The impact of transaction framing: exploring barriers to participation in the online second-hand economy for casual e-commerce consumers

Purpose Ensuring consumer participation in circular markets and breaking the value-action gap are part of the sustainable consumption research agenda. This paper aims to uncover the barriers to entering the second-hand economy and measures taken to overcome those barriers by participants. Design/methodology/approach The findings of this research are based on an exploratory qualitative study conducted in France and Czechia. Data were collected by means of in-depth interviews with e-commerce users. Findings The weak framing of the peer-to-peer transaction serves as a barrier to participation and a source of inefficiency in second-hand online markets. The potential traders perceive the trading situation as uncertain and are thus forced to perform the framing themselves through relational work or to exempt themselves from second-hand consumption sites. Originality/value Although online second-hand markets are an integral part of the circular economy, they remain an underexplored topic. The study of why the core elements of the design of second-hand online markets are repelling to casual consumers sheds light on the elements of the value-action gap with the aim of narrowing it.