Dear Colleagues,

Changes in consumer behavior are vital to understanding, analyzing, and shaping the transition towards sustainability (Hojnik et al., 2019), due to the fact that consumption directly or indirectly drives much of the environmental impact produced by the goods and services demanded, produced, and delivered (Witt, 2011). Being green and behaving as an environmentally friendly consumer is nowadays perceived more as a necessity than a lifestyle (Culiberg and Elgaaied-Gambier, 2016), as people have become increasingly aware of climate change risks (Smith et al., 2021). Notwithstanding, the relationship between consumers’ environmental concern and purchase intention is not straightforward (Moraes et al., 2012; Hojnik et al., 2019). Indeed, research on sustainable consumption has coined the term “green gap phenomenon” to refer to the discrepancy between what consumers say about their concern about the environment, on the one hand, and their pro-environmental behavior, on the other hand (ElHaffar et al., 2021). In spite of recent literature on the drivers of consumer pro-environmental behavior (Li et al., 2019), further research should be conducted to ascertain how to engage consumers actively in “greening” their behavior in the services industry.

We invite submissions on a broad range of issues in this regard, and welcome both conceptual and empirical contributions. Some suggestions for broad themes include:

• Pro-environmental behavior conceptualization in different industries

• Green consumer segmentation

• Drivers of environmentally responsible consumption of services

• Adoption of eco-innovations in services

• Cross-cultural comparison of green consumer behavior in services

• Green products, branding, and eco-labels

• Eco-innovation and brand equity in services

• Eco-literacy, environmental concerns, and behavioral intentions

• Willingness to pay for green services

We encourage studies that examine innovative and even risky ideas, but demonstrate methodological rigor and provide credible empirical evidence.

References:

Culiberg, B. and Elgaaied-Gambier, L. (2016). Going Green to Fit in—Understanding the impact of social norms on pro-environmental behaviour, a cross-cultural approach. International  Journal of Consumer Studies, Vol. 40, pp. 179–185.

ElHaffar, G., Durif, F. and Dubé, L. (2020). Towards closing the attitude-intention-behavior gap in green consumption: A narrative review of the literature and an overview of future research directions. Journal of Cleaner Production, 122556.

Li, D., Zhao, L., Ma, S., Shao, S. and Zhang, L. (2019). What influences an individual’s pro-environmental behavior? A literature Review. Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Vol. 146, pp. 28–34.

Moraes, C., Carrigan, M. and Szmigin, I. (2012). The coherence of inconsistencies: Attitude–behaviour gaps and new consumption communities. Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 28 No. 1-2, pp. 103-128.

Smith, C. J., Dupré, K. E., McEvoy, A. and Kenny, S. (2021). Community perceptions and pro-environmental behavior: The mediating roles of social norms and climate change risk. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science / Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, Vol. 53 No. 2, pp. 200–210.

Witt, U. (2011). The dynamics of consumer behavior and the transition to sustainable consumption patterns. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, Vol. 1, pp. 109–114.

Prof. Dr. Maria-Eugenia Ruiz-Molina
Prof. Dr. Irene Gil-Saura
Guest Editor

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• green consumer behaviour
• sustainability
• eco-innovation
• pro-environmental behaviour
• services