Against the Green: A Multi-method Examination of the Barriers to Green Consumption

Knowledge regarding the barriers to green consumption is of increasing importance as retail organizations place greater emphasis on the environment in evaluating performance in adherence with the triple-bottom line approach. The objective of this research is to investigate individual barriers that affect consumers’ evaluations of the green products found in retail outlets. The research presented utilizes a critical incident qualitative study and two quantitative studies to examine the factors associated with non-green purchase behaviors. In addition, findings from an experiment suggest that altering the number and form of informational product cues may overcome purchase barriers. These factors are discussed, as are the implications of the research for stakeholders of retail organizations.

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► Price initially appears to be the greatest barrier to green product adoption.
► Expertise appears to be the linchpin in persuading non-green consumers.
► Numerous other barriers, including price, are likely impacted by expertise.
► The number and form of informational cues impacts consumer expertise.
► A large number of detailed verbal cues are preferred over simple numeric cues.