Provide Information To Consumers Research Articles

Digital practices for consumer e-participation in economic regulation and the role of organisational capacity

ABSTRACT How do national regulatory agencies (NRAs) use digital practices to empower consumers for e-participation in regulatory processes? To address this question, we designed a novel framework to comprehensively capture digital practices adopted by NRAs across the key regulatory procedures, including consumer information provision, communication, education, and rule-making, which we conceptualise as two-way relational mechanisms. To measure the scope of digital regulatory practices, we derived composite digital scores for 236 NRAs across 42 EU and OECD countries, based on coding the regulators’ websites and social media accounts. We also developed a new multidimensional construct of organisational capacity to explain the variation in the adoption of digital regulatory practices among NRAs with sole – and multi-sectoral competencies in five economic markets, ranging from utilities to financial services. Our findings show significant regional divergence in the adoption of digital regulatory practices by NRAs from the old and new EU member states, as well as the significant effect of NRA’s reform experience, resources allocations, sectoral competencies, and in-house capabilities on their digital scores. This study offers implications for both improving the effectiveness of regulatory procedures through consumer-oriented digital transformation, as well as government initiatives for enhancing digital trust and e-participation in economic regulation among consumers.

The absence of mandatory pregnancy warning labels in online alcohol purchasing contexts.

As people increasingly migrate to online shopping platforms, hard-won improvements in requirements for consumer information provision at the point of sale are being eroded. An example is the alcohol pregnancy warning label for packaged alcoholic beverages that has been recently introduced in Australia and New Zealand. The aim of the present study was to assess the extent to which the pregnancy warning was visible at the online point of sale when the requirement became mandatory in August 2023. Data for alcohol products sold on the websites of the two largest alcohol retailers in Australia were web-scraped from 1 to 3 August 2023. The captured data for 8343 alcoholic beverages were inspected to determine whether the pregnancy warning was visible. Virtually no products (0.1%) had the mandatory warning visible on the main sales page, and only 7% enabled visibility of the warning via optional product image rotation functionality. The almost complete absence of the mandatory pregnancy warnings on the main product pages of major alcohol retailers' websites highlights the regulatory problems posed by the emerging shift to online shopping. The very low prevalence of visible pregnancy warnings is likely to be an overestimate of the extent to which consumers would be exposed to warnings due to images being counted as being present regardless of their quality or readability. New regulation is needed to ensure that mandatory information requirements for harmful products are applied to online shopping contexts.

How explicit consumer credit information affects intent to purchase on credit: an experiment

PurposeConsumer culture is promoting immediate gratification, and the rise of digital financial services is increasing the risk of indebtedness while debt reduces well-being and affects mental health. The authors assess the effects of consumer information provision, debt literacy, chronic debt and attitudes toward debt on the intent to purchase on credit.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey including an experiment with a credit offer vignette was conducted in a representative sample of Estonia (n = 1204). Treatment conditions depicted either the total cost and duration of the credit agreement or the annual percentage rate.FindingsReceiving modified information resulted in a 26 to 30 percentage points decrease in propensity to purchase on credit. Purchasing on credit was associated with attitudes towards credit and chronic debt, but not with debt literacy.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings reveal large effects of information provision and highlight the limited effects of debt literacy on credit decisions. Limitations may emerge from differences in financial regulation across countries.Practical implicationsThe authors' results highlight the importance of applying behavioural insights in consumer credit information provision, both in the financial sector and policy. Testing the messages allows having evidence-based solutions that promote responsible purchasing on credit.Originality/valueThe findings call for changes in credit information provision requirements. Their effect is significantly larger compared to the literature, emphasizing the role of credit information provision in less regulated online markets.

