Analyzing the determinants of gen zs purchasing intention for green consumer products a case study at the international school vietnam national university
INTRODUCTION
Background of Study
Worldwide, it appears there is an increased awareness of the dangers of environmental degradation by consumers and organizations at large Individuals and entities are putting environmental issues at the forefront when deciding on which products to purchase (McDonald and Oates, 2006) This is largely due to an increase in environmental degradation as a result of pollution, resource wastage and ozone layer depletion, amongst other causes There is now global consensus that unsustainable consumption patterns result in ecological imbalance and ultimately translate into environmental degradation (Hume, 2010) Gradually, consumers are realizing the need to take a lead in environmental preservation, which may be achieved by abandoning non-green conventional products for green products
Consequently, the adoption of sustainable consumer items has emerged as a recent phenomenon (Darnall, Ponting et al., 2012) Engaging in sustainable consumption behaviors, which involve purchasing and using things in an environmentally responsible manner, is a crucial element of sustainable development (Nekmahmud, Ramkissoon et al., 2022) Sustainable consumption is a component of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that focuses on reducing negative environmental and health effects and encouraging environmentally friendly ways of living (Ramkissoon, Smith et al., 2013; Nations, 2015) This study primarily focuses on comprehending the concept of "green consumption," which is a component of sustainable consumption Green consumption refers to the inclination to purchase environmentally friendly products or services that have minimal adverse effects on the environment in terms of their contents and production methods (Young, Hwang et al., 2010) Numerous prior research have provided definitions for the concept of a green product Green products are those that incorporate recycled materials, minimize waste, conserve energy or water, utilize little packaging, and minimize the amount of harmful substances disposed of or consumed (Hema and RENUKADEVI, 2021) Green products are those that aim to minimizing the usage of harmful substances, pollution, and waste (Ottman, 1992) The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has provided a definition for green products, which refers to products that are designed to prevent or minimize environmental harm, such as damage to ecosystems, waste, noise, water, air, and soil (Monkelbaan, 2011)
Paul, Modi et al (2016) found that customers in rich countries exhibit greater environmental concern compared to consumers in developing countries In addition, developing countries such as China (Zhao, 2014; India Kumar, 2012, Biswas, 2015; Indonesia Chairy, 2012; and Malaysia Tan, 2011, Onwezen, 2014) have also shown interest in ecological products In Vietnam, research on environmental issues and green purchasing behaviour is in its early stages, with a particular focus on young customers in comparison to other developing nations
According to the findings of a study conducted by Nielsen Vietnam Company and published in 2017 at a seminar titled "Brand strategy associated with green development" organised by the Department of Trade Promotion - Ministry of Industry and Trade in collaboration with the Institute for Trade Strategy brand and organisational competition, 80% of consumers are willing to pay a higher price for environmentally friendly and clean products Furthermore, brands that demonstrate a commitment to "green" and "clean" practices experience a significant growth rate of approximately 4% For example, in the food and beverage industry, the growth rate ranges from 2.5% to 11.4%, which is significantly higher than the overall market growth rate (Luu, 2017) In addition, to facilitate the advancement of transitioning towards a more environmentally sustainable economy, the Prime Minister has issued Decision No 1393 / QD-TTg, titled "Approval of the Green Growth Strategy for the period of 2011-2020 and vision to 2050" This decision encompasses two key objectives pertaining to green consumption: greening of production and greening of consumption As per the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, green consumerism in Vietnam has the potential to be a profitable commercial sector Additionally, it can also address social and environmental problems through economic activity
The extent to which consumers shift from awareness to green consumption is decision-makers are increasingly prioritising sustainable consumption in response to stringent environmental legislation and mounting pressure from stakeholders that prioritise environmental protection (Banerjee, 2003, Maignan, 2004, Paul, 2016)
As stated by Mr Vu Xuan Truong from the Research Institute of Brand and Competitive Strategy, the primary challenge faced by businesses, particularly small and medium firms, is the tension between two objectives: maximising profit and promoting environmentally sustainable growth (Hung, 2017) The idea of incorporating environmentally-friendly practices into branding, known as
