Despite increasing interest in the topic of marketing and politics, scholars have paid scant attention to a growing phenomenon: citizen stakeholders who make small contributions to political campaigns via the purchase of political merchandise. This article demonstrates that purchasing merchandise reduces the likelihood of devoting significant effort to support the campaign in the future (political slacktivism) compared with making a financially equivalent monetary donation. The authors make several contributions: (1) while prior work has examined how political behavior (such as support for a political party) affects consumer purchase decisions, this article is the first to examine how political consumption affects political behavior; (2) the article demonstrates how purchasing political merchandise (vs. making an equivalent monetary donation) reduces the likelihood of engagement in subsequent political behaviors, such as voting; (3) the article offers insights for political operatives and public policy advocates on how to increase citizens’ political engagement through the donation format. To examine this unique phenomenon, the authors focus on four distinct election cycles and use a multimethod approach: analysis of an archival dataset, a longitudinal survey of actual donors, and a set of experiments, including actual consumption of political merchandise.
AnsolabehereStephenDe FigueiredoJohn M.SnyderJames M.Jr. (2003), “Why Is There So Little Money in U.S. Politics?” Journal of Economic Perspectives, 17 (1), 105–30.
2.
AnsolabehereStephenSchaffnerBrian F. (2017), “CCES Common Content, 2016,” National Science Foundation, Harvard Dataverse, https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/GDF6Z0.
3.
AnsolabehereStephenSocorro PuyM. (2016), “Identity Voting,” Public Choice, 169 (1), 77–95.
BarberMichael J. (2016), “Ideological Donors, Contribution Limits, and the Polarization of American Legislatures,” Journal of Politics, 78 (1), 296–310.
6.
BelkRussell W. (1988), “Possessions and the Extended Self,” Journal of Consumer Research, 15 (2), 139–68.
7.
BergerJonahHeathChip (2007), “Where Consumers Diverge from Others: Identity Signaling and Product Domains,” Journal of Consumer Research, 34 (2), 121–34.
8.
BlaisAndré (2006), “What Affects Voter Turnout?” Annual Review of Political Science, 9 (1), 111–25.
9.
BodnerRonitPrelecDrazen (2003), “Self-Signaling and Diagnostic Utility in Everyday Decision Making,” in The Psychology of Economic Decisions: Rationality and Well-Being, Isabelle Brocas and Juan D. Carillo, eds. Oxford Academic, 105–24.
10.
BoulianneShelleySteen-JohnsenKari (2025), “Civic and Political Volunteering: The Mobilizing Role of Websites and Social Media in Four Countries,” Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 22 (1), 65–81.
11.
BoutonLaurentCastanheiraMicaelDrazenAllan (2018), “A Theory of Small Campaign Contributions,” Working Paper 24413, National Bureau of Economic Research.
12.
BriersBarbaraPandelaereMarioWarlopLuk (2007), “Adding Exchange to Charity: A Reference Price Explanation,” Journal of Economic Psychology, 28 (1), 15–30.
13.
BryanCristopher J.WaltonGregory M.RogersToddDweckCarol S. (2011), “Motivating Voter Turnout by Invoking the Self,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 108 (31), 12653–56.
14.
CancelaJoãoGeysBenny (2016), “Explaining Voter Turnout: A Meta-Analysis of National and Subnational Elections,” Electoral Studies, 42, 264–75.
15.
CantoniDavideYangDavid Y.YuchtmanNoamZhangY. Jane (2017), “Are Protests Games of Strategic Complements or Substitutes? Experimental Evidence from Hong Kong’s Democracy Movement,” Working Paper 23110, National Bureau of Economic Research.
DaleAllisonStraussAaron (2009), “Don’t Forget to Vote: Text Message Reminders as a Mobilization Tool,” American Journal of Political Science, 53 (4), 787–804.
DaviesPhilip John (2002), “The Material Culture of U.S. Elections: Artisanship, Entrepreneurship, Ephemera and Two Centuries of Trans-Atlantic Exchange,” Journal of Political Marketing, 1 (2–3), 9–24.
22.
DesilverDrew (2022), “Turnout in U.S. has Soared in Recent Elections but by Some Measures Still Trails That of Many Other Countries,” Pew Research Center (November 1), https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/11/01/turnout-in-u-s-has-soared-in-recent-elections-but-by-some-measures-still-trails-that-of-many-other-countries/.
23.
EdlinAaronGelmanAndrewKaplanNoah (2007), “Voting as a Rational Choice: Why and How People Vote To Improve the Well-Being of Others,” Rationality and Society, 19 (3), 293–314.
24.
EscalasJennifer EdsonBettmanJames R. (2005), “Self-Construal, Reference Groups, and Brand Meaning,” Journal of Consumer Research, 32 (3), 378–89.
FarmerAdamKidwellBlairHardestyDavid M. (2020), “Helping a Few a Lot or Many a Little: Political Ideology and Charitable Giving,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 30 (4), 614–30.
27.