유튜브 정보 및 정보원 특성이 소비자 만족에 미치는 영향

Background/Objectives: YouTube is increasingly being used as a channel for acqumng consumer information, and studies have highlighted generational differences in media consumption. This study aims to analyze variances in the perception of YouTube information characteristics and explore differences in factors influencing consumers' information search satisfaction between the younger and older generations.
 Methods: An online survey was conducted targeting people who had searched for information regarding product purchases on YouTube within the past month. A total of 366 responses were statistically analyzed via t-test, analysis of variance, and multiple regression analysis using SPSS 26.0.
 Results: The study revealed disparities m the perception of YouTube information characteristics and information source characteristics based on demographic features. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that accuracy and reliabili ty had a significant positive impact on consumer satisfaction in both age groups. The expertise and interactivity of the information source showed a significant effect only on the younger generation, whereas the originality and personalization of information had a significant impact on consumer satisfaction only in the older generation.
 Conclusion/Implications: This study holds academic significance and makes a unique contribution by identifying sub- dimensions of YouTube information characteristics. Furthermore, the study provides practical value by suggesting consumer information provision strategies for companies that intend to leverage YouTube for marketing.

Supply chain carbon transparency to consumers via blockchain: does the truth hurt?

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to determine if blockchain-supported carbon offset information provision and shipping options with different cost and environmental footprint implications impact consumer perceptions toward retailers and logistics service providers. Blockchain and carbon neutrality, each can be expensive to adopt and complex to manage, thus getting the “truth” on decarbonization may require additional costs for consumers.Design/methodology/approachExperimental modeling is used to address these critical and emergent issues that influence practices across a set of supply chain actors. Three hypotheses relating to the relationship between blockchain-supported carbon offset information and consumer perceptions and intentions associated with the product and supply chain actors are investigated.FindingsThe results show that consumer confidence increases when supply chain carbon offset information has greater reliability, transparency and traceability as supported by blockchain technology. The authors also find that consumers who are provided visibility into various shipping options and the product's journey carbon emissions and offset – from a blockchain-supported system – they are more willing to pay a premium for both the product and shipping options. Blockchain-supported decarbonization information disclosure in the supply chain can lead to organizational legitimacy and financial gains in return.Originality/valueUnderstanding consumer action and sustainable consumption is critical for organizations seeking carbon neutrality. Currently, the literature on this understanding from a consumer information provision is not well understood, especially with respect to blockchain-supported information transparency, visibility and reliability. Much of the blockchain literature focuses on the upstream. This study focuses more on consumer-level and downstream supply chain blockchain implications for organizations. The study provides a practical roadmap for considering levels of blockchain information activity and consumer interaction.

Policy developments on labelling for a more sustainable food system

Abstract Governments across Europe are developing policies which promote healthier, more sustainable food choices. This presentation explores these policies with a focus on the EU. In May 2020, the European Commission published its Farm to Fork Strategy which acknowledged the inextricable links between healthy people, healthy societies and a healthy planet. This committed to introduce legislative proposals to revise rules on food labelling for consumers. On the one hand, focusing on health, the Commission committed to introduce harmonised front-of-pack nutrition labelling, nutrient profiling criteria to restrict claims made on foods, extending mandatory origin or provenance information for certain products, and revise the rules on ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ dates by 2022. These commitments were reinforced by Europe's Beating Cancer Plan, which further committed to introduce mandatory ingredients list and nutrition declaration as well as warnings for alcoholic beverages by 2023. On the other hand, the Commission also committed to introduce a Sustainability Labelling Framework to empower consumers to make informed and sustainable food choices by the end of 2024. In synergy with other labelling initiatives - such as animal welfare labelling, ‘green claims’ organic labelling and those described above - it is meant to cover the provision of consumer information relating to the nutritional, climate, environmental and social aspects of food products. The Commission has already missed its 2022 deadlines and all suggestions point to it missing its 2023 and 2024 deadlines. This presentation will summarise the development so far, suggest how the EU should move forward and highlight barriers to implementation. Discussions on how to move forward will be held with the audience.

Social Media as Acculturation Agent: Vietnamese Consumers’ Assimilation into South Korean Culture

Social media has become a major platform for connecting young Vietnamese consumers to South Korean culture. To understand how Vietnamese consumers learn and adopt the South Korean culture through social media, this study applied the acculturation framework, and tested the role of acculturation agents that provide consumer information and models of consumer behavior. An online panel survey of 400 Vietnamese consumers aged 18–40 years, found that the intensity of social media use positively influenced attitudes toward South Korea. Furthermore, those attitudes toward South Korea increased friendship orientation and language use, leading to assimilation into South Korean culture. By confirming the role of social media in consumers’ assimilation into foreign cultures, the findings extend the acculturation framework from physical relocation to online transmission. It also suggests that a positive attitude toward a specific country through social media is critical to the assimilation process.