"greening," is gaining popularity as companies strive to remain competitive in the market Enterprises must establish client trust in their brands by making firm promises to social and environmental responsibility Furthermore, due to the majority of businesses being small and medium-sized organisations, there is a scarcity of funds for investing in the development of environmentally friendly products Furthermore, there are technological challenges While there are numerous green technologies available worldwide, their real implementation in Vietnam is still limited Enterprises can be moved using advanced environmentally- friendly technology; nevertheless, there are instances where the human element and capability have not progressed at the same pace Therefore, there is an urgent need to examine the factors that impact the intention of green consumption in order to gain a thorough grasp of customer insights This will give a scientific foundation for developing suitable business strategies and informing policy-making for enterprises Subsequently, it provides guidance to managers regarding policies that promote eco-friendly consumption in order to attain the objective of sustainable development
Green marketers need to develop precise marketing communication methods to effectively target diverse consumer groups One particular group of interest in the present study is the younger demographic (Heo and Muralidharan, 2019) Economists identify "Generation Z" as individuals born and raised between 1995 and 2009, currently in their adolescent years, who prioritise convenience and originality in their consumption (Khalil, Ismail et al., 2021) In comparison to previous generations, they exhibit greater concern for environmental preservation, heightened sensitivity towards corporate environmental accountability, and possess greater potential and influence to take action (Su, Tsai et al., 2019) Additionally, they do not only concern the present, but are also concern about the future effect of their present actions, preferring to become long-term customers of the green market Even in developing countries, environmental issue shall be a good added value for products to attract more customers, because the awareness of sustainability among youngsters have been existed (Panuju, Ambarwati et al., 2020) Therefore, researching the young generation of green purchasing behavior is essential because they represent future consumers, workers and innovators, who play a key consumption in the market (Smola, 2002, Heaney, 2006, Hume, 2010) These arguments provide strong support for further examination of Generation Z's desire to make green products purchases
Several studies have been undertaken to assess the effectiveness of the green purchasing intention model Based on the research conducted by Iravani, Zadeh et al (2012) it was found that consumer belief, social influence, environmental attitude, and perceived quality of green product have a significant and positive influence on the green purchasing intention of young consumers These factors are considered important predictors Moreover, the independent factors of environmental attitude, environmental responsibility, awareness of consequences, consumer subject norms, and the influence of social media are evaluated in relation to the dependent variable of purchase intention (Ogiemwonyi, Alam et al., 2023) Consumers' heightened environmental consciousness is seen in their preference for eco-friendly products, leading to the global expansion of the "going green" movement in response to growing awareness (Soyez, 2012, Norazah, 2013a, Thứgersen, 2015) Social media significantly influences consumers' buying intentions and attitudes towards environmentally friendly items (Huang, 2016) These social media platforms are experiencing a growing popularity, particularly among the younger demographic (Luo, Sun et al., 2020) Companies can enhance their client engagement by utilising social media platforms to promote their environmentally friendly products (Pop, Săplăcan et al., 2020) Therefore, it is crucial to examine the importance of utilising social media (SM) and social media marketing (SMM) to endorse environmentally friendly products, commonly referred to as SM, and assess its impact on customers' intention to purchase green products
(Sun and Wang, 2020) A study conducted by Mostafa (2009) showed that consumers who have positive attitudes towards environmentally friendly items are more likely to have a high inclination to buy green products
Then, Maichum, Parichatnon et al (2017) presented a case study of young consumers in Thailand examining the elements that influence their propensity to purchase green products This research highlights a significant gap that needs to be addressed Prior studies have mostly concentrated on five key factors: Atitude towards green products, environmental responsible, awarenwess of consequences, subjective norms, and social media Previous studies have demonstrated that social media (SM) has a favourable influence on consumers' propensity to make environmentally friendly purchases Thus, this investigation sought to address the deficiency in prior studies by incorporating the SM factor.
Objectives of the study
This paper examines the factors that influence on the purchase intention towards green products of young customers Gen Z in Vietnam and propose appropriate recommendations In specific, it refers to complete the following objectives:
1 Describing the consumer’s profile as designated by:
2 Exploring the significant difference between the consumers’ perception and their profile
3 Testing the relationship among factors in term of environmental responsible, awareness of consequences, subject norms, social media, attitude to green products towards green purchase intention
