.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
Return
When Norms Meet Markets: Environmental Governance and Digital Fast-Fashion Platforms in Brazil
.png){kind=icon}
OA
AI
G
P
DOI：10.1002/sd.71543.png)
.png){kind=icon}
.png){kind=icon}
Share.png){kind=icon}
Save
Abstract
En 中文
Environmental governance increasingly relies on consumer-based mechanisms that assume that sustainability awareness translates into purchasing behaviour. This article investigates whether such mechanisms remain effective when consumption is organised through transnational digital platforms in contexts characterised by socioeconomic inequality. Drawing on constructivist norm diffusion theory, global political economy and the concept of the norm-practice gap, the study examines Shein consumption in Brazil. The research employs a quantitative cross-sectional survey of 300 digitally engaged Brazilian consumers. Brazil is treated as a most-likely case study, given that it combines high exposure to sustainability discourse with deep integration into platform-mediated retail markets. The survey evaluates whether awareness of environmental sustainability norms translates into behavioural alignment. The findings reveal a persistent norm-practice gap. Although respondents widely recognise the environmental unsustainability of ultra-fast fashion, purchasing behaviour remains strongly influenced by affordability, price sensitivity and the perceived lack of accessible sustainable alternatives. Continued consumption therefore reflects not normative rejection but constrained enactment of sustainability norms. The findings suggest that platform-mediated market environments condition the practical enactment of sustainability norms by prioritising affordability, convenience and accessibility. The article contributes to International Relations and environmental governance scholarship by demonstrating that the effectiveness of sustainability norms depends not only on legitimacy and awareness but also on material accessibility and platform-mediated market structures. More broadly, it advances the concept of the norm-practice gap as a framework for explaining why environmental norms often fail to generate behavioural alignment in emerging economies characterised by socioeconomic inequality.
Keywords:
Brazil
emerging economies
environmental governance
global political economy
norm diffusion
AI Summary
Key information extracted from the uploaded paper, including a brief overview, abstract, background, key highlights, visual analysis, and future outlook.
Journal
IF:
8.2
Papers:
3.9K
Citations:
1.2W
Organization
Cited Papers