ABC of Online Consumer Disclosure Duties: Improving Transparency and Legal Certainty in Europe

Following a series of complimentary studies assessing the current application of the principle of transparency of consumer information in Croatia, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, and the UK, this paper presents research findings on how to improve its effectiveness. Documented differences in national laws and practice indicate the need for a more harmonised approach on the level of the European Union. This demand also arises from the interviews the research team has conducted with various national stakeholders. Whilst the legislative transparency requirements could remain general, e.g., a duty for traders to provide consumer information in “plain and intelligible language,” traders, consumers, and enforcement authorities all require more legal certainty as to what amounts to compliance with these requirements. Based on the stakeholders’ suggestions, an interdisciplinary literature review, findings from doctrinal, comparative legal research, and a conducted quantitative study, the paper recommends empirically motivated, multimodal guidelines to implement textual, contextual, and technical measures.

Socio-demographic Determinants of Filipino Consumers Reading Food Product Labels and Nutrition Facts: Findings from the 2018-2019 ENNS.

While food product labelling is deemed important in providing consumer information, little is known about the characteristics of those reading and not reading. This study aimed to determine the socio-demographic characteristics of Filipino adult consumers reading and not reading food product labels and nutrition facts to provide insights on their understanding and usage of food labels that may help in designing better label formats of packaged foods and related health education campaigns. Cross-sectional design using secondary data from the Expanded National Nutrition Survey (ENNS) 2018-2019 was employed. A survey form on Reading Food Product Labels and Nutrition Facts in the ENNS 2018-2019 were collected through face-to-face interviews. Descriptive statistics, test of proportions, and logistic regression were done using Stata version 16. Always reading product labels were reported only by 19.6% of adult consumers, 18 years old and above, while 45.9% reported not reading food product labels. Among those who read food product labels, only 16.7% reported reading nutrition facts. Higher proportions of adults reading nutrition facts were found among those who attained a higher educational level, were less than 40 years old, living in urban residences, and belonging to higher wealth status. 'Not interested' was the top reason of adults who reported not reading nutrition facts. Reading product labels and nutrition facts is not common among Filipino adults. Being not interested was the top reason for not reading food product labels. Older persons, adults with low educational attainment, and belonging to poor households were more likely to not read food product labels and not influenced by nutrition facts which imply the need for a food label format that would cater to those who cannot or have difficulty reading food labels and nutrition facts. An intensified campaign on the importance of reading food product labels is also needed.

Why Don't You [Government] Help Us Make Healthier Foods More Affordable Instead of Bombarding Us with Labels? Maternal Knowledge, Perceptions, and Practices after Full Implementation of the Chilean Food Labelling Law.

Experimental and real-life evaluations show that the use of front-of-package warning labels (FoP) in unhealthy foods is well understood and can modify people’s behaviors. However, it is unclear whether these effects remain in the long term because of the risk of message fatigue. The purpose of this study is to explore after four years of implementation of the Chilean Food Labelling law people’s dietary behavior and FoP labels attention. Nine focus groups of mothers (7–10 people each) of children (2–14 yo) were conducted in Santiago, Chile, and macrocodes were developed, combining an iterative process of deductive and inductive thematic analyses. We found that mothers experienced labels’ fatigue but also had greater knowledge about nutrition and appreciation for more natural foods. This greater knowledge about better nutrition interferes with the perception that healthier and less processed foods are financial and physically inaccessible. The key role of schools as an environment for promoting healthier diets in children was strengthened by the mothers. These results suggest that policies based on providing consumer information need reinforcement campaigns to maintain their effectiveness and that we also need to advance policies to improve access and affordability of healthy foods to ensure better diets.

Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis in Food Safety Risk Management: The Case of Dioxins in Baltic Fish.

