• Journal of the Korea Fashion and Costume Design Association
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.73-84
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• 2020

Recently, there has been a change in consumer culture. The paradigm is changing from a consumption model that used to emphasize rationality to an ethical consumption model that focuses on sustainability. Such a change in consumption patterns has also been seen in the cosmetics industry, but studies to empirically assess this trend are incomplete. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to empirically identify the impact of ethical consumption proprieties on attitudes and purchasing intentions for ethical cosmetics. To achieve the aim of this study, 506 adult women residing in Korea were selected as subjects and surveyed. To identify the demographic characteristics of the study participants, a technical statistical analysis and frequency analysis were conducted. To check the validity and reliability of the measuring tools, an exploratory factor analysis was performed, and the Cronbach's α factor was calculated. The analysis method was analyzed using the SPSS 25.0 and the Amos 25.0 statistical analysis programs. The results of this study are as follows. First, ethical spending tendencies had a positive impact on attitudes toward ethical cosmetics. Specifically, interest in ethical issues, altruism, and business ethics perception have had a positive impact on attitudes toward ethical cosmetics. However, consumer effectiveness had no significant impact on attitudes toward ethical cosmetics. Second, attitudes toward ethical cosmetics had a positive effect on purchasing intentions. This study found that for the spread of ethical cosmetics and ethical consumption trends varied according to the age and that attitudes toward ethical cosmetics and differences in purchasing intentions should be kept in mind. It also showed that attitudes toward ethical cosmetics affect purchasing intentions. The results of this study suggested that the analysis of adult women, the main consumers of cosmetics, by age was meaningful for finding the factors for growth in the macroscopic ethical cosmetics industry and that the industry could raise its ethical awareness. If such tasks are systematically established, ethical cosmetics are thought to be able to actively solve social problems and lead a mature cosmetics industry.