Institut für Marketing & Management

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Browsing Institut für Marketing & Management by Person "Burkert, Melina"

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    Consumers’ sustainability perceptions: Studies on conceptualization, drivers, and consequences in consumer behavior
    (2024) Burkert, Melina; Hüttl-Maack, Verena
    Consumers' individual perceptions have a profound influence on their decisions and behaviors in various areas of consumption, including sustainable consumption. Despite considerable research on sustainable consumer behavior, consumers' sustainability perceptions continue to be insufficiently understood. Typically, researchers predefine and manipulate sustainable product or brand attributes and then examine their direct influence on consumer reactions without integrating their sustainability perceptions. It therefore remains largely unclear what constitutes consumers’ sustainability perceptions and what role they play in the consumption context. This research gap has particularly severe consequences in the area of sustainable consumer behavior, as the perceptual process is not only determined by individual characteristics of the consumer (i.e., values, attitudes, or motivations) but also strongly by the specifics of the topic of sustainability itself. For consumers who are non-experts, sustainability is an abstract and complex topic that is difficult to grasp. In addition, the sustainability of specific types of behavior, products or brands is usually a credence attribute and cannot be directly observed or ascertained. As a result, consumers' sustainability perceptions often differ from actual sustainability as measured by objective criteria. However, consumers’ subjective sustainability perceptions is what ultimately shapes their consumption decisions. Therefore, to better understand sustainable consumer behavior, consumers’ sustainability perceptions need to be included in research approaches. In addition, sustainability perceptions are of great importance in business practice. If sustainable products or brands have a high level of actual sustainability, but are not perceived as sustainable by consumers, they fail to realize their potential. Conversely, products or brands that are not actually sustainable but are perceived as such by consumers risk damaging their reputation if they are exposed as greenwashers. This dissertation addresses this gap by delving into the multifaceted nature of consumers' sustainability perceptions, focusing on both the product and brand level. Its key aim is to advance knowledge on the conceptualization of consumers’ sustainability perceptions as well as their drivers and consequences. In doing so, the focus lies on how sustainability perceptions as situationally modifiable variable can be strengthened in order to promote sustainable choices and behavior in the long term. The dissertation thus has a number of objectives: First, it seeks to better understand the diverse aspects that constitute consumers’ sustainability perceptions. Identifying these consumer-relevant aspects is decisive for determining the basis upon which consumers initially form their sustainability perceptions. In this regard, this dissertation aims to advance the measurement of consumers’ sustainability perceptions by developing a consumer-perceived brand sustainability scale. Second, the dissertation identifies the role of increased sustainability perceptions in the consumer context. It argues that consumers individual perceptions serve as a direct antecedent of their consumption choices and behavior. For this reason, their mediating role between sustainable attributes or communication and consumer responses on both the product and brand level is examined. Third, the dissertation investigates the effectiveness of different sustainability communication types in increasing consumers’ sustainability perceptions. Specifically, it focuses on the effects of holistic, benefit-centered, and value-targeted communication of factual sustainability information. Last, the dissertation includes personal values and attitudes and examines how these affect information processing and behavior in the context of sustainability. The main findings can be summarized as follows: The dissertation underscores the diversity of aspects that are relevant to consumers’ sustainability perceptions. They include the environmental, social and economic aspects that are relevant for sustainability according to the Triple Bottom Line. However, numerous additional aspects relating to sustainability communication, such as credibility and transparency, play an important role as well. Additionally, the mediating role of sustainability perceptions in the consumption context is demonstrated. If they increase as a result of sustainable product or brand characteristics or effective sustainability communication, this has a positive effect on further variables relevant to purchasing and behavior (e.g., purchase intention or willingness-to-pay). The findings also reveal that sustainable values and motivations act as drivers of sustainable behavior and the processing of sustainability-related information. They serve as lenses through which consumers see sustainable products and brands. They determine the attention that consumers give to specific sustainability information and its importance for the formation of sustainability perceptions. This dissertation contributes to research by providing new insights into consumers sustainability perceptions both on product- and brand level. By generating knowledge on the conceptualization, drivers, and consequences of consumers’ sustainability perceptions, this dissertation contributes to research on understanding and fostering sustainable consumer behavior. It provides valuable theoretical and methodological guidance for integrating the consumer perspective on sustainability in future research. Additionally, it offers assistance for practitioners seeking effective and credible forms of communication to strengthen the sustainability perceptions.