4 Proposing valuable suggestions to encourage and promote the customers purchase intention.
Contribution of the study
This paper is one of some researches that assess the influence of components to green purchase intention of young consumer Gen Z in the Vietnam context The research had fulfilled literature gaps which was conducted in the previous paper The past research has demonstrated that there are four main dependent factors (Attitude towards green product, Environmental Responsible, Awareness of Consequences, Subject Norms) (Ogiemwonyi, Alam et al., 2023) The research is one of the few patterns to examine the positive correlation of Social Media (SM) factor to green intention
This article aims to offer further understanding of Gen Z customers for marketers and researchers in the future, based on the findings of the research The study reveals five key characteristics that significantly impact individuals' inclination towards purchasing green items Attitude is a crucial aspect that motivates young customers to enhance their inclination to purchase green products It is imperative for governments, businesses, and individuals to allocate resources towards nurturing the younger generations to establish more dependable and enduring initiatives aimed at disseminating information within the community and other consumer demographics Furthermore, ER, AC, and SN have a robust correlation with purchase intention Hence, event planners should devise innovative initiatives and systematically incorporate these components into university, high school curricula, or extracurricular engagements to captivate young customers Furthermore, SM plays a significant role in incentivizing purchasers, particularly young Gen Z consumers who frequently engage with social networks, to purchase environmentally friendly products Businesses should not overlook this valuable method of communication regarding the use of environmentally friendly products Thus, this research serves as a fundamental basis for individuals and organizations to develop important methods for efficiently managing businesses, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Research flowchart
There are 10 keys steps during the process of investigating in this research
Step 1: Research documents and narrow down, identify research topic
Step 2: Study theoretical basis to find research gaps
Step 3: Specify research objectives, research scope, model and research methods Step 4: Propose a hypothetical research model
Step 5: Design the survey and create a questionnaire based on previous studies Step 6: Send questionnaire and data collection
Step 7: Preliminary analysis to measure the reliability of the scale and determinant analysis to avoid multi-collinear phenomena when using multiplication variables Step 8: Analyze the data
Step 9: Interpret the collected results
Research Organization
This article consists of five chapters: an introduction, a literature review and hypothesis development, a methodology section, a results and discussion section, and a conclusions and suggestions section
The introduction chapter encompasses the study's background, aims, contribution, research flowchart, research structure, and description of words
The literature review chapter provides an overview of the notion of planned behavior, purchasing intention, attitude, environmental responsible, awareness of consequences, subject norms and social media
The research methodology chapter examines the research methods employed in this study, encompassing operational definitions of research variables, measurement design, research pilot testing, sample size determination, data types, data collection methodologies, and data analysis techniques The findings of the analysis will be further examined in chapter IV
The Results and Discussion chapter presents findings pertaining to descriptive analysis, mean comparison, reliability analysis, measurement model, and structural equation model
The Conclusions and Recommendations chapter will conclude with a comprehensive explanation of the study findings and their implications It will also include constructive recommendations for businesses based on the conclusions drawn from the analysis In addition, the research also discusses the constraints of the study and suggests the need for future investigations.
LITERATURE REVIEW AND HYPOTHESIS DEVELOPMENT 19 2.1 Extending the Theory of planned behavior (TPB)
Purchase intention (PI)
The importance of purchase intention stems from its role as a precursor to actual purchasing behavior, especially for green products Understanding these factors is crucial in promoting environmentally sustainable consumption According to Joshi and Rahman (2019), environmental concern and perceived consumer effectiveness are significant predictors of green purchase intention, demonstrating that individuals' beliefs in their ability to contribute to environmental preservation strongly influence their purchasing decisions
Studies have demonstrated that actual purchasing behavior heavily depends on consumers' green purchase intentions For instance, Nguyen and Le (2020) found that green purchase intention significantly predicts green purchasing behavior, highlighting the critical role of intention in driving eco-friendly consumption
Young people, particularly Gen Z, show a high interest in environmental issues and green products For example, a study by Bassiouni and Hackley (2014) revealed that Gen Z consumers are highly motivated by environmental concerns and are more likely to purchase products that are eco-friendly and sustainably produced
The most important factor for young people in deciding to use green products is their environmental attitude Yadav and Pathak (2016) indicated that environmental attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control are essential determinants of green purchase intentions among young consumers Additionally, Alamsyah and Othman (2021) explored the influence of social media on young consumers' green purchasing behavior, indicating that social media marketing plays a vital role in shaping their purchase intentions A study by Liu and Tang (2023) showed that social media engagement significantly enhances green purchase intentions by increasing environmental awareness and perceived social norms.
