Predicting Consumer Intentions to Purchase Energy-Efficient Products

Abstract

An enhanced sense of concern related to global climate change and increasing media coverage attributed to this issue has led to an increase in number of consumers actively seeking out and adopting energy-efficient products. Moreover, research indicates that the increasing environmental concern and a greater emphasis on global sustainability issues have been important priorities of global organizations such as the OECD and the UN. Several prior studies have also found, however, that environmentally-conscious people do not show a consistent preference for purchasing environmentally-friendly products or in many cases are not willing to pay a premium for such products. A good understanding of consumer attitudes toward environmental issues and behavioral intentions toward consumption of green products may be particularly important due to the above outlined discrepancy between consumer opinions about environmental issues and actual purchase behavior. This forms the basic premise behind the current research which examines behavioral intentions toward purchase of energy-efficient products utilizing the theory of reasoned action framework. The model proposed is tested utilizing survey data from 202 consumers. The main finding is that indicate that attitude toward energy-efficient product has a stronger effect on intentions compared to the subjective norm component. Among other results, this study finds that eagerness of environmental engagement has a positive effect on intentions. These findings have several implications for both researchers and practitioners, which are discussed in this paper.