FernandesDaniel (2020), “Politics at the Mall: The Moral Foundations of Boycotts,” Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 39 (4), 494–513.
28.
FreedmanJonathan L.FraserScott C. (1966), “Compliance Without Pressure: The Foot-in-the-Door Technique,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 4 (2), 195–202.
29.
FreyBruno S.MeierStephan (2004), “Social Comparisons and Pro-Social Behavior: Testing ‘Conditional Cooperation’ in a Field Experiment,” American Economic Review, 94 (5), 1717–22.
GalaisCarolBlaisAndré (2016), “Beyond Rationalization: Voting out of Duty or Expressing Duty After Voting?” International Political Science Review, 37 (2), 213–29.
32.
GarveyAaron M.BoltonLisa E. (2017), “Eco-Product Choice Cuts Both Ways: How Proenvironmental Licensing Versus Reinforcement is Contingent on Environmental Consciousness,” Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 36 (2), 284–98.
33.
GerberAlan S.RogersTodd (2009), “Descriptive Social Norms and Motivation to Vote: Everybody’s Voting and so Should You,” Journal of Politics, 71 (1), 178–91.
34.
GneezyAyeletImasAlexBrownAmberNelsonLeif D.NortonMichael I. (2012), “Paying to Be Nice: Consistency and Costly Prosocial Behavior,” Management Science, 58 (1), 179–87.
35.
GreeneSteven (1999), “Understanding Party Identification: A Social Identity Approach,” Political Psychology, 20 (2), 393–403.
HershEitan (2012), “Primary Voters Versus Caucus Goers and the Peripheral Motivations of Political Participation,” Political Behavior, 34 (4), 689–718.
JostJohn T.LangerMelanieSinghVishal (2017), “The Politics of Buying, Boycotting, Complaining, and Disputing: An Extension of the Research Program by Jung, Garbarino, Briley, and Wynhausen,” Journal of Consumer Research, 44 (3), 503–10.
40.
KesslerJudd B.MilkmanKatherine L. (2018), “Identity in Charitable Giving,” Management Science, 64 (2), 845–59.
41.
KhanUzmaDharRavi (2006), “Licensing Effect in Consumer Choice,” Journal of Marketing Research, 43 (2), 259–66.
KimJeehye ChristineParkBrianDuboisDavid (2018), “How Consumers’ Political Ideology and Status-Maintenance Goals Interact to Shape Their Desire for Luxury Goods,” Journal of Marketing, 82 (6), 132–49.
44.
KleinbergMona S.LauRichard R. (2021), “Googling Politics: How Offloading Affects Voting and Political Knowledge,” Political Psychology, 42 (1), 93–110.
45.
Kofi FrimpongAdasa NkrumahLiPingNyameGabrielHossinMd Altab (2022), “The Impact of Social Media Political Activists on Voting Patterns,” Political Behavior, 44 (2), 599–652.
46.
KorschunDanielMartinKelly D.VadakkepattGautham (2020), “Marketing’s Role in Understanding Political Activity,” Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 39 (4), 378–87.
47.
KristoffersonKirkWhiteKatherinePelozaJohn (2014), “The Nature of Slacktivism: How the Social Observability of an Initial Act of Token Support Affects Subsequent Prosocial Action,” Journal of Consumer Research, 40 (6), 1149–66.
48.
LasarovWassiliHoffmannStefan (2020), “Social Moral Licensing,” Journal of Business Ethics, 165, 45–66.
49.
LearyMark R.KowalskiRobin M. (1990), “Impression Management: A Literature Review and Two-Component Model,” Psychological Bulletin, 107 (1), 34–47.
50.
LelkesYphtach (2016), “Mass Polarization: Manifestations and Measurements,” Public Opinion Quarterly, 80 (S1), 392–410.
51.
LevayKevin E.FreeseJeremyDruckmanJames N. (2016), “The Demographic and Political Composition of Mechanical Turk Samples,” Sage Open, 6 (1), 1–17.
52.
LevySidney J. (1959), “Symbols by Which We Buy,” Harvard Business Review, 37, 117–24.
53.
LipsitzKeena (2009), “The Consequences of Battleground and ‘Spectator’ State Residency for Political Participation,” Political Behavior, 31 (2), 187–209.
LuDeniseYourishKaren (2020), “Voters in Battleground States Are Driving Record Early Turnout,” New York Times (October 27), https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/politics/what-are-the-battleground-states.html.
56.
MarshallJohn (2019), “Signaling Sophistication: How Social Expectations Can Increase Political Information Acquisition,” Journal of Politics, 81 (1), 167–86.
McLeodJack M.ScheufeleDietram A.MoyPatricia (1999), “Community, Communication, and Participation: The Role of Mass Media and Interpersonal Discussion in Local Political Participation,” Political Communication, 16 (3), 315–36.
59.
MoninBenoitMillerDale T. (2001), “Moral Credentials and The Expression of Prejudice,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 81 (1), 33–43.
60.
MullenElizabethMoninBenoît (2016), “Consistency Versus Licensing Effects of Past Moral Behavior,” Annual Review of Psychology, 67 (1), 363–85.