Attitude towards green product (AT)
Attitude is commonly assessed as the disposition of an individual or institution towards a particular course or goal Attitude may also refer to an individual's subjective evaluation of a situation, determining their positive or negative feelings towards it (Ajzen, 1991) The key metric for forecasting future behaviour Attitude refers to the way individuals perceive and plan to act in a specific behaviour According to Ajzen (1991), the evaluation of an action as either good or bad may be seen as a part of one's attitude Individuals that possess favourable pro- environmental attitudes are more likely to actively participate in sustainable behaviours, resulting in favourable environmental outcomes (Varshneya, Pandey et al., 2017) Previous research has observed that attitude has a beneficial impact on the gross profit margin of consumers Uddin and Khan (2016) and Zainudin, Wei et al (2022), the authors examined the role of intention and other predictors in predicting consumer green personal care product purchasing behavior in students and received found that attitude has a significant positive influence on students' intention to purchase green products Attitude is one of the two important factors that regulate consumer awareness of green marketing, and companies have successfully applied sales marketing methods and achieved good profits based on research this factor on their customers (Kaur, Gangwar et al., 2022) AT can also be associated with challenges that necessitate increased exertion in engaging in environmentally-friendly actions, such as recycling, researching, and incurring additional expenses for eco-friendly items Nevertheless, attitude plays a crucial role in the analysis of GPB The preference for purchasing environmentally friendly items is positively correlated with a favourable attitude towards sustainable behaviour (Nguyen, 2023) According to this review, the hypothesis is formulated as:
H1: Attitude towards green product has a postive relationship with GPB.
Environmental Responsible (ER)
Environmental responsibility (ER) refers to an individual's personal obligation and dedication to safeguarding the environment (Patwary, Rasoolimanesh et al., 2022) Individuals with a higher level of environmental responsibility exhibit conscientious behavior aimed at enhancing the quality of the environment An individual possessing ER will enhance their willingness to participate in green purchasing behavior (GPB) and advocate for environmental conservation (Liobikienė and Juknys, 2016, Liobikienė and Poškus, 2019) Environmental responsible (ER) empower citizens to proactively engage in activities aimed at safeguarding the environment and preserving natural resources (Patwary, Rasoolimanesh et al.,
2022) For example, varying degrees of importance placed on perceived emotional response may impact customer purchasing behavior Exposure to environmental risk factors may result in an increased likelihood of developing higher genetic predisposition to certain diseases Zhang and al (2014) asserted that both environmental responsibility (ER) and green purchasing behavior (GPB) have the potential to encourage and support the adoption of social environmentalism A study conducted by Durmaz and Akdogan (2023) focused on young individuals and found a significant relationship between environmental responsibility and a good attitude towards green advertising This association, in turn, leads to an increased intention to make purchases that actively contribute to long-term solutions for environmental issues According to Sharma, Aswal et al (2023), ER may be used to forecast consumer purchasing behavior Additionally, customers are more likely to engage in behavior that is attributed to them in a responsible manner The above discussion is considered as a foundation, this research assumes that:
H2a: Environment responsible is positively related to attitude towards green products
H2b: Environmental responsible is positively related to green purchase intention.
Awareness of Consequences
The awareness of consequences (AC) is crucial for persons to carry out GPB (Al Mamun, Rahman et al., 2023) AC is a significant determinant that may be used to forecast GPB, or group buying behaviour, by considering the impact of normative influence Vachon and Klassen (2008) argued that buyers in emerging nations are becoming more aware of ecological problems Research on individuals' environmental attitudes and their ability to actively engage in eco-friendly behaviours for the purpose of improvement The environmental impact of items significantly affects consumers' decision to make green purchases (Wang and al.,
2018) According to Wang and al (2018), individuals who possess knowledge about the adverse consequences resulting from the improper utilisation of natural resources are more likely to exhibit energy-saving behaviour Dong and al (2020) discovered that personal norms, namely the knowledge of repercussions, had an impact on the desire to acquire electric automobiles in China Customers' growing awareness of environmental issues, such as global warming and the destruction of the ozone layer and natural habitats, is driving their inclination towards green purchasing intentions (Liao, Wu et al., 2020) This demonstrates that individuals are inclined to choose sustainable items due to their understanding of the behavioural ramifications associated with them Therefore, it can be hypothesized as follow:
H3a: Awareness of Consequences is positively related to attitude towards green products
