Marketing Faculty Publications and Presentations

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-29-2024

Abstract

Purpose: Companies around the world have included ecolabels as a marketing strategy to convince consumers to choose products with lower environmental impact. However, the literature lacks a consensus on the effectiveness of ecolabels in persuading consumers to choose green products. The present meta-analysis addresses this gap by, first, evaluating the net persuasion effect of using ecolabels and, second, investigating the role of cultural orientations, operationalized at the country level, in this effect.

Methodology: This cross-cultural meta-analysis analyzed data from 26,116 consumers across 18 countries, encompassing 75 papers published between 1995 and 2023. Univariate and meta-regression analyses were utilized.

Findings: The results demonstrate that the presence (vs. absence) of ecolabels has a medium positive persuasion effect. Findings show cultural orientations moderate the persuasion effect of ecolabels in that the effect is stronger in countries with high power distance, individualism, masculinity (motivation towards achievement and success), and uncertainty avoidance orientation, which create contingent conditions to ecolabels’ persuasion. In addition, results show other methodological factors that affect ecolabel persuasion. Contributions and implications of the findings are discussed.

Originality: This meta-analysis is distinctive for its global scope, including diverse countries and cultures. It addresses a crucial gap in ecolabel persuasion research, providing insights that reconcile discrepancies in existing studies. It offers practical implications for businesses and policymakers while laying the groundwork for future cross-cultural research in this field.

Comments

This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please visit Marketplace.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Publication Title

International Marketing Review

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1108/IMR-10-2023-0293

Included in

Marketing Commons

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