis on fast fashion consumption, Joy, Sherry, Venkatesh, Wang and Chan noted that consumers are growing in awareness that individual consumption fosters organizational production creating an ongoing cycle for appetite, simultaneously voracious and insatiable. They relate this awareness to Bauman s concept of Liquid Consumption (Joy, et al. 2013). With rise of anti-consumerism, or 4 th wave alternative consumerism (Thomas 2008, 530), green consumption, eco shopping have become a part of the lexicon of sustainable consumption, while paradoxically preparing the ground of another form of consumptionism. In this study, to avoid associations with such mainstream definitions the term responsible fashion consumption has been selected as a term denoting ethical consumption. In determining the variables of responsible consumer behavior an important role is played by the principles of the slow fashion movement. Valuing quality over quantity, slow fashion being more than just fast fashion minus the bad bits (Fletcher & Grose 2011, 128), is not simply a related to the speed of production. Rather it represents a different view, which promotes the pleasure gained from variety, multiplicity and the cultural significance of fashion. The slow model of fashion promotes a small-scale production, traditional craft techniques, use of local materials and valuing local markets and local resources (Fletcher & Grose, 2011, ibid). It promises more transparent production systems with less intermediation between producer and consumer, and the production of sustainable and sensorial products with a longer usable life (Clark 2008), allowing consumers to consider the whole lifecycle of the product. Slow consumption refers to products with fair production, systems minimizing energy use and toxic emissions. The use and care of clothes through 4

leasing clothes; wash clothes less often, washing at lower temperatures, using ecodetergent, hang-drying and avoiding ironing if possible and extending the life of the products by repair and sending used clothing to second hand shops or redesigning them (Allwood, et al. 2006). The Criteria of Responsible Fashion Consumption; In this part, the criteria of responsible / ethical fashion consumption has been discussed which would constitute the questions of survey conducted on fashion design students. Information & Knowledge Rebecca Luke argues that awareness -on labour issues and environmental impacts of textile production- have the ability to evoke consumer emotion and action (Luke 2008, 83). By increasing awareness towards ethical and sustainable consumption, the companies need to respond to significant changes in consumer behavior. Information at the consumer level, standards and labeling, and transparency throughout the supply chain, having become key concepts (Black in Steele 2010, 25). Additional value is created by clearly describing the sustainable and ethical features of the fashion item, while encourages consumers to be more active individual, and renders the design and production processes more transparent. Specialized knowledge acquired about fashion design and business creates expectations of higher levels of awareness about the products, leading to responsible consumer behavior. Thus fashion designers, fashion professionals and fashion students are expected to show to represent a more enlightened consumer behavior. Even though ethical consumption behavior is a complex decision process, consumers can make better informed choices with knowledge about the life cycles of products and their environmental impact (Niinimaki 2010). Age Factor Fashion consumer s criteria of selection of the fashion items are complicated by a variety of concerns such as beauty, trends, emotions, age, social status and desires. 5

Thus, responsible or ethical consumption could be even more challenging for the young (Niinimaki 2010). Education and information in constructing a responsible consumer culture have important roles in persuading young people to become ethical consumers. The promise of aesthetics and novelty of fashion may be a greater priority for them than the sustainable qualities of the garments, as these aspects contribute to personal identity and sense of belonging (Black 2012). Merging ethics with the aesthetics therefore plays a key role in changing consumer behavior. Association with Personal Identity Clothes express one s own self: the consumer wants to feel that their garments express their self-identity. Whereas personal characteristics, individuality and preferences strongly affect consumers clothing choices, society also affects the formation of social-self identity (Niinimaki 2010). According to Hilton, the consumer s consideration of fashionable clothing involves some appreciation of others clothes and their aspirations, and what these other s expectations are of one another, in their social judgment of values. Hilton expresses this concern as medressing as a development of Schultz-Kleine s (1995) theory of me-ness, connecting with associated concepts of what Fletcher (2008) referred to as Appropriateness, and Thorpe (2004) as Finesse. (Hilton in Kipoz 2015, 126). Quality The Fashion Director at Barneys Gilbart, refers quality as any number of positive attributes ascribed to the product such as performance, features, reliability, conformance between design and function, durability, serviceability, aesthetics and other issues related to brand image (Gilbart 2008). There are cultural differences in understanding and perceiving quality, which is the reason that Europeans buy less, but of a higher quality. Associated with the image of the artisan and traditions of craftsmanship, quality naturally entails slower consumption, as one can consume only as much, and as fast, as the craftsperson produces (Fletcher and Grose 2011, 149). The search for quality over quantity in the slow vs. fast dilemma, can only be achieved by balancing newness and innovation with long-term stability, as well as meeting demand for material durability and emotional engagement. In line with the 6

