Status Consumption and Moral Identity–Measurement Model

Abstract

The Status Consumption and Moral Identity–Measurement Model (Taşçıoğlu, 2025) is a novel 19-item instrument designed to investigate the complex interplay between moral identity and sustainable consumption. A primary objective of the model is to explore how status consumption may moderate this relationship in a non-Western context.

The questionnaire was constructed by integrating six validated constructs from existing literature. These include the measurement of collectivist mindset (adapted from Yen, Wang, and Yang, 2017), moral identity internalization and symbolization (Reed, Aquino, and Levy, 2007), sustainable consumption behavior (Dermody et al., 2018), and status consumption (Eastman, Goldsmith, and Flynn, 1999). The instrument was originally prepared in English, translated into Turkish via a rigorous back-translation process, and pretested on a convenience sample of undergraduate students in Turkey. Psychometric properties, including reliability, validity, and factor structure, were reported and confirmed the model’s robustness.

Keywords

Collectivist Mindset, Common Method Bias, Composite Reliability, Moral Identity Internalization, Moral Identity Symbolization, Status Consumption, Sustainable Consumption Buying, Sustainable Consumption Curtailment, Consumer Attitudes, Consumer Behavior, Morality, Consumer Ethics, Pro Environmental Behavior, Sustainability.

Authors

Taşçıoğlu, Mertcan.

Purpose

The core purpose of the Status Consumption and Moral Identity–Measurement Model is to provide a robust psychometric tool for the assessment of key consumer psychological variables within the Turkish cultural context. The model specifically aims to quantify the six dimensions necessary for testing the hypothesized relationship between moral identity and sustainable consumption, while accounting for the moderating role of status consumption.

The instrument assesses the individual’s standing on key psychological drivers: collectivist mindset, the internalized and symbolized aspects of moral identity, the two behavioral facets of sustainable consumption (buying and curtailment), and the motivation for status consumption.

Construct

This measurement model is structured around six primary, latent constructs, all operationalized using items adapted from previously validated instruments to ensure theoretical robustness and generalizability. The constructs measured are Collectivist Mindset, Moral Identity Internalization, Moral Identity Symbolization, Sustainable Consumption Buying, Sustainable Consumption Curtailment, and Status Consumption.

The two subscales of Moral Identity (Internalization and Symbolization) are used to capture how central moral characteristics are to an individual’s self-concept and how overtly they express these characteristics. Similarly, Sustainable Consumption is broken down into two components: active purchasing behaviors (Buying) and resource-reducing behaviors (Curtailment). The inclusion of Collectivist Mindset as an antecedent variable helps ground the model within a specific cultural framework, relevant to the Turkish sample.

Validity

The validity of the measurement model was rigorously assessed through analysis of both convergent and discriminant validity. Convergent Validity was supported by the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) values for each construct, which were reported to be greater than the recommended cutoff threshold of 0.5 established by Fornell and Larcker (1981).

Furthermore, Discriminant Validity was confirmed through the Heterotrait-Monotrait Ratio (HTMT) analysis. The HTMT levels were maintained below the cutoff value of 0.85, as suggested by Kline (2023), providing evidence that the six measured constructs are distinct both theoretically and empirically.

Reliability

The internal consistency and overall reliability of the scale components were established using the Composite Reliability (CR) measure. The reported CR values for all constructs were found to be higher than the commonly recommended cutoff point of 0.7, as suggested by Hair et al. (2021), indicating acceptable internal consistency.

To further improve the reliability of the instrument during development, a psychometric review was conducted on the moral identity items. Specifically, any items within the moral identity scale that exhibited an item-total correlation coefficient below 0.3 were removed, thereby ensuring high reliability for the final Turkish version of the questionnaire.

Factor Analysis

The underlying factor structure of the Status Consumption and Moral Identity–Measurement Model was evaluated using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) within a Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) framework. The CFA results demonstrated an acceptable model fit based on several key statistical indices.

The fit statistics reported were: CFI = 0.94, IFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93, and RMSEA = 0.08 (p < 0.001). These metrics successfully met the criteria for an acceptable model fit recommended by Baumgartner and Homburg (1996) and Hu and Bentler (1999).

