Definition, Goals, and Scope
Consumer policy has a wide range of goals and purposes, but the common denominator is the focus on the role of “the consumer” in the economy and society. Consumers are economically active individuals who use their financial resources to acquire goods, services, and digital products and as such contribute to the overall health of the economy. Competitive markets can maximize the value of voluntary transactions between producers and consumers, providing the highest sum of consumer and producer surplus from exchange. This maximization of social welfare occurs when consumers have symmetric information with sellers, can make rational decisions, face low transaction costs, have relevant information about price and product quality, and have access to capital markets. Yet, consumers are not a homogenous body that acts singularly – consumers are individuals, with individual preferences, competencies, and differential access to capital, face discrimination, and may...
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Mathios, A., Micklitz, HW., Reisch, L.A., Thøgersen, J.B., Twigg-Flesner, C. (2023). Consumer Policy. In: van Gerven, M., Rothmayr Allison, C., Schubert, K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Public Policy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-90434-0_9-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-90434-0_9-1
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