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1 – 10 of over 4000Sara Bartoloni, Beatrice Ietto and Federica Pascucci
The coffee industry has experienced two major trends: the development of connoisseur consumption of specialty coffee and the importance of sustainability. Despite the increasing…
Abstract
Purpose
The coffee industry has experienced two major trends: the development of connoisseur consumption of specialty coffee and the importance of sustainability. Despite the increasing concomitant relevance of both trends, literature on how sustainability has been interlacing with connoisseur consumption is rather limited. Therefore, this paper aims to analyse how connoisseur consumers (CC) integrate sustainability into their coffee consumption practices.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper adopts a qualitative netnographic approach through an interpretive cultural analysis of specialty coffee bloggers narratives, conceived as a specific sub-group of CC that tend to be particularly active on social media.
Findings
Through the lens of social practice theories, the study reveals that CC are likely to implement and perceive sustainability very differently from the dominant mass market as subject to the influence of their shared rituals, values, norms and symbolic meanings. Such findings are relevant under a managerial perspective as they also generate insights on how to foster environmentally friendly practices in coffee consumers as well as on how to create more sustainable marketing strategies.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the literature on coffee consumption behaviour and sustainability. First, by analysing actual behaviours rather than intended, the study offers an alternative approach to the dominant paradigm of linear decisions models in the study of sustainable consumption. Second, because CC possess a unique consumption style, different from the mainstream market, the analysis has led towards the identification of alternative sustainable consumption patterns and enablers.
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Vishal Kumar Laheri, Weng Marc Lim, Purushottam Kumar Arya and Sanjeev Kumar
The purpose of this paper is to examine the purchase behavior of consumers towards green products by adapting and extending the theory of planned behavior with the inclusion of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the purchase behavior of consumers towards green products by adapting and extending the theory of planned behavior with the inclusion of three pertinent environmental factors posited to reflect environmental consciousness in the form of environmental concern, environmental knowledge and environmental values.
Design/methodology/approach
The data was collected from 410 consumers at shopping malls with retail stores selling green and non-green products in a developing country using cluster sampling and analyzed using covariance-based structural equation modeling.
Findings
The findings of this study indicate that environmental factors reflecting environmental consciousness positively influence consumers’ attitude towards purchasing green products, wherein consumers’ environmental values have a stronger influence than their environmental concern and environmental knowledge. The findings also reveal that subjective norm, attitude and perceived behavioral control toward purchasing green products positively shape green purchase intention. The same positive effect is also witnessed between green purchase intention and behavior. However, perceived behavioral control towards purchasing green products had no significant influence on green purchase behavior.
Practical implications
This study suggests that green marketers should promote environmental consciousness among consumers to influence and shape their planned behavior towards green purchases. This could be done by prioritizing efforts and investments in inculcating environmental values, followed by enhancing environmental knowledge and finally inducing environmental concern among consumers. Green marketers can also leverage subjective norm and perceptions of behavioral control toward purchasing green products to reinforce green purchase intention, which, in turn, strengthens green purchase behavior. This green marketing strategy should also be useful to address the intention–behavior gap as seen through the null effect of perceived behavioral control on purchase behavior toward green products when this strategy is present.
Originality/value
This study contributes to theoretical generalizability by reaffirming the continued relevance of the theory of planned behavior in settings concerning the environment (e.g. green purchases), and theoretical extension by augmenting environmental concern, environmental knowledge and environmental values with the theory of planned behavior, resulting in an environmentally conscious theory of planned behavior. The latter is significant and noteworthy, as this study broadens the conceptualization and operationalization of environmental consciousness from a unidimensional to a multidimensional construct.
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João M.M. Lopes, Sofia Gomes and Tiago Trancoso
Green consumption is fundamental to sustainable development, as it involves adopting practices and technologies that reduce the environmental impact of human activities. This…
Abstract
Purpose
Green consumption is fundamental to sustainable development, as it involves adopting practices and technologies that reduce the environmental impact of human activities. This study aims to analyze the influence of consumers’ green orientation on their environmental concerns and green purchase decisions. Furthermore, the study investigates the mediating role of consumers’ environmental concerns in the relationship between pro-sustainable orientation and green purchase decisions.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a quantitative methodology, applying the partial least squares method to a sample of 927 Portuguese consumers of green products. The sample was collected through an online survey.
