Os efeitos da influência social sobre o consumo consciente: um estudo experimental

Abstract

Sustainable consumption has received attention by researchers and managers. However, there is still a gap in understanding what leads consumers to have sustainable consumption behaviors. One point that has received attention in research is the role of reference groups in this context. Given this situation, the objective of this study is to understand the role of social influence in sustainable consumption and to identify possible moderators for this relationship. Hence, two experiments were carried out. The first experiment, in the laboratory, was developed in an academic environment and aimed to analyze the behavior of students when choosing sustainable or conventional products. The second experiment, with online data collection, expanded Study 1, as it investigated the influence of attitude on the intention to purchase green products, considering three moderators: consumer susceptibility to interpersonal influence, conspicuous consumption (yes or no) and the type product (sustainable or conventional). It was found that Study 1 did not support the hypothesis of social influence. However, the perception of product quality had a significant effect on the choice of products available in the experiment. On the other hand, in Study 2 it was confirmed that social influence is relevant to the intention to purchase sustainable products. The conclusions point out the theoretical and practical contributions.