The Swedish risk management case of Baltic fatty fishes, in which dioxin levels may be too high, is a typical multidimensional food safety decision problem involving public health, economic, environmental and socio-cultural aspects. To effectively address the dioxin food safety problem, the multiple dimensions and conflicting interests of stakeholders have to be considered systematically when evaluating competing risk management options. The objectives of this study were to illustrate the applicability of the Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) method for multidimensional food safety risk management problems, and to evaluate the Swedish dioxin risk management using MCDA. The results show that the MCDA method is indeed a relevant tool for modelling the multifactorial Swedish dioxin problem and for initiating discussions amongst stakeholders to increase the acceptance of chosen strategies. Abolishing the derogation from the European Commission’s maximum limits for the presence of dioxins in Swedish fish is the dominant strategy for risk assessors, whereas the preferences provided by the other stakeholders would suggest a continuation of the derogation without providing consumer information. However, the preferences of female consumers match with the 2011 decision of the Swedish government to ask for a derogation in combination with consumer information. The conclusion drawn from our MCDA analysis is comparable to the government’s decision that—given the gradual reduction in dioxin concentrations in Baltic fish—the decision to continue providing consumer information or not mainly depends on how risk managers balance the preferences of the different stakeholders.

펀드상품 정보제공 관련 법제의 실효성 검토 - 설명의무, 적합성 원칙과 부당권유금지 조항을 중심으로 -

이 연구의 목적은 『자본시장 및 금융투자업에 관한 법률』 상 금융소비자 보호를 위하여 규정하고 있는 설명의무, 적합성 원칙, 부당권유금지 조항이 잘 이행되고 있는지 소비자의 관점에서 법조항의 실효성을 파악하고자 하 는 것이다. 연구방법은 문헌연구와 설문조사를 병행하였다. 이 조사는 전문조사 회사인 한국리서치(www.hrc.co.kr)에 의 뢰하여 자기기입식 방법으로 2017년 12월 4일 ～ 12월 8일까지 조사하였으며, 조사대상자는 2016년 1월 1일 부터 조사시점까지 2년간 펀드상품을 구매한 경험이 있는 만 19세 이상 성인 남녀 608명이다. 연구결과는 다음 과 같다. 첫째, 금융회사에서 펀드상품에 대하여 제공하거나 설명해준 내용에 대한 이해 수준은 3.59점으로 중간점 3점 을 약간 상회하는 낮은 점수이다. 가장 이해도가 높은 문항은 ‘투자원금 손실이 가능하다는 사항’이며, 다음 ‘예금 자보호 대상이 아니라는 사항’, ‘상대적 위험도에 관한 사항’ 순으로 높게 나타났다. 낮은 문항은 ‘조기상환 조건에 관한 사항’, ‘계약의 해제․해지에 관한 사항’, ‘수수료에 관한 사항’으로 나타났다. 둘째, 금융회사의 적합성 원칙 이행에 대한 금융소비자의 인식수준은 문항별로 57.9%-83.6%의 상당히 넓은 분포를 보였다. ‘금융투자업자가 일반투자자와 전문투자자인지 여부를 확인했다’고 응답한 소비자의 비율이 가장 낮았다. 그리고 금융투자자가 소 비자 자신에 대한 정보 파악을 인식하는 것 보다 파악한 정보를 나에게 확인받은 것을 더 높이 인식하였다. 셋 째, 투자권유 시 투자권유금지 원칙을 금융회사에서 얼마나 잘 이행했는지에 대하여 응답자에게 질문한 결과 전 체 네 문항의 평균이 3.71점(5점 만점, 100점 환산점수 74.2점)으로 나타났다. ‘금융회사에서 투자를 권유함에 있어서 불확실한 사항에 대하여 단정적 판단을 제공하거나 확실하다고 오인하게 할 소지가 있는 내용을 알리는 행위’를 해서는 안된다는 원칙 이행에 대해 3.60점으로 상대적으로 제일 낮아 네 문항 중 가장 지켜지지 않은 것 으로 나타났다. 넷째, 객관적 금융이해력 점수가 높을수록, 보험사가 아닌 은행이나 증권사 등에서 펀드상품을 구매할수록, 연령이 많을수록, 투자손실감내성향이 높을수록 펀드상품에 대하여 금융회사에서 제공하거나 설명해 주는 내용을 더 잘 이해하고 있었다. 적합성 원칙 이행에 대한 인식 정도에 대해서는 객관적 금융이해력만이, 투자권유금지 원칙 이행에 대한 인식 정도는 연령만이 영향요인으로 나타났다. 이상의 결과를 기초로 교육적, 정책적 노력이 필요함을 제안하였다.