Findings
Perceived benefits and perceived quality of products play a positive and significant role in influencing green behavior, especially when consumers are endowed with greater environmental concerns. In addition, consumers’ awareness of the prices of green products and their expectations regarding the future benefits of sustainable consumption positively impact green consumption behavior, further intensifying their environmental concerns.
Practical implications
According to the present findings, companies should adopt a holistic and integrated approach to promote green consumption. This means creating premium eco-friendly products, communicating their benefits, addressing the cost factor, emphasizing the future impact of eco-friendly options and raising consumers’ environmental awareness.
Social implications
It is critical that environmental education is a priority in schools and that there are political incentives for green behaviors. In addition, media campaigns can be an important tool to raise awareness in society.
Originality/value
The results of this study provide important insights for companies on consumer engagement in the circular economy. Deepening knowledge of the antecedents of consumers’ environmental concerns contributes to a deeper understanding of green purchasing decision behavior, allowing companies to support new business strategies.
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Kaja Primc, Marko Ogorevc, Renata Slabe-Erker, Tjaša Bartolj and Nika Murovec
The diversity of perspectives means that one can find many factors and models of proenvironmental behavior. However, they typically suffer from limitations and varying degrees of…
Abstract
Purpose
The diversity of perspectives means that one can find many factors and models of proenvironmental behavior. However, they typically suffer from limitations and varying degrees of validity in specific contexts, suggesting that today the prime goal should be to learn and improve the models which have been already developed. In this study, the authors build on the model for predicting proenvironmental behavior developed by Oreg and Katz-Gerro (2006), namely one of the most comprehensive cross-national proenvironmental behavior models and one of the few not to be limited to either a local or single-country context or specific proenvironmental behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
By using the statistical matching technique, the authors merged data from two existing databases without common identifiers – the International Social Survey Program (environmental module) and the European Social Survey (Round 5). The resulting multinational data concerning 9,710 observations enabled a replication with extensions of Oreg and Katz-Gerro's (2006) proenvironmental behavior model that incorporates newly added Schwartz's theory of human values. To achieve the study's main objective, that is, to present improvements to the original model of proenvironmental behavior, the authors used structural equation modeling (SEM) procedures to estimate four competing models in the R program.
Findings
This study implies that Schwartz's individually measured motivational types of values (benevolence [BE], universalism [UN], self-direction [SD]) are predictors of people's proenvironmental behavior, while his conceptualization of post-materialism yields a better model fit than Inglehart's country-level post-materialism scores. The results also corroborate previous findings that post-materialist values can stimulate proenvironmental behaviors through attitudes, perceived behavioral control and intentions. The present study reveals that proenvironmental attitudes did not change substantially in the 10-year period, even though the world's environmental and sustainability challenges have largely increased. Surprisingly, the mean value of several of the perceived threat variables even decreased.
Originality/value
The authors externally validate one of the most comprehensive proenvironmental behavior models by reproducing it using new multinational large-sample data with nearly 10,000 observations collected 10 years later. The most significant addition to the original model introduced in the current study is the inclusion of Schwartz's motivational types of values, which are measured at the individual level, namely BE, UN and SD. The authors also extend the model by adding proenvironmental behavior measures and group the construct into three latent variables: saving natural resources, green purchasing and environmental activism.
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Muhammad Ashraf Fauzi, Mohd Hafiz Hanafiah and Velan Kunjuraman
This study integrates the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and value-belief-norm (VBN) theory to investigate tourists' intention and behaviour to visit green hotels in Malaysia.
Abstract
Purpose
This study integrates the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and value-belief-norm (VBN) theory to investigate tourists' intention and behaviour to visit green hotels in Malaysia.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 160 valid questionnaire responses were collected via an online survey. The partial least square–structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique was utilised to assess the study framework and the hypothesised relationship.
Findings
The study's results confirmed that tourists' intention to stay at a green hotel is directly influenced by their subjective norms and perceived behavioural control. Besides, the study confirms the insignificant relationship between green trust, personal norms and tourists' stay intention. On the other hand, perceived morals, responsibility, willingness to pay more and perceived consumer effectiveness were significant in explaining the customer's subjective norms, personal norms and perceived behaviour control.