phrase cheap is expensive, it can be assumed that quality would affect the price, reflecting the slow fashion products materials, workmanship and values (Fletcher 2008, 174). Localism In the current global fashion system the clothes are designed, manufactured and retailed in multiple locations (Clark 2008, 430) and textile products are transported between processors before reaching to the end user (Fletcher 2008, 141). The environmental and social concerns of this outsourcing system highlight the value of the local. The local, therefore, becomes a sustainable response to global fashion culture in terms of not only revaluing local materials and crafts, but for celebrating the power of small and connected productive communities to allow them to create local and distributed economies (Clark 2008, 430) to resist the monopoly of global system. Local communities with more transparent production systems and less intermediation, has the potential to produce garments with greater cultural and material value (Clark 2008, 433). Ecological impact Each stage of fashion production has a potential negative effect on the environment. Clothing and textiles, being one the largest industries in the world, employing one sixth of the world population (Brown 2010,6), has been considered as the second most environmentally damaging industry after the oil industry. Its production processes consume more water than any other industry, and discharge of toxic chemicals in o the environment is a major contributor to global warming (Brown ibid.). The major environmental impacts of the production and consumption of textiles and clothing can be listed as follows (Dickson, Loker & Eckman 2009, 19); -Energy used for cleaning the garments and for production of materials -The use of toxic chemicals that can harm human and environmental health during production of raw materials and manufacture and processing of textiles and clothing -Release of chemicals into wastewater during production, dyeing, finishing and luandering -Solid produced waste during manufacture and disposal 7

Excessive consumption due to mainstream shopping (Singer 2010) also has a number of environmental effects; fabrics are treated with chemicals from nonrenewable resources, transported by sea and air, then overland arriving at the consumer s house. Fair production The easy and democratic access to cheap clothes within the global fast fashion system encouraged excessive demand and devalued the garments as commodities with shorter lifecycles. However, there is an ethical cost of cheapest clothing, as well as human cost, as supply chains become increasingly diffuse and difficult to track (Arnold 2009, 101). Rampant labour slavery (Brown 2010) is needed to produce at greater speed and greater quantities. Long working hours, low wages, forced labor, health and safety hazards, child labor, discrimination, psychological and physical abuse, lack of awareness of workers rights and lack of worker representation for negotiations with management are key labour issues related to production and sourcing of fashion and textile products (Dickson, Loker & Eckman 2009, 6). It is no coincidence that many the global fast fashion chains select countries such as Bangladesh and Cambodia, where there is minimum opportunity of workers rights. In such conditions, it is expected that consumers will question the reasons for the low cost of clothing, creating empathy with the workers and increasing awareness of the working conditions in which the garments are produced. Use and Care An ordinary fashion process follows three linear steps; designing, production and consumption (Sanjukta Pookulangara 2013). The fashion consumer has a vital role in changing the cycle, rendering the product in a more sustainable sensorial way, due to acquiring a knowledge of how it is made, from the raw material to the end product. Thus, consumers could generate a more personal emotional relationship with the products (Ceppi in Clark 2008, 440). The way the clothes are cared for, cleaned and dried can significantly influence the environmental impact of any item of clothing (Fletcher 2012, 92). Creating a low impact care by washing less often, using lower temperatures, reducing the amount of detergent or using eco-detergent, avoiding 8

