How does green advertising skepticism on social media affect consumer intention to purchase green products?

TLDR

Green advertising skepticism on social media is examined within the stimulus–organism–response framework to understand its impact on consumer green purchase intention. The study aims to investigate how green advertising skepticism on social media influences consumer green purchase intention and to identify boundary factors that moderate this indirect relationship. Using structural equation modeling on Sina Weibo survey data, the study shows that perceived information utility mediates the negative effect of green advertising skepticism on green purchase intention. The results reveal that perceived information utility mediates the negative effect of green advertising skepticism on purchase intention, with interdependent self‑construal strengthening and independent self‑construal weakening this indirect relationship, underscoring the importance of truthful, consumer‑tailored green advertising.

Abstract

Abstract Underpinned by the stimulus–organism–response model, this study explores the underlying mechanism through which green advertising skepticism on social media affects consumer green purchase intention. It also investigates the boundary factors that moderate this indirect relationship. Performing structural equation modeling on data collected from an online survey on Sina Weibo , this study finds that green advertising skepticism on social media negatively affects green purchase intention through the mediation of perceived information utility. Moreover, interdependent self‐construal positively moderates, and independent self‐construal negatively moderates this indirect relationship. These findings suggest that truthful and consumer‐tailored green advertising is crucial to green product marketing.