H3b: Awareness of Consequences is positively related to green purchase intention
Subject norms (SN) are considered to be a significant kind of social influence and are a crucial element of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) proposed by (Ajzen, 1980) SNs were formed by relatives, peer groups, acquaintances, and colleagues These SN have an impact on individuals' and consumers' preferences and attitudes when it comes to purchasing environmentally friendly products (Du, Bartels et al., 2017; Hansen, Sứrensen et al., 2018; Paul, Modi et al., 2016; Singh and Verma, 2017; Teng, Wu et al., 2015) During communication, individuals' decisions are consistently influenced by their immediate environment (Hameed, Malik et al., 2023) Recent research have found a positive correlation between social network connections to reference groups and the likelihood of buying environmentally friendly items (Joshi and Rahman, 2015; Xu,
Du et al., 2022) According to Jansson (2011), the study showed that cultural standards have a favourable impact on a consumer's willingness to buy environmentally friendly items Multiple studies have shown that SN have a significant role in influencing an individual's purchasing intent during the initial phases of attitude development (Raut, Das et al., 2018) SN, or social networks, are considered a significant factor in studies examining human decision-making and sustainability They are seen as a key variable that reflects societal perspectives and purchasing intentions (Kamalanon, Chen et al., 2022; Kaushal, Khanna et al., 2021)
In the context of environmentally friendly behaviour, SN served as a replacement for social influence Social influenced refers to the interpersonal impact of subjective norms that motivate the urge for persuasion towards GPB (Cheah and Phau, 2011) Consumers are significantly swayed by the advice of their relatives and close acquaintances while making decisions Greater social impact leads to the inclusion of GPB in SN through active participation in prosocial behavior
H4a: Subject Norms is positively related to attitude towards green products
H4b: Subject Norms is positively related to green purchase intention
Social media (SM) has a substantial influence on customer knowledge and the desire to make environmentally friendly purchases (Huang Minxue, 2019) According to Xie and Madni (2023), research suggested that social networks may serve as an effective policy instrument for promoting green consumption policies aimed at environmental protection In addition to when consumers possess a robust understanding of environmentally friendly principles and personal beliefs towards sharing environmental information on SM platforms, they are more inclined to engage in green consumption (Xie and Madni, 2023) Thus, spreading messages about environmentally-friendly purchasing through social networks will promote the acquisition of sustainable products SM usage influences customer purchase decisions (Mangold and Faulds, 2009) SM serves as a platform for educating customers about the environment and sustainability (Zhao, Lee et al., 2019) Several research have identified a strong positive correlation between the use of social media and the adoption of environmentally friendly purchasing (Masuda, Han et al., 2022; Sun and Wang, 2020; Zhao, Lee et al., 2019) SM is a very influential and efficient tool that has the ability to alter people's preferences (Zhao, Lee et al.,
2019) In contrast, customers who are less involved frequently hold a contemptuous perspective due to their limited understanding of green information or products (Rahman, 2018)
According to Wang, Cardon et al (2020), SM plays a more significant role in the everyday lives of young people compared to earlier generations In a research conducted by Ktisti, Hatzithomas et al (2022), it was contended that sharing and seeing good environmental content on social media might enhance customers' inclination to buy environmentally friendly items, particularly when targeting youngsters A survey conducted in Vietnam among 26,331 students revealed that an overwhelming majority of students, around 97.8% and 97% respectively, utilise Facebook and Zalo at very high frequencies Aside from Facebook, Zalo, Instagram, and Tiktok are other popular social networking platforms among students, with use rates of 84.7% and 85.6% respectively (Doanthanhnien.vn, 2023) Utilizing SM channels for disseminating information might enhance the inclination of young customers to buy eco-friendly products (Xie and Madni, 2023) Generation Z have a formidable presence on SM platforms, and they exhibit superior proficiency in navigating online networks compared to their siblings or parents Hence, the Generation Z population in Vietnam holds significant potential as customers, and their influence on consumer preferences, particularly in the realm of eco-friendly buying, is crucial for marketers to tap into (Le Tan and Quang, 2023) Marketers should devise plans and tactics to enhance sales on social networking platforms by targeting Gen Z clients (Le Tan and Quang, 2023)
Therefore, it can be hypothesized as follow:
H5a: Social Media is positively related to green purchase intention
H5B: Subject Media is positively related to green purchase intention
Figure 1: The proposed research model
Figure 1 presents the proposal research model that is structured to evaluate the relationship between factors affecting to green purchase intention in terms of EC,
ER, AC, SM, and AT of Gen’Z consumer.
