Unpacking the Green Consumer: A Meta-Analysis on Drivers of Sustainable Purchase Intentions

Abstract

Today’s consumers have become more mindful about their ecological system and its balance and hence started focusing more on greener ways of living. It also includes green consumption behaviour. This study is an attempt to go through the factors contributing to Green Purchase Intention, by a Meta-Analysis of 143 effect sizes and 21327 aggregate samples from 45 different studies conducted between 2014 to 2024. Our findings explored the most influential factors on the topic. Academically, this meta-analysis identifies, the most used constructs on the outcome variables of interest such as Attitude, Social Norms, Perceived Behavioural control and also the most used theory, the Theory of planned behaviour. Almost 50% of the studies are grounded based on the theory, and hence the constructs are evident. The Results of the meta-analysis shows a lesser heterogeneity, emphasizing the majority of the studies concluded in a similar way. Practically, this meta-analysis is useful for businesses to understand the priorities of consumers when they adopt a greener way of purchasing behaviour. It is very useful in recent context, where consumers are becoming more responsible towards the ecological system. Findings will provide insights for policymakers, marketers and sustainability advocates on optimizing green marketing strategies to encourage sustainable consumption.