(Analysis of the Factors Influencing Consumer Satisfaction on Consumer's Purchase of Insurance Behavior and Insurance Sale Service)

Korean Abstract: 본 연구에서는 보험에 대한 소비자구매행동, 구매 단계별 보험판매 서비스에 대한 소비자만족도에 대해 조사하고 이에 영향을 미치는 요인을 조사하였다. 또한 전문가를 대상으로 심층면접을 수행하여 보험소비자의 권익증진을 위한 보험서비스 전반의 개선 방향을 모색하였다. 본 연구결과를 정리․종합하면 다음과 같다. 첫째, 조사대상 소비자 중 30% 정도는 청약철회 경험이 있었다. 소비자는 불완전판매와 청약철회권에 대해서는 잘 알고 있으나 보험 상품의 지급범위, 보험 관련 법률 등에 대해서는 잘 알지 못하고 있었다. 둘째, 연령이 낮을수록, 가계소득수준이 높을수록, 보유한 보험의 수가 많을수록 보험에 대한 태도가 긍정적인 것으로 나타났다. 남성, 비전문직 종사자, 대졸자, 보험을 많이 보유하고 있는 소비자들의 보험에 대한 지식수준이 높은 것으로 밝혀졌다. 셋째, 대체로 보험에 대한 태도가 긍정적 일수록 보험판매 서비스에 대한 소비자만족도가 높았다. 보험에 대한 지식수준이 높을수록 보험 상품정보, 구매시 설명, 구매후 만족에는 부정적이었으나, 보험구매후 보험유지에는 긍정적 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 한편, 보험설계사를 통해 보험 상품을 구매할 경우 구매후 보험유지에는 긍정적 영향을 미치나 구매 단계시 주요 내용에 대한 설명, 구매후 보상이나 분쟁 등에서 다른 보험가입 채널로 구매한 경우보다 만족도가 낮았다. 넷째, 보험 전문가를 대상으로 심층면접을 수행한 결과 보험서비스 전반에서 개선 방향은 보험사의 소비자 지향적 경영, 보험광고 개선, 보험 소비자정보제공 및 보험 소비자교육확대 인 것으로 나타났다. English Abstract: This study examined the factors influencing the consumer satisfaction regarding the purchase behavior of customers and insurance sales according to the steps of purchasing insurance. In addition, this paper suggests an improvement direction on the quality enhancement of insurance sale services based on in-depth interviews with experts. The results are as follows. First, approximately 30% of consumer have withdrawn subscription. Consumers had incomplete sales and subscription withdrawal rights, but they had no information about the pay range or related laws. Second, young, high level of household income, and high number of insurance policies had a positive effect on the attitudes toward insurance. Men, non-professional workers, university graduates, and high number of insurance policies had a high level of knowledge. Third, those whose attitudes were generally positive toward insurance, had high level of satisfaction with insurance and the insurance sale service. People with a high level of knowledge had a negative attitude towards insurance product information, explanation, satisfaction after purchase, but a positive attitude on retention after purchase. On the other hand, the attitudes to purchasing insurance through an insurance planner were positive on retention insurance but lower than with other cases on obtaining information, insurance guarantees, and disputes. Fourth, by having in-depth interviews with insurance experts, improvement directions include the insurance company’s consumer-oriented management, improvement of an insurance advertisements, providing consumer information, and expanding consumer education.

Do Consumers Want More Nutritional and Health Information on Wine Labels? Insights from the EU and USA.