METHEDOLOGY
The Operational Definition and Measurement Design
In Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), there are exogenous variable and endogenous variable According to , exogenous variable is variable which didn’t explained or predicted by any other variables in the model, meanwhile endogenous variable is variable which explained or predicted by one or more other variables Operational definition variable of this research, as follows:
Endogenous variables using are this study is purchasing intention and attitude is Purchase intention and Attitude were measured based on five points Likert’s Scale and presented as follow:
Table 1: Dimensions and indicators of consumers’ purchase intention
1 PI1 I plan to buy green products because of its eco-friendly effects
2 PI2 I will consider switching to environmentally friendly brands for ecological reasons
3 PI3 I am willing to pay more for a green product, avoiding cheaper ones that harm the environment
Costa, da Costa et al
4 PI4 I expect to purchase product in the future because of its positive environmental contribution
Table 2: Dimensions and indicators of attitude towards purchasing green product
1 AT1 I like the idea of purchasing green products for health benefits
2 AT2 I have a favorable attitude toward buying a green version of a product
3 AT3 I am aware that buying green products contributes to sustainable future
4 AT4 I am willing to buy green products instead of common/conventional products
Exogenous in this research includes ER, SNs, AC and SM The measurements for each variable are shown in Table 3:
Table 3: Dimensions and indicators of variables
No Variable Items Indicators Sources
ER1 I know that I buy a green product that is environmentally safe
ER2 I am very knowledgeable about environmental issues
ER3 I understand the environmental phrases and symbols on product packages
ER4 I know how to select products and packages that reduce the amount of waste dumping
AC1 The effects of pollution on public health are worse than we realize
(2003) AC2 Pollution generated in one country harms people all over the world
AC3 Due to climate change, air and water pollution caused by environmental destruction, health problems among humans arise
AC4 I know that the harmful changes in the living environment today are largely caused by humans
3 Subject Norms SN1 I learn about environmental issues from my friends
SN2 I often share information regarding green products with my friends
SN3 Most people who are important to me would want me to purchase green products when going for purchasing
SN4 My friend’s positive opinion Paul, Modi product et al (2016)
4 Social Media SM1 I use social media to look up updates about environmentally friendly goods
SM2 Social networking posts on green goods are reliable
SM3 I gain feedback on green products through environmental information on my social media
SM4 My engagement on social media influences my green cosmetic purchase.
Scale of study
This study is conducted by Gen Z Vietnamese consumers who are 12-27 years old and it was specifically surveyed by Student in International School – Vietnam National University These students represent Gen Z and range in age from 18 to 25 years old.
Data Gathering Procedure
These stages will be followed to gather primary data from participants as below:
Stage 1: The survey questionnaire was designed as the main research instrument of this study It was developed from previous study and modified relying on the suggestions and proposals of the advisor to ensure the reliability and efficiency of the data gathering instrument
Stage 2: The survey questionnaire was sent with introduction and recommendation letters to the respondents, clarifying the required time to complete the form
Stage 3: The researcher sends survey questionnaire via online to collect the answer by using convenience sampling.
Population, Sample size and Sampling Techniques
For primary data, the population of this study composed of 252 Gen Z consumers who intend to buy green product in the future The sample size of was chosen by applying the formula given by and : n= 6*m
Where n = population size; m = Number of included questions
With m = 25, the sample size of this study was determined as: n = 6*25 = 150
According to above formula, this research must collect data from 150 respondents at minimum The researcher gathered data from 252 consumers as contributors and the researcher confirm that the information collected from this sample were the representative size of young Vietnamese consumers.
Data Collection Technique
Data collection aims to obtain the necessary information in order to achieve the research objectives The objective expressed in the form of the hypotheses as the answer of research questions, the answer is still to be tested empirically, and for this purpose, data collection is needed To collect the data carried out by a certain method in accordance with its purpose In the data collection process, data collection techniques would be required Methods of data collection can be through questionnaires The researcher gathered primary data from respondents who have purchase intention towards nature – friendly product through survey designed with two parts namely:
Part 1: Contains detailed information of the respondents’ profile such as gender, age, education, monthly income
Part 2: Includes of questions regarding customers’ perception on determinants pretending the green purchase intention The major content of this part is found on the basis of the theory presented in Chapter II
The researcher accumulate data and measures the perception of respondents using the five points Likert’s Scale as described in the 5 levels in order: Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree, Strongly Agree.