tumble dryers, using spot cleaning to remove stains and less frequently ironing are precautions to extend the life of garments (Singer 2010; Allwood, Laursen, Malvido De Rodriguez & Bocken 2006). Post Consumption Change is an essential component of fashion, and the process of change inevitably produces waste (Kaiser in Fiore & Kim 2011, 120). Each year, while 80 billion new clothing items are put on the market, 11 million are sent to wasteland to be burned or buried only in US (Morgan 2015). While burning diffuses carbon dioxide, buried clothing mixes with sanitary sewerage, creating polluted wastewater. The method of discarding of used clothes reflects the level of responsible post-consumer behavior. In addition to changing our garments due to artificial obsolescence, change in body size, ageing or deterioration of clothes are reasons for discarding. Consumption can be reduced by buying, using and redesigning second hand clothes. Giving the used clothes to another, donating them to charity, or developing a more longer and emotional relationships with them by repairing, mending or up cycling them with DIY and design skills are other personal waste management strategies. Materials Each part of the production process contributes to the environmental impacts of the fashion industry. The toxic effects of a conventionally produced T-shirt are; in terms of material 93%, production 3.5%, in delivery phase 1%, and during usage 2.5% (Fletcher 2008, 19). It is obvious that the material constitutes the most important input with the largest effect on the environment. Fabrics are made of fibers, which can be natural, natural organic and industrial. Natural fibers such as linen, cotton, wool, and silk fiber are grown using conventional agricultural methods, with the use of synthetic chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Organic natural fibers are produced without the need for chemicals, however, this kind of production requires organic soil, and costly and time-consuming (Baugh in Hethorn and Ulasewich 2008, 330-334). Cotton, wool, hemp, silk, manufactured cellulose based fabric, bamboo, linen, ingeo (polylactic acid polymer), jute, and leather are considered as organic materials (Singer 2010). Manufactured fibers like viscose, lyocell rayon, polyester, nylon, acrylic, and spandex 9

can be produced from variety of raw materials (Baugh 2008,331). Conventionally, eco-fashion refers to using natural fibres and avoiding synthetic oil-based materials. Understanding the ecological impact, however it is important to consider the entire lifecycle of textile production and from fiber production to washing, dyeing, finishing, printing, drying and ironing. Survey (Questionnaire) Analysis The structure The survey was conducted with textile and fashion students in two Turkish universities. It consisted open-ended questions, closed-end questions, and five point likert scales. The survey includes four parts; the first section aims to analyze consumer profile with a demographic and lifestyle analysis. It also identified level of fashion orientation of participants. In the following section, consumer behavior was examined in regards to ethical and consumption buying decisions, considering the following variables: as frequency and quantity of purchase, priority of quality, durability, use of local values and crafts, environmental friendly and fair production processes, design and aesthetics, use of ecological materials, socially responsive design and production processes, economic dimension and accessibility of the goods. The third section, post-consumption behavior, refers to frame fashion consumption not only as an act of purchasing the fashion item, but rather as the whole cycle of usage and post usage of the clothing. In addition to the use and care of the products, post use practices were examined such as adoption of a second hand culture, repairing, recycling, re-using, re-designing and donating strategies to extend the product s lifecycles. The final section examines the effect the of fashion education in creating an awareness towards ethical and responsible consumer behavior. Population and Sampling This study s sampling group represents the whole population. Participants were total of 96 fashion design students from two Turkish universities - Izmir University of Economics (private) and Mersin University (state) in Turkey. 10

Data acquisition and analyzing All participants were given the same survey, delivered during face-to-face interaction. The results were analysed with SPSS Package programme. The frequency allocation and percentage of the data were analysed and compared. Findings 52 students from Izmir University of Economics (IEU) and 44 students from Mersin University (MEU) were the participants 82.3% of participants were women; amongst these, 98.1 %were from IEU, and 63.6% were from MEU The ages of the students varied between 21-22. These are 21.9% were from 1 st year, 28.1% were from 2 nd year, 25% were from 3 rd year, and 25% were final year students. Under the title of consumer profile, sex and gender, education-level, income, family profile, lifestyle analysis- activities, interests and values were elicited. The average monthly expenditure of the students ranged between 155-233 Euros. The educational level of students families were; mostly high school, some had university degrees and few were non-educated. There was great variety in occupation of parents; 58% of mothers and 16% of the fathers were retired or housewives. According to lifestyle analysis for leisure time activities; 74% preferred to surf in the Internet, 68% drawing and 60% reading. Their interests were 84% fashion, 51% entertainment, 49% beauty, while 11% religion and 14% environmental activism were minority interests. In values and opinions, 68% selected freedom and 48% peace. The lowest values were for Optimism with 7% and hedonism with 4%. To understand consumer behavior, questions were asked on the frequency of clothing shopping, reasons for shopping, budget allocated to clothing, preferred outlets, criteria for selection of garments, material preferences, fashion orientation, and the importance given to production standards. In terms of the frequency of clothing purchase; 28% reported 2-3 times and 26% reported once monthly. Remarkably, 19% reported 2-3 times a week. Reasons for buying clothes were; 52.1% never had this kind of cloth before, while 19.8% to follow new trends. The monthly expenditure for clothing was; 29.2% spends 31-62 Euro, 22.9% spends less than 31 11

