IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v153y2018i3d10.1007_s10551-016-3404-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Translating Environmental Ideologies into Action: The Amplifying Role of Commitment to Beliefs

Author

Listed:
  • Matthew A. Maxwell-Smith

    (Western University)

  • Paul J. Conway

    (Florida State University)

  • Joshua D. Wright

    (Western University)

  • James M. Olson

    (Western University)

Abstract

Consumers do not always follow their ideological beliefs about the need to engage in environmentally friendly (EF) consumption. We propose that Commitment to Beliefs (CTB)—the general tendency to follow one’s value-based beliefs—can help identify who is most likely to follow their environmental ideologies. We predicted that CTB would amplify the effect of beliefs prescribing environmental stewardship (e.g., new ecological paradigm), or neglect (e.g., economic system-justification), on corresponding intentions, behavior, and purchasing decisions. In two studies, CTB amplified the positive and negative effects of relevant EF ideologies on EF purchase decisions (Study 1), and consumption and conservation attitudes, intentions, as well as future behavior (Study 2). In each study, only people with higher levels of CTB demonstrated the most ideologically consistent consumption and conservation intentions and behavior. These findings clarify who is most likely to align their decisions and lifestyles according to their sustainable consumption ideologies. The amplification effect of CTB, and the CTB variable itself, present new contributions to consumer behavior research and the domains of sustainable or ethical consumption in particular and offer wide-ranging potential for marketing practitioners and researchers.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthew A. Maxwell-Smith & Paul J. Conway & Joshua D. Wright & James M. Olson, 2018. "Translating Environmental Ideologies into Action: The Amplifying Role of Commitment to Beliefs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(3), pages 839-858, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:153:y:2018:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-016-3404-3
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-016-3404-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10551-016-3404-3
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-016-3404-3?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Karen Page Winterich & Yinlong Zhang, 2014. "Accepting Inequality Deters Responsibility: How Power Distance Decreases Charitable Behavior," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 41(2), pages 274-293.
    2. Ajzen, Icek, 1991. "The theory of planned behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 179-211, December.
    3. Martin, William C. & Bateman, Connie R., 2014. "Consumer religious commitment's influence on ecocentric attitudes and behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(2), pages 5-11.
    4. Farah, Maya F. & Newman, Andrew J., 2010. "Exploring consumer boycott intelligence using a socio-cognitive approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 63(4), pages 347-355, April.
    5. Jost, John T. & Blount, Sally & Pfeffer, Jeffrey & Hunyady, Gyorgy, 2003. "Fair Market Ideology: Its Cognitive-Motivational Underpinnings," Research Papers 1816, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
    6. Solomon, Michael R. & Buchanan, Bruce, 1991. "A role-theoretic approach to product symbolism: Mapping a consumption constellation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 95-109, March.
    7. Burroughs, James E & Rindfleisch, Aric, 2002. "Materialism and Well-Being: A Conflicting Values Perspective," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 29(3), pages 348-370, December.
    8. Blair Kidwell & Adam Farmer & David M. Hardesty, 2013. "Getting Liberals and Conservatives to Go Green: Political Ideology and Congruent Appeals," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 40(2), pages 350-367.
    9. Paolo Antonetti & Stan Maklan, 2014. "Feelings that Make a Difference: How Guilt and Pride Convince Consumers of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Consumption Choices," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(1), pages 117-134, September.
    10. Camilla Barbarossa & Patrick Pelsmacker, 2016. "Positive and Negative Antecedents of Purchasing Eco-friendly Products: A Comparison Between Green and Non-green Consumers," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 134(2), pages 229-247, March.
    11. Joel Marcus & Heather MacDonald & Lorne Sulsky, 2015. "Do Personal Values Influence the Propensity for Sustainability Actions? A Policy-Capturing Study," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(2), pages 459-478, March.
    12. Carrington, Michal J. & Neville, Benjamin A. & Whitwell, Gregory J., 2014. "Lost in translation: Exploring the ethical consumer intention–behavior gap," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(1), pages 2759-2767.
    13. Cosmas, Stephen C, 1982. "Life Styles and Consumption Patterns," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 8(4), pages 453-455, March.
    14. James Swaim & Michael Maloni & Stuart Napshin & Amy Henley, 2014. "Influences on Student Intention and Behavior Toward Environmental Sustainability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(3), pages 465-484, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wintschnig, Bea Alexandra, 2021. "The Attitude-Behavior Gap – Drivers and Barriers of Sustainable Consumption," Junior Management Science (JUMS), Junior Management Science e. V., vol. 6(2), pages 324-346.