Data Analysis Technique
The data obtained from the questionnaires will be coded, captured and edited The Statistic Package for Social Science (SPSS) software version 29 and Partial Least Square (Smart PLS version 4.0) were used for the data analysis The procedure of data analysis and the techniques used will be as follow:
Lind, Marchal et al (2005) explained that descriptive statistics refers to the techniques used to arrange, summarize, and show data in a manner that conveys useful information Unstructured data sets, such as population censuses and the weekly earnings of numerous computer programmers, have limited intrinsic worth Nevertheless, there are statistical procedures that can be utilized to arrange this particular data in a coherent and significant manner
This analysis can be done by interpreting the data processing derived from answers to the question from the questionnaires that has been distributed The results of data processing can be presented through tables, graphs, pie charts, pictograms, calculation mode, mean median, calculating percentiles, calculations of data through the calculation of average and standard deviation, and percentage calculation
3.6.2 Reliability and Content Validity Analysis
In this test, Cronbach’s alpha will be used to assess the consistency of the entire scale It aims to examine the measurement scale of individual items in the questionnaire whether they are consistent or not If the Cronbach’s α is greater than 0.7, indicating that it has high reliability If the Cronbach’s α is between 0.5 and 0.7, it means that the internal consistency of variable should be accepted Otherwise, if the item has coefficient of Cronbach’s α is under 0.35, and then it should be deleted (Hair, 2010)
Related to validity testing of the instrument according to Malhotra (2002) validity was the extent to which differences in observed scale scores reflect true differences among objects on the characteristic being measured, rather than systematic random errors Validity test performed related to the accuracy of measuring instrument against the concept that measured so that really measuring what should be measured Content validity depends on the extent to which an empirical measurement reflects a specific domain of content (such as concept and constructs)
It means that it is necessary to construct items that reflect the meaning associated with each dimension The reliability and validity analysis are used for all three- research model of this research
Comparing mean test is known as Student’s T-test and Anova test Student’s T-Test compares two averages and shows there is different between them or not T-test was used to analyze and describe more detail about whether there are any significant differences between demographic characteristic (gender and survey products) and customers’ responses The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) is used to compare the mean between more than two groups mean, Anova is the suitable method instead of the t-test (Field, 2013) It measured the relative size of variance amongst group means compared to the average variance within groups (Kim, 2014) One-way Anova was used to analyze and describe more detail about whether there are any significant differences between demographic characteristic and customers’ responses
According to Henseler, Ringle et al (2009) reflectived measurement models should be assessed with regard to their reliability and validity It is appropriate to apply a different measure of internal consistency reliability, which is referred to as composite reliability (CR) The composite dependability ranges from 0 to 1, with higher numbers suggesting greater levels of reliability It is commonly understood to have the same meaning as Cronbach's alpha Specifically, in exploratory study, composite reliability values ranging from 0.60 to 0.70 are considered acceptable However, in more advanced stages of research, values between 0.70 and 0.90 can be deemed satisfactory Values exceeding 0.95 are considered undesirable as they suggest that all indicator variables are assessing the same phenomenon, therefore making them unlikely to be legitimate measures of the construct Composite reliability ratings below 0.60 suggest a deficiency in internal consistency reliability
When assessing validity, two specific forms of validity are typically examined: convergent validity and discriminant validity Due to their unidimensional nature, a group of indicators can demonstrate convergent validity by accurately representing a single underlying concept Henseler, Ringle et al (2009) proposed use the average variance extracted (AVE) as a measure of convergent validity A minimum AVE value of 0.5 shows satisfactory convergent validity, indicating that a latent variable can account for over half of the variability in its indicators, on average
High outer loadings on a construct imply that the construct represents many similarities between the linked indicators This attribute is frequently referred to as indicator reliability A widely accepted guideline states that the standardized outer loadings should be 0.70 or greater Typically, indicators with outer loadings ranging from 0.40 to 0.70 should be evaluated for potential removal from the scale This decision should be based on the amount to which removing the indicator affects the content validity of the scale Indicators that have extremely low outside loadings are occasionally kept due to their contribution to content authenticity Indicators that have outer loadings below 0.40 should always be removed from the scale (Hair, 2010)
