The impact of sustainability information on consumers´ purchase behaviour and brand perception

• Autor(a) principal: Guerra, Mariana Duarte
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/34751
• topic: Sustainability; Consumers decision making process; Purchase behaviors; Brand perceptions; Sustainability information impact; Consumer perceived ethicality; Purchase intentions; Willingness to pay; Quality perception; Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Sociais::Economia e Gestão

The average atmospheric temperature of the earth, prior to the industrial revolution, was approximately 14ºC. Currently it has increased 1.5ºC, and is expected to continue to escalate. It is urgent to solve this climate crisis, and the future generation of leaders, it is our obligation to stop this vicious cycle, and ensure a future for the next generations. Although society is aware of this crisis, fashion consumption continues to increase, which contributes to the destruction of our planet. Brands contribute to this factor by continuing to manufacture and sell their products massively and with impunity. A possible solution to mitigate such effects is to increase consumers’ awareness about the negative impact that their choices have on the environment by stating this information clearly on products. Specifically, this research examines the extent to which providing consumers with information about the sustainability level of products impacts their choices. Consequently, whether it allows them to make more conscious consumption decisions. Findings from an experimental study show that providing consumers with high (vs. low) sustainability information levels positively influence brand perceptions of sustainable brands. This effect holds even when sustainable products are more expensive. Consumers are positively influenced by the amount of sustainability information that is available at their disposal to compare between product alternatives. Theoretical and managerial implications are provided, namely for the development of a software that provides sustainability-related information about products so that consumers can make choice comparisons among various product alternatives.