Assessing the impact of green consumption behavior and green purchase intention among millennials toward sustainable environment

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2023 Feb;30(9):23335-23347. doi: 10.1007/s11356-022-23811-1. Epub 2022 Nov 2.

Abstract

Social media is playing a vital role in the promotion of green products by reshaping the millennial green purchasing intention and green consumption behaviors, resulting in progressive growth toward sustainable environment and lower carbon emission. Non-organic consumption among humans has increased the carbon emission in contrary risked environment; therefore, consumption behavior and purchasing intention are required to change for better sustainable environment. This study's goal is to determine the effects of social media in molding the consumption behaviors while considering eco-labeling, eco-branding, social norms, and purchase intensions among millennials to promote green consumption and lower carbon emission. It was decided to use a cross-sectional questionnaire survey to get information from the students of different faculties including social sciences, engineering, and bio-sciences. SPSS.V.22 and Smart-PLS were used to analyzed the data. Results indicated that social media has a profoundly good impact on molding and impacting youth behaviors regarding the green consumption, resulting in increasing intention toward sustainable environment which results in lower carbon emission. The results are in line with the predictions and contextual analysis, as the whole world is coming back toward natural life and is working for environmental protection and sustainability specially to lower the carbon emission. Therefore, students are molding themselves toward green consumption. The study recommends that future research may be conducted to study more contextual variables, who has influence on the green consumption among the general public regarding green consumptions and lowering carbon emission and stepping toward the sustainable environment.

Keywords: Carbon emission; Green consumption behaviors (GCB); Green purchase intention (GPI); Social media; Sustainable environment.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Conservation of Natural Resources
  • Consumer Behavior*
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Humans
  • Intention*
  • Social Norms