An Extension on Excuse My Behavior: Social Norms and Moral Costs

This study extends the previously registered randomized controlled trial “Excuse My Behavior: Social Norms and Moral Costs” (AEA RCT ID: AEARCTR-0015264), which examines how replacement and waste excuses affect environmentally relevant consumption choices. Participants make incentivized decisions between cheaper, more carbon-intensive options and more expensive, less carbon-intensive alternatives in the domains of clothing, food, and transportation. The extension addresses two questions. First, it examines what happens when the excuse statements focus on the more sustainable rather than the less sustainable option. Second, it varies whether social norms and moral costs are elicited before or after the consumption choices. This allows us to study whether the previously observed effects on reported norms and moral costs may partly reflect adjustments made after a decision. The study examines effects on consumption choices, descriptive and injunctive social norms, moral costs, and perceived replacement and waste likelihood.