Stitching the Gap: Feedback as a Mechanism for Reinforcing Sustainable Fashion Consumption

Abstract

This paper examines how positive feedback can elicit pride in sustainable fashion consumption and influence two key behavioral outcomes: willingness to buy sustainable fashion products and word-of-mouth endorsement. Drawing on framing theory and existing research on pride as a motivational emotion, we conducted two experimental studies with U.S.-based participants recruited via Prolific. In the first study (N = 403), a 2 (product type: sustainable vs. non-sustainable) × 2 (feedback: positive vs. neutral) between-subjects design showed that positive feedback significantly increased pride only when the product was sustainable. The second study (N = 309) focused solely on sustainable products and confirmed that positive feedback elevated pride, which fully mediated its effects on both behavioral outcomes. These findings demonstrate that positive feedback can be used to strategically reinforce pride and offer a low-cost, scalable mechanism for promoting sustainable behavior in the fashion domain.