An assessment of Common Method Bias was also conducted. The analysis showed that the cumulative variance extracted by a single factor was 39.7%, which is safely below the 50% threshold recommended by Podsakoff and Organ (1986), suggesting that bias from the data collection method is not a major threat to the validity of the findings.

Instrument

Test Type: Original Instrument (Inventory/Questionnaire)

Format: Items are rated using a 5-point Likert scale.

Language Available: Turkish (Original preparation language: English)

Population Group: Human; Male; Female

Age Group: Adulthood (18 yrs & older); Young Adulthood (18-29 yrs); Thirties (30-39 yrs); Middle Age (40-64 yrs); Aged (65 yrs & older)

Population Details: Location: Turkey; Respondents: Undergraduate Students (Convenience sample used for validation)

Test Methodology: Test Validity; Construct Validity; Convergent Validity; Discriminant Validity; Test Reliability; Internal Consistency; Factor Analysis; Confirmatory Factor Analysis; Measurement Model; Structural Equation Modeling.

Keywords

Consumer Behavior, Moral Identity, Status Consumption, Collectivist Mindset, Measurement Model, Psychometrics, Turkey, Sustainable Consumption, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Likert Scale.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: No data is Available

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Istanbul Medeniyet University, Department of Management, Dumlupinar Mh. D-100 Kadikoy, Istanbul, Turkey, 34720, [email protected]

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Permissions: Contact Publisher

Commercial Use: No

Fee: No

Test Year: 2025

Reference’s

Taşçıoğlu, M. (2025). Status consumption effect on moral identity – Sustainable consumption relationship: Bittersweet, or bitter-only? Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 37(1), 41–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/08961530.2024.2355221

Baumgartner, H., & Homburg, C. (1996). Applications of structural equation modeling in marketing and consumer research: A review. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 13(2), 139-161.

Dermody, J., Hanmer-Lloyd, S., Koenig-Lewis, N., & Zhao, A. L. (2018). The role of the moral self in sustainable consumption. Journal of Business Research, 86, 222-233.

Eastman, J. K., Goldsmith, R. E., & Flynn, L. R. (1999). Status consumption in consumer behavior: Scale development and validation. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 7(3), 41-52.

Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50.

Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2021). A Primer on Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.

Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1-55.

Kline, R. B. (2023). Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling (5th ed.). Guilford Press.

Podsakoff, P. M., & Organ, D. W. (1986). Self-reports in organizational research: Problems and prospects. Journal of Management, 12(4), 531-544.

Reed, A., Aquino, K., & Levy, E. (2007). Moral identity and judgment of others. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93(5), 874-889.

Yen, C. L., Wang, Y. J., & Yang, C. L. (2017). The effects of collectivist and individualist mindsets on consumer responses to corporate social responsibility. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 34(1), 44–53.

Items of the Status Consumption and Moral Identity–Measurement Model

• Number of items: This measure consists of 19 items.

• Factors and Subscales: Constructs: Collectivist Mindset; Moral Identity Internalization; Moral Identity Symbolization; Sustainable Consumption Buying; Sustainable Consumption Curtailment; Status Consumption.

Collectivist Mindset
It is important for me to readily help others in need of help
I could do what is good for most of the people in the group, even if it means that the individual with receive less
Sharing with others is important

Moral Identity Internalization
It would make me feel good to be a person who has these characteristics
Being someone who has these characteristics is an important part of who I am
I strongly desire to have these characteristics

Moral Identity Symbolization
The types of things I do in my spare time (e.g., hobbles) clearly identify me as having these characteristics
The kinds of books and magazines that I read identify me as having these characteristics
I am actively involved in activities that communicate to others that I have these characteristics

Sustainable Consumption Buying
Buy organic
Buy environmentally-friendly products
Buy products using reduced packaging

Sustainable Consumption Curtailment
Turn off lights you are not using
Turn off the tap while you brush your teeth
Save water by taking shorter showers

Status Consumption
I would buy a product just because it has status
I am interested in new products with status
I would pay more for a product if it had status
A product is more valuable to me if it has some snob appeal