Supermarkets have been criticized by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) for pricing tactics that trigger overpurchase, which may subsequently lead to food waste. Some retailers have responded by abolishing price promotions. However, is it the macro-level of the market structure, or the micro-level of the consumer, that is to blame for food waste? With an outset in consumer responsibilization theory and through 24 in-depth qualitative interviews, we explore how consumers and institutional actors perceive the responsibility for food waste in the interface between retailers and consumers, and how this perception has evolved. We identify two responsibility narratives—one that portrays the consumer as a self-governed actor and the other as interdependent on the institutionally shaped context. We uniquely show that over time, a process of hybrid responsibility expansion has led to an extension of the consumer's responsibility into the retailer's domain of action, and vice versa. Findings highlight that responsibilization is not either on the consumers or retailers' side and can expand for both. This provides a nuance and a new contribution to the theory. For businesses, our results imply that abolishing price promotions does not align with consumer's ascription of responsibility. In turn, actions that involve collaborations of actors, including consumers, speak much more to the perception of responsibility expansion.

中文翻译：

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零售还是消费者责任？——易交易的消费者和市场参与者对食物浪费和食物价格的思考

非政府组织 (NGO) 批评超市的定价策略会引发过度购买，进而可能导致食物浪费。一些零售商的回应是取消价格促销。然而，是市场结构的宏观层面，还是消费者的微观层面，才是食物浪费的罪魁祸首？我们从消费者责任理论着手，通过 24 次深入的定性访谈，探讨消费者和机构参与者如何看待零售商和消费者之间的食物浪费责任，以及这种看法是如何演变的。我们确定了两种责任叙述——一种将消费者描绘成一个自治的行为者，另一种是在制度塑造的背景下相互依存。我们独特地表明，随着时间的推移，混合责任扩展的过程导致消费者的责任扩展到零售商的行动领域，反之亦然。调查结果强调，责任化既不在消费者方面，也不在零售商方面，而且可以扩大到双方。这为该理论提供了细微差别和新的贡献。对于企业而言，我们的结果表明取消价格促销不符合消费者的责任归属。反过来，涉及包括消费者在内的参与者合作的行动更能说明责任扩大的看法。边，并且可以为两者扩展。这为该理论提供了细微差别和新的贡献。对于企业而言，我们的结果表明取消价格促销不符合消费者的责任归属。反过来，涉及包括消费者在内的参与者合作的行动更能说明责任扩大的看法。边，并且可以为两者扩展。这为该理论提供了细微差别和新的贡献。对于企业而言，我们的结果表明取消价格促销不符合消费者的责任归属。反过来，涉及包括消费者在内的参与者合作的行动更能说明责任扩大的看法。