The global strategy to reduce the harmful use of alcohol launched in 2010 by the World Health Organization includes, amongst several areas of recommended actions, providing consumer information about, and labelling, alcoholic beverages to indicate alcohol-related harm. Labelling requirements worldwide for alcoholic drinks are currently quite diverse and somewhat limited compared to labelling on food products and on tobacco. In this context, the current paper contributes to the academic and political debate on the inclusion of nutritional and health information on wine labelling, providing some insights into consumer interest in, and preferences for, such information in four core wine-producing and -consuming countries: Italy, France, Spain, and the United States of America. A rating-based conjoint analysis was performed in order to ascertain consumer preferences for different formats of additional information on wine labels, and a segmentation of the sample was performed to determine the existence of homogeneous groups of consumers in relation to the degrees of usefulness attached to the nutritional and health information on wine labels. Our results highlight the interest expressed by European and United States consumers for introducing nutrition and health information on wine labels. However, the results of conjoint analysis show some significant differences among stated preferences of the information delivery modes in different countries. In addition, segmentation analysis reveal the existence of significant differences between consumer groups with respect to their interest in receiving additional information on wine labels. These differences are not only linked to the geographic origin of the consumers, or to socio-demographic variables, but are also related to wine consumption habits, attitudes towards nutritional information, and the degree of involvement with wine. This heterogeneity of consumer preferences indicates a need for a careful consideration of wine labelling regulations and merits further investigation in order to identify labelling guidelines in terms of the message content and presentation method to be used.

Community preferences in general practice: important factors for choosing a general practitioner.

Understanding the important factors for choosing a general practitioner (GP) can inform the provision of consumer information and contribute to the design of primary care services. To identify the factors considered important when choosing a GP and to explore subgroup differences. An online survey asked about the respondent's experience of GP care and included 36 questions on characteristics important to the choice of GP. An Australian population sample (n=2481) of adults aged 16 or more. Principal components analysis identified dimensions for the creation of summated scales, and regression analysis was used to identify patient characteristics associated with each scale. The 36 questions were combined into five scales (score range 1-5) labelled: care quality, types of services, availability, cost and practice characteristics. Care quality was the most important factor (mean=4.4, SD=0.6) which included questions about technical care, interpersonal care and continuity. Cost (including financial and time cost) was also important (mean=4.1, SD=0.6). The least important factor was types of services (mean=3.3, SD=0.9), which covered the range of different services provided by or co-located with the practice. Frequent GP users and females had higher scores across all 5 scales, while the importance of care quality increased with age. When choosing a GP, information about the quality of care would be most useful to consumers. Respondents varied in the importance given to some factors including types of services, suggesting the need for a range of alternative primary care services.

Australian mobile broadband network performance: Mobile apps as one possible way to provide consumer information

This paper explores the ways in which consumers gain information about mobile network performance and coverage, then examines the factors that impact mobile performance, and the challenges affiliated with representing results, which are highly influenced by transient events. The paper then discusses the role that mobile speed test apps and crowdsourcing initiatives can play in measuring mobile broadband performance, and provides an analysis of how the features and methodologies of eight major speed test applications compare and contrast. Lastly, the paper provides a brief review of the US Government?s Broadband Mapping Program; and some closing thoughts on lessons for Australia, and in particular how a crowdsourcing initiative could complement the recently announced $100m Mobile Coverage Programme.

The carbon footprint of indoor Cannabis production

The emergent industry of indoor Cannabis production – legal in some jurisdictions and illicit in others – utilizes highly energy intensive processes to control environmental conditions during cultivation. This article estimates the energy consumption for this practice in the United States at 1% of national electricity use, or $6 billion each year. One average kilogram of final product is associated with 4600kg of carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere, or that of 3 million average U.S. cars when aggregated across all national production. The practice of indoor cultivation is driven by criminalization, pursuit of security, pest and disease management, and the desire for greater process control and yields. Energy analysts and policymakers have not previously addressed this use of energy. The unchecked growth of electricity demand in this sector confounds energy forecasts and obscures savings from energy efficiency programs and policies. While criminalization has contributed to the substantial energy intensity, legalization would not change the situation materially without ancillary efforts to manage energy use, provide consumer information via labeling, and other measures. Were product prices to fall as a result of legalization, indoor production using current practices could rapidly become non-viable.

