Bioethics and inclusion: The role of regulatory changes in the affect-based legitimation of stigmatized consumers

In a study of the French media coverage surrounding the introduction of the 2021 Bioethics Law that allowed lesbian couples and single women access to Assisted Reproductive Technologies (i.e. fertility treatments), this article investigates how regulatory changes affect feeling rule hierarchies and how such interactions influence market legitimacy. This article contributes to research on collective affects and marketplace sentiments in market systems dynamics by extending our understanding of the role that feeling rules play in market legitimation and enlightening the role of state actors in the market shaping of moral sentiments. This study also enhances our understanding of consumer inclusion trajectories by highlighting a case of regulatory-driven inclusion dynamic in a controversial market.