Discriminant validity is a notion that complements other concepts It states that two concepts that are diverse in nature should have enough differences between them This means that the indicators used to measure these concepts should not all be measuring the same thing The Fornell-Larcker criterion evaluates the extent to which different constructs are distinct from each other The average variance extracted (AVE) of any latent variable should exceed the squared correlation between that latent variable and any other latent variable.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Descriptive Analysis and Mean Comparison
Data used in this research were obtained from structured questionnaires designed which based on usable participant consists of customers’ profile Table 4 presents the distribution frequency of characteristic of sample structure and general descriptions of participants’ characteristics are as below:
Source: Data processed by SPSS 29
Gender Rely on result from table 4 There was a significant difference between women and men respondent percentages, with women (57.1%) greatly outnumbering men (42.9%)
Year The largest age group was 4th-year student (40.5%), followed by student over
5-years (36.5%), 1st-year student (9.1%), 3rd-year student (7.5%) and 2nd-year student (6.3%)
Income Income representation is divided unevenly across income levels: income 5-
10 million VND (51.6%), under 5 million VND (20.6%), over 20 million VND (16.3%), 16-20 million VND (6.3%) and income 10-16 million VND (5.2%)
Location The research participants were mostly of countryside (20.6%), town (33.7%), and above big city (45.6%)
Independent sample T-test and one way Anova were used to compare mean between different demographic characteristics and consumers’ responses
Table 5: T-test results by gender Demographic Characteristics N Mean Std t p -value
This table 5 clearly shows that, there is a significant difference in green purchase intention between male (N8, M=3.7222, SD=0.89803) and female (N4, M=3.6962, SD=0.87064), Df %2, t=0.001, p-value=0.001 0.05)
Regarding the F-value test results in the ANOVA table, all values are above the 0.05 significance level Confirming the hypothesis that apart from the gender factor, the remaining value groups do not have statistically significant average differences The results indicate that the variables Gender has the greatest impact; Year, Income
Reliability Analysis
To test the internal consistency of the indicators of each factor, the most common method is calculating the Crobach’s α value (Maichum, Parichatnon, & Peng, 2017) and item-total correlation (correlation between a factor and its variables) Hair
(2010) and Nunnally and Bernstein (1978) suggested that Cronbach’s α value should be higher than 0.700 or at least 0.65 (Lee and Kim, 1999) Cronbach’s α were calculated for internal validity, all variables ranged from 0.858 to 0.941 and the lowest corrected item-total correlation was higher than 0.3 (presented in Table
7) Therefore, all variables were internally consistent and reliable to conduct in this study
Table 7: Reliabilities among the variables
Lowest item- total correlation value
Highest Cronbach’s α if item deleted
Measurement model
Because various items are being examined to measure abstract concepts, these items must be estimated for reliability and validity (Table 8) Internal consistency of the data was analyzed with three different measures: Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability, and average extracted variance (AVE) (Fornell, 1981) The factor loading should be higher than 0.70 (Hair, 2010) In this paper, all standardized factor loadings were significant, ranging from 0.800 to 0.935 The construct reliability was checked by using composite reliability measures that evaluate the degree to which elements in the construct measure the latent concept Convergent validity of the CFA results should be supported both composite reliability (CR) and average variance extracted (AVE) According to Hair (2010), the estimation of CR and AVE should be greater than 0.700 and 0.500, respectively In Table 8 clearly shown that the CR and AVE value ranged from 0.902 to 0.958 and 0.697 to 0.850, respectively, passing their suggested levels
Table 8: Standardized factor loadings, CR and AVE of the model
Discriminant validity is founded using the latent variable correlation matrix, which has the square root of AVE for the measures on the diagonal, and correlations among the measures as the off-diagonal elements in Table 9 (Liaw, 2017) The values of all diagonal elements were higher than those of off-diagonal elements, suggesting that all of the constructs were distinct (Fornell, 1981) The reliability and validity tests on the variables verified that the survey items were sufficiently valid and reliable for further analyses
Table 9: The latent variable correlation matrix: discriminant validity
Variables AC AT ER PI SM SN
Note: Square root of AVE is on the diagonal
Structural equation model
Table 10: Results for Structural equation model
Path Coefficients t - value p - value Hypothesis Hypothesis support
Figure 2: The result of research model
Figure 2 and table 10 present the results of the structural model and the standardized path coefficient indicated effect among the constructs of the model
Attitude to green product (H1: β = 0.220, t = 4.193, p = 0.000 < 0.001); ER (H2a: β
= 0.180, t = 2.805, p = 0.005 < 0.05); AC (H3a: β =0.125, t = 2.328, p 0.020