euros. In this regards it is indicated that IEU students spend more on clothing. Preferred outlets are indicated as; 95.8% branded products from shopping malls, 18.8% second hand stores. The selection criteria of garments varies between appropriateness to self-identity with 40.6%, the style of the garment with 32.3%, creating an individual expression with 1%, and the quality of the material, with 2%. The most preferred materials were cotton, with 92%; linen, with 45%, and the least preferred is acrylic, with 9%. While IEU students also showed their interest to cotton with 96%, silk with 52% and wool with 44%, 86% of MEU students preferred cotton 50% and linen. In regard to awareness of the production process of garments; 27% of MEU, 25% of IEU students responded as fair production that does not exploit labor, was important for them. 30% of IEU students ignored the production process, 18% of MEU students ignored the importance of customization. In the section of Post-consumption behavior, elicited information on the way the students discarded old garments; 74% reported giving them away.the average number of students who redesign them were 49%, but the difference between MEU students, with 61.4%, IEU students, with 38.5% was remarkable. Their opinions about second-hand clothing are indicated as follows; 30.2% stated that they can use them, 26% were positive, dependent on the identity of the former user. In case of change in body size, 49% preferred to give clothes away and 22.9% continued to keep them. While 54.5% of MEU students give their clothes away, 18.2% reported repairing them. When their clothes deteriorate due to staining or becoming torn, 55.2% reported repairing, and 13.5% redesigning. In regards to caring for their clothes; 66.7% of the students said they only iron clothing if needed, 22.9% students iron all clothes. While 65.6% stated that they use the recommended amount of washing powder on the package, and 19.8% reported using more than this. The last section, The effect of Fashion education on Consumer Behavior, aimed to evaluate awareness of the concepts of sustainability, slow fashion, responsible consumption, recycle/ upcycle, re-use, and reducing consumption. A comparative analysis was conducted, considering that they have no comprehensive courses in relation to these topics in their education program. It was found that; 21.1% of IEU students gained some knowledge and experience of re-design/upcycle practices in their courses, 34.1% of MEU students learned how to be a responsible fashion 12

consumer, and 27.3% had experience of re-designing old garments within the courses. 29.5% of MEU students and 23.1% of IEU students stated that they learned nothing about responsible consumption within the courses. Conclusion In this study, the level of awareness of Turkish fashion design students towards ecological and sustainable issues was examined through an evaluation of their consumption patterns. After examining the literature and discussing the role and effects of consumption on creating a sustainable fashion system, the key concepts of responsible fashion consumption were illustrated. The focus group of the analysis, fashion design university students in Turkish universities represented a young group of consumers with knowledge and experienced of fashion. However, according to survey, their level of ecological consciousness did not represent a fully responsible consumer behavior. The suggested reasons are; lack of sustainable design education in their university program, lack of cultural awareness towards sustainability in Turkey, and their relatively young age. Through the survey, it was found that quantity and frequency of fashion consumption is remarkably high, and their use and care for clothes demonstrated a lack of knowledge on environmental issues. However, it is indicated that their post consumption behavior represents a more responsible attitude compared to general consumer behavior. Even though they allocate a surprisingly high budget for clothes, their tendency to repair, redesign and donate their used clothes rather than discarding them was a positive indication. This illustrated that, although they take no specific course on sustainable design culture, they have developed an understanding of the concepts of sustainability, slow fashion, recycling and responsible consumption. It is suggested that, as a result of these findings, it would be highly beneficial to include courses on sustainable fashion culture within the course program. By acquiring this kind of specific knowledge and experience, it is expected that the students would be able to develop a more responsible consumer behavior, create a more sustainable fashion culture in their country. The differences between two different student groups, one private from İzmir and one state university from Mersin are assumed to be related with differences in income level, means of living and difference in climate. A major limitation of this study pertains to the scales created for this study. As the study was conducted with students 13

from a single discipline, fashion design, it does not present a comparative analysis with another discipline in terms of understanding the role of education and knowledge on consumption behavior. Further research, which would expand the focus group in terms of institutions, cultures and disciplines, would represent more objective, inclusive and reliable data, leading to greater insight in to responsible consumption patterns of fashion students. 14

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