Millennials’ perception of environmental sustainability and its impact on purchase intention and actual purchase: a personal value perspective

Abstract

Extensive research has found that Millennials are more environmentally conscious than other age groups, implying they are likely to engage in sustainable practices. However, a gap exists between consumers' intentions and environmentally sustainable behaviour. In addition, research has shown that the intention-behaviour gap increases when consumers make food purchases. Nevertheless, the intention-behaviour gap regarding environmentally sustainable packaging with UK consumers has been insufficiently researched. Additionally, studies have observed consumer’s perception of food packaging; however, there is a gap in research regarding the perception of environmental sustainability in the food industry. Studies have demonstrated that personal values play a role in an individual’s environmentally sustainable purchase intention. Therefore, this study aimed to conduct research in environmental sustainability, to assess the influence of personal values on the perception of environmentally sustainable food packaging among Millennials. An extensive body of research has established that personal values are vital in an individual’s perception of environmental sustainability and purchase intention. However, there is a gap in knowledge regarding whether Millennials' values play a critical role in the perception of environmentally sustainable food packaging and purchase intention. Furthermore, the study will explore the circumstances that hinder consumers from fulfilling their beliefs that bridge or cause the intention-behaviour gap. Therefore, this study adopted Schwartz’s values to examine the interplay between values and the intention-behaviour gap among Millennials. The study was carried out using a mixed methods approach, and it was conducted in two phases. The first phase was an explanatory study which gathered quantitative data from 401 participants through a questionnaire assessing the relationship between personal values and their influence on intentions and behaviour. The study recruited participants via purposive and snowball sampling using social media channels such as Facebook and Nextdoor, the data was analysed using several statistical analysis techniques. The explanatory study revealed that in most cases, personal values influence intention but guide behaviour to a degree. However, one finding was an exception, as the data shows that Universalism led to eco-friendly behaviour in one instance. It was expected that other values, such as Benevolence would lead to eco-friendly behaviour; however, this was not the case. Moreover, the empirical data from the questionnaire showed that there was not a significant difference between Millennials' income, gender, and eco-friendly behaviour. Likewise, the empirical data revealed no significant difference between the level of education and eco-friendliness, except for one finding, which found that Millennials with a degree qualification or above were likely to engage in eco-friendly behaviour. Similarly, the empirical data revealed 4 no significant difference between ethnicity and eco-friendly behaviour; except for two findings, which found that Black African and Black Caribbean were more eco-friendly than other ethnicities. The second phase was an exploratory study, which gathered data from thirty participants via convenience sampling for follow-up interviews, to understand the underlying factors that cause the intention-behaviour gap and was analysed using thematic analysis. Furthermore, the study revealed that several predominant factors were causing the intention-behaviour gap, i.e., Availability, Price, Greenwashing, Carbon footprint, Clarity, Lack of knowledge, Taste and Product quality. This study contributes to knowledge as it confirms that the findings corroborate the results from a wider body of research across numerous research fields, thus showing the robustness of this study’s findings and fortifying the existing body of research among Millennials. Furthermore, the study’s empirical results challenged Schwartz's theoretical perspective, revealing an intricate relationship among Millennials' values, perceptions of environmentally sustainable packaging, and behaviour. Moreover, empirical data showed that values work together simultaneously rather than in isolation. Therefore, the findings revealed that values moderately influence Millennials' intentions and guide behaviour to some degree. The empirical data provides insight into the practical implications of this research, as it is vital to consider personal values and the predominant factors which cause the intention-behaviour gap when marketing and during product development.