공정무역 상품의 소비를 활성화하기 위한 방안 연구

Fair trade has received increasing attention from ethical consumers in the North Trans-Atlantic world. It is a movement establishing alternative trading organizations to ensure minimal returns, safe working conditions, and to provide continuity in the trading relationship for disadvantaged producers, especially women and indigenous people in the South. Despite of the growing fair trade movement in the U.S. and Europe, it is still in the introductory stage in Korea. Although fair trade has gained some attention because of the efforts of activists, most Korean consumers are still unaware of it. This paper is divided into four sections including an introduction and conclusions. In section two, I analysed sales of the fairly traded products and the websites of the fairly traded products sellers. In section three, I proposed two effective recommendations for the better marketing and promotion strategies of fairly traded products. One proposal is for providing consumer information, like fair trade certificates, consumer campaigns, and consumer information of the fair trade sellers' websites analyses. The other is for establishing the infrastructure to promote the consumption of fairly traded products such as consumer education, corporate social responsibility, social enterprise, fair trade town and school, and networking. This study is relavant to academics, non-profit fair trade organizations, manufacturers, retailers and governments.

Quality and availability of consumer information on heart failure in Australia

BackgroundProvision of consumer information and patient education are considered an essential part of chronic disease management programmes developed for patients with heart failure. This study aimed to review the quality and availability of consumer information materials for people with heart failure in Australia.MethodsThe availability of consumer information was assessed through a questionnaire-based survey of the major organisations in Australia known, or thought, to be producing or using consumer materials on heart failure, including hospitals. The questionnaire was designed to explore issues around the use, production and dissemination of consumer materials. Only groups that had produced consumer information on heart failure were asked to complete the totality of the questionnaire.The quality of information booklets was assessed by using a standardised checklist.ResultsOf 101 organisations which were sent a questionnaire, 33 had produced 61 consumer resources on heart failure including 21 information booklets, 3 videos, 5 reminder fridge magnets, 7 websites, 15 self-management diaries and 10 self-management plans. Questionnaires were completed for 40 separate information resources. Most had been produced by hospitals or health services. Two information booklets had been translated into other languages. There were major gaps in the availability of these resources as more than half of the resources were developed in 2 of the 8 Australian states and territories, New South Wales and Victoria.Quality assessment of 19 information booklets showed that most had good presentation and language. Overall eight high quality booklets were identified. There were gaps in terms of topics covered, provision of references, quantitative information about treatment outcomes and quality and level of scientific evidence to support medical recommendations. In only one case was there evidence that consumers had been involved in the production of the booklets.ConclusionKey findings arising from the study included the need to develop a nationally coordinated approach for increasing the dissemination of information resources on heart failure. While the more recent publication of a booklet by the National Heart Foundation may have improved the situation, dissemination of written information materials may remain sub-optimal, especially among patients who are not enrolled in chronic heart failure management programmes.

Content Analysis of On-Line Consumer Information for Elderly - Comparison between the US and Korea Apparel E-tailing Sites -

Internet apparel businesses are required to provide various kinds of consumer information which includes both product information and customer service information. "New Age Elderly" who become an aged man in 21th century are familiar with internet and other high technological tools from their life time experience with technological development and ready to enjoy the convenience the technology offers. As a preliminary step to develop internet consumer information model for elderly consumers, this study examines the US and Korea apparel e-tailing sites targeting elderly consumers. Ten Korean sites and nine US sites were selected and compared for their provision of consumer information in terms of contents, ease to access, and the completeness of the information. Results of data analysis indicate that elderly market in Korea is not yet clearly defined compared to the US. In Korea, elderly consumer market is considered as a part of middle-aged market, and there was no unique target marketing efforts observed. Korean sites are better than the US's sites in terms of shopping information, while the US sites offer detailed information about the company, and customer service information. In both countries, fashion related information is lacking and failing to satisfy fashion conscious elderly consumers. Managerial implications were discussed.