The influence of risks perception on the purchase of ecological personal care products

• Autor(a) principal: Afonso, Carolina
• Data de Publicação: 2016
• Outros Autores: Gavilan, Diana, García-Madariaga, Jesús, Gonçalves, Helena Martins
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/25129
• topic: Green Purchase Behaviour; Perceived Risks; Ecological Personal; Care Products; Comportamento de compra verde; Riscos percebidos; Produtos ecológicos de higiene e cuidado pessoal

The aim of this paper is to explore and better understand purchase behaviour of ecological personal care products (shampoos, deodorants, soaps, cleansing gels), taking into account the influence of perceived risks. This study is quantitative and used an online structured questionnaire. In total there were 702 valid respondents, potentially environmentally conscious and residents in Portugal and Spain. Several correlations were made to test the hypothesized relations. Results have show that consumers perceive financial and convenience risks while buying these products. On the other hand, physical, performance, social and psycological factors are perceived as motivators and not as risks. This research presents a number of limitations due to a limited and non representative sample. Results have to be replicated on wider and more representative sample. Results of the present study have demonstrated that price and convenience are observed as perceived risks by consumers. Financial perceived risks and convenience perceived risks had a positive correlation with green purchase behaviour, which means that are perceived as risks. In turn, physical, performance, social and psychological had a negative correlation with green purchase behaviour, which means that are not perceived as risks, but as facilitators or motivators. This study contributes to an understanding of green purchase behaviour towards ecological personal care products. The results of framework proposed enable managers and marketers to better understand the perceived risks and motivations associated to these products.