    2. María Luisa Ríos-Rodríguez & José María Salgado-Cacho & Pilar Moreno-Jiménez, 2021. "What Impacts Socially Responsible Consumption?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-14, April.
    3. Marina Leban & Thyra Uth Thomsen & Sylvia Wallpach & Benjamin G. Voyer, 2021. "Constructing Personas: How High-Net-Worth Social Media Influencers Reconcile Ethicality and Living a Luxury Lifestyle," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 169(2), pages 225-239, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Li Yan & Hean Tat Keh & Xiaoyu Wang, 2021. "Powering Sustainable Consumption: The Roles of Green Consumption Values and Power Distance Belief," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 169(3), pages 499-516, March.
    2. Frommeyer, Britta & Wagner, Elisa & Hossiep, C. Richard & Schewe, Gerhard, 2022. "The utility of intention as a proxy for sustainable buying behavior – A necessary condition analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 143(C), pages 201-213.
    3. Saari, Ulla A. & Damberg, Svenja & Frömbling, Lena & Ringle, Christian M., 2021. "Sustainable consumption behavior of Europeans: The influence of environmental knowledge and risk perception on environmental concern and behavioral intention," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    4. Wintschnig, Bea Alexandra, 2021. "The Attitude-Behavior Gap – Drivers and Barriers of Sustainable Consumption," Junior Management Science (JUMS), Junior Management Science e. V., vol. 6(2), pages 324-346.
    5. Nascimento, Jorge & Maria Correia Loureiro, Sandra, 2024. "Understanding the desire for green consumption: Norms, emotions, and attitudes," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    6. Chenxuan Hou & Emine Sarigöllü & Myung-Soo Jo & Dapeng Liang, 2018. "Stepping Outside the Self Promotes Pro-Environmental Behaviors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-15, September.
    7. Pituwela Kankanamge Chamari Dinesha & Prof. P. G. S. Amila Jayarathne & Dr. Galdolage, B.S., 2024. "A Systematic Literature Review on the Attitude-Behaviour Divides in Favour of Sustainable Consumption," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 8(11), pages 2504-2514, November.
    8. Lindsay McCoy & Yuan-Ting Wang & Ting Chi, 2021. "Why Is Collaborative Apparel Consumption Gaining Popularity? An Empirical Study of US Gen Z Consumers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-18, July.
    9. Gohary, Ali & Madani, Fatima & Chan, Eugene Y. & Tavallaei, Stella, 2023. "Political ideology and fair-trade consumption: A social dominance orientation perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    10. Barbara Culiberg & Hichang Cho & Mateja Kos Koklic & Vesna Zabkar, 2023. "The Role of Moral Foundations, Anticipated Guilt and Personal Responsibility in Predicting Anti-consumption for Environmental Reasons," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 182(2), pages 465-481, January.
    11. Ting Chi & Olabisi Adesanya & Hang Liu & Rebecca Anderson & Zihui Zhao, 2023. "Renting than Buying Apparel: U.S. Consumer Collaborative Consumption for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-16, March.
    12. Chun-Hsi Vivian Chen & Yu-Cheng Chen, 2021. "Assessment of Enhancing Employee Engagement in Energy-Saving Behavior at Workplace: An Empirical Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-18, February.
    13. Elena Kossmann & Mónica Gómez-Suárez, 2018. "Decision-making processes for purchases of ethical products: gaps between academic research and needs of marketing practitioners," International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, Springer;International Association of Public and Non-Profit Marketing, vol. 15(3), pages 353-370, September.
    14. Muhammad Yaseen Bhutto & Yasir Ali Soomro & Hailan Yang, 2022. "Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior: Predicting Young Consumer Purchase Behavior of Energy-Efficient Appliances (Evidence From Developing Economy)," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(1), pages 21582440221, February.
    15. Wang, Jessie J. & Lalwani, Ashok K. & DelVecchio, Devon, 2022. "The Impact of Power Distance Belief on Consumers' Brand Preferences," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 804-823.
    16. Shehawy, Yasser Moustafa, 2023. "In green consumption, why consumers do not walk their talk: A cross cultural examination from Saudi Arabia and UK," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    17. Leary, R. Bret & Vann, Richard J. & Mittelstaedt, John D. & Murphy, Patrick E. & Sherry,, John F., 2014. "Changing the marketplace one behavior at a time: Perceived marketplace influence and sustainable consumption," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(9), pages 1953-1958.
    18. Daniel Roos & Rüdiger Hahn, 2019. "Understanding Collaborative Consumption: An Extension of the Theory of Planned Behavior with Value-Based Personal Norms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(3), pages 679-697, September.
    19. Alex Hiller & Tony Woodall, 2019. "Everything Flows: A Pragmatist Perspective of Trade-Offs and Value in Ethical Consumption," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(4), pages 893-912, July.
    20. Nguyen, The Ninh & Lobo, Antonio & Greenland, Steven, 2016. "Pro-environmental purchase behaviour: The role of consumers' biospheric values," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 98-108.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:153:y:2018:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-016-3404-3. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.