Research limitations/implications
The hotel industry may benefit from this empirical outcome to devise effective marketing strategies for retaining their customers, particularly in rejuvenating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry.
Practical implications
This study provides valuable practical implications for green hotel operators to develop effective strategies to attract tourists to green hotel visits.
Originality/value
This study is the first to integrate the extended TPB and VBN theory to understand tourist intention to visit a green hotel. Notably, the extended TPB and VBN theory was practical and helpful in predicting tourist intention to visit a green hotel.
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Proactive firms recognize that environmental and social issues are sources of competitive advantages, but whatever the motivation, organizations face challenges when implementing…
Abstract
Proactive firms recognize that environmental and social issues are sources of competitive advantages, but whatever the motivation, organizations face challenges when implementing sustainable practices. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), sustainable practices have stemmed from multinational corporations (MNC), but SMEs cannot adopt sustainable practices from the knowledge and experiences of large corporations because the two entities differ critically. This study introduces an integrated model of employee adoption of sustainable practices in SMEs. It is based on five behaviors to select practical areas to which SMEs can make internal changes to achieve sustainable practices and the benefits gained from them. The theory of planned behavior is used to extend employee adoption of sustainable practices to SMEs.
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Jorge Nascimento and Sandra Maria Correia Loureiro
Considering the relevance of understanding what influences environmentally sustainable consumer choices, the present study aims to examine and synthesize the key determinants…
Abstract
Purpose
Considering the relevance of understanding what influences environmentally sustainable consumer choices, the present study aims to examine and synthesize the key determinants factors from literature and outline a new conceptual framework for explaining green purchasing behaviors (GPBs).
Design/methodology/approach
A bibliometric analysis was conducted on 161 articles extracted from Web of Science and Scopus databases, which were systematically evaluated and reviewed, and represent the current GPB knowledge base. Content analysis, science mapping and bibliometric analysis techniques were applied to uncover the major theories and constructs from the state-of-the-art.
Findings
The evolving debate between altruistic and self-interest consumer motivations reveals challenges for rational-based theories, as most empirical applications are not focused on buying behaviors, but instead either on pro-environmental (non-buying) activities or on buying intentions. From the subset of leading contributions and emerging topics, nine thematic clusters are unveiled in this investigation, which were combined to create the new PSICHE framework with the purpose of predicting GPB: (P)roduct-related factors, (S)ocial influences, (I)ndividual factors, (C)oncerns about the environment, (H)abits and (E)motions.
Practical implications
By uncovering the multiple intervening factors in GPB decision processes, this study will assist practitioners and academics to move forward on how to foster more sustainable consumer behaviors.
Originality/value
The present study provides readers a summary of an unprecedentedly broad collection of papers, from which the key themes are categorized, the domain's intellectual structure is captured and an actionable framework for enhancing the understanding GPB is proposed. Four new thrust areas and a set of future research questions are included.
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Sadaf Mollaei, Leia M. Minaker, Jennifer K. Lynes and Goretty M. Dias
University students are a unique population with great potential to adopt eating habits that promote positive human and planetary health outcomes. The purpose of this study is to…
Abstract
Purpose
University students are a unique population with great potential to adopt eating habits that promote positive human and planetary health outcomes. The purpose of this study is to illustrate the current perceptions of sustainable eating behaviours among the students and to examine the determinants of sustainable eating behaviours.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from December 2020 to May 2021 through focus group discussions among university students in Ontario, facilitated through synchronous online sessions. There were 21 student participants during the course of five focus group sessions (4–5 participants per session) from various departments within the university. The discussions were transcribed and analyzed for main themes and concepts using open coding; deductive coding based on the framework by Deliens et al. as well as the literature; and inductive coding for emerging themes.
Findings
The students had different perceptions about what constituted sustainable eating behaviours, some of which were not based on fact. A variety of individual, environmental (macro, micro and social) and university characteristics were mentioned as factors influencing sustainable food choices, with “food literacy” and “campus food” being the top two factors.
Originality/value
This study presents a novel and holistic overview of how sustainable eating behaviours and sustainable foods are perceived among university students and identifies the perceived determinants of adopting sustainable eating behaviours. This study helps with identifying opportunities to promote sustainable eating behaviours among university students and the design/implementation of informed interventions and policies aimed at improving eating behaviours.
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