61.
NickersonDavid W. (2007), “Does Email Boost Turnout?” Quarterly Journal of Political Science, 2 (4), 369–80.
OrdabayevaNailyaFernandesDaniel (2018), “Better or Different? How Political Ideology Shapes Preferences for Differentiation in the Social Hierarchy,” Journal of Consumer Research, 45 (2), 227–50.
65.
PalerLauraMarshallLeslieAtallahSami (2018), “The Social Costs of Public Political Participation: Evidence from a Petition Experiment in Lebanon,” Journal of Politics, 80 (4), 1405–10.
66.
PaternosterRaymondBrameRobertMazerollePaulPiqueroAlex (1998), “Using the Correct Statistical Test for the Equality of Regression Coefficients,” Criminology; An Interdisciplinary Journal, 36 (4), 859–66.
67.
PottsMonica (2022), “Turnout Was High Again. Is This the New Normal?” FiveThirtyEight (November 15), https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/turnout-was-high-again-is-this-the-new-normal/.
68.
RatnerRebecca K.KahnBarbara E. (2002), “The Impact of Private versus Public Consumption on Variety-Seeking Behavior,” Journal of Consumer Research, 29 (2), 246–57.
69.
RicheySeanTaylorJ. Benjamin (2012), “Who Advocates? Determinants of Political Advocacy in Presidential Election Years,” Political Communication, 29 (4), 414–27.
70.
RogersToddGoldsteinNoah J.FoxCraig R. (2018), “Social Mobilization,” Annual Review of Psychology, 69, 357–81.
SavaryJenniferLiCharis X.NewmanGeorge E. (2020), “Exalted Purchases or Tainted Donations? Self-Signaling and the Evaluation of Charitable Incentives,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 30 (4), 671–79.
73.
SchaffnerBrianAnsolabehereStephenLuksSam (2019), “CCES Common Content, 2018,” National Science Foundation, Harvard Dataverse, https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/ZSBZ7K.
74.
SchaffnerBrianAnsolabehereStephenLuksSam (2021), “Cooperative Election Study Common Content, 2020,” Harvard Dataverse, https://cces.gov.harvard.edu/.
75.
SettleJaime E.BondRobert M.CovielloLorenzoFarissChristopher J.FowlerJames H.JonesJason J. (2016), “From Posting to Voting: The Effects of Political Competition on Online Political Engagement,” Political Science Research and Methods, 4 (2), 361–78.
SpencerSteven J.ZannaMark P.FongGeoffrey T. (2005), “Establishing a Causal Chain: Why Experiments Are Often More Effective Than Mediational Analyses in Examining Psychological Processes,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89 (6), 845–51.
78.
StockemerDaniel (2017), “What Affects Voter Turnout? A Review Article/Meta-Analysis of Aggregate Research,” Government and Opposition, 52 (4), 698–722.
79.
TimponeRichard J. (1998), “Structure, Behavior, and Voter Turnout in the United States,” American Political Science Review, 92 (1), 145–58.
80.
UlverSofiaLaurellChristofer (2020), “Political Ideology in Consumer Resistance: Analyzing Far-Right Opposition to Multicultural Marketing,” Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 39 (4), 477–93.
WangPhyllis XueWangYijieJiangYuwei (2023), “Gift or Donation? Increase the Effectiveness of Charitable Solicitation Through Framing Charitable Giving as a Gift,” Journal of Marketing, 87 (1), 133–47.
84.
WarrenCalebMohrGina S. (2019), “Ironic Consumption,” Journal of Consumer Research, 46 (2), 246–66.
85.
WeberT.J.HydockChrisDingWilliamGardnerMerylJacobPradeepMandelNaomiSprottDavid E.Van SteenburgEric (2021), “Political Polarization: Challenges, Opportunities, and Hope for Consumer Welfare, Marketers, and Public Policy,” Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 40 (2), 184–205.
86.
WeeksBrian E.HalversenAudreyNeubaumGerman (2024), “Too Scared to Share? Fear of Social Sanctions for Political Expression on Social Media,” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 29 (1), https://doi.org/10.1093/jcmc/zmad041.
87.
WhiteKatherineDahlDarren W. (2006), “To Be or Not Be? The Influence of Dissociative Reference Groups on Consumer Preferences,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 16 (4), 404–14.
88.
WhiteKatherinePelozaJohn (2009), “Self-Benefit versus Other-Benefit Marketing Appeals: Their Effectiveness in Generating Charitable Support,” Journal of Marketing, 73 (4), 109–24.
89.
WinterichKaren PageZhangYinlongMittalVikas (2012), “How Political Identity and Charity Positioning Increase Donations: Insights from Moral Foundations Theory,” International Journal of Research in Marketing, 29 (4), 346–54.
90.
ZlatevJulian J.MillerDale T. (2016), “Selfishly Benevolent or Benevolently Selfish: When Self-Interest Undermines Versus Promotes Prosocial Behavior,” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 137, 112–22.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
