Speaker
Description
Keywords
Consumption Values, Culture, Purchase intention, Purchase behavior, Plant-based meat products
Introduction
Sustainable consumption is a key area of interest in consumer behavior research, especially with growing environmental consciousness (Chakraborty & Dash, 2022). Understanding what drives people to make sustainable choices involves various factors. Sheth et al. (1991) proposed a framework that encompasses five distinct consumption values: functional, social, emotional, epistemic, and conditional. These values provide a comprehensive understanding of how consumer decisions are made across product categories and contexts. Cultural factors are also influential, as Hofstede's (1983) cultural dimensions theory suggests, which is significant in sustainable consumption. This study aims to explore how cultural factors interact with consumption values in impacting sustainable purchases.
Using a quantitative approach, this research hypothesizes that consumption values will drive sustainable purchases, with cultural factors moderating this relationship. The findings of this research will have practical implications for businesses, policymakers, and marketers, allowing them to design strategies that encourage more sustainable choices. Adapted strategies that consider cultural differences can effectively engage consumers in sustainable consumption.
Objective
Previous research on plant-based meat products has focused on brand recognition, healthy eating habits, ethnocentrism, and native origins. However, motivations behind consuming these products have been largely overlooked. This gap in research has raised questions for both academics and businesses. To address this, we have chosen to use the theory of consumption values (TCV) by Sheth et al. (1991). TCV has been extensively applied to understand consumer attitudes across diverse sectors (Wong et al., 2019), and we believe it offers valuable insights into enhancing the consumption of plant-based meat products. Considering the strong link between consumption values and purchasing intentions leading to purchase behavior, such research within the context of plant-based meat products might reveal consumer preferences for certain values.
The main research questions based on our study are:
RQ 1. How do different consumption values relate to the purchase intention of sustainable products?
RQ 2: Does sustainable purchase intention lead to actual purchase behavior?
RQ 3. Does culture moderate the impact of different consumption values on customers’ purchase intentions of sustainable products?
Formulation of Hypothesis
The Theory of Consumption Values (TCV) posits that consumer preferences emerge from five distinct and essential values: conditional, functional, emotional, epistemic, and social (Sheth et al., 1991). It is suggested that these values significantly shape consumers' choices and their connections with products or services (Choi and Johnson, 2019). According to TCV, these consumption values are critical determinants in the decision-making process of consumers (Joshi et al., 2021), offering insights into why consumers might prefer certain products over others or opt not to buy at all (Sheth et al., 1991). The absence of TCV application in studying plant-based meat products previously provides a compelling reason to adopt it as the theoretical framework for this investigation. Research based on the theory of Planned Behavior suggests that consumer attitudes, environmental concerns, social pressures, and perceived ease of purchase, significantly predict intentions to buy plant-based meats, which in turn likely leads to actual purchasing behavior (Ajzen, 1991). This insight has led us to formulate six hypotheses.
Hypothesis H1: Functional value positively impacts the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H2: Social value positively impacts the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H3: Emotional value positively impacts the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H4: Conditional value positively impacts the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H5: Epistemic value positively impacts the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H6: Purchase intention positively influences the purchase behavior of customers.
Culture as moderator
Based on Hofstede’s Culture theory (Hofstede, 1983), cultural orientation significantly influences consumer behavior, with individualistic cultures valuing personal autonomy and functional benefits, leading to a stronger intent to purchase sustainable products. (Zimu, 2023; Markus & Kitayama, 1991). In collectivist cultures, communal values and social responsibility towards environmental preservation strongly influence the purchase intention of sustainable products, while in individualistic cultures, personal benefits and the cognitive value of sustainable choices play a more significant role in shaping purchase intentions (Hofstede, 2011). We aim to explore how cultural differences impact the relationship between consumption values and the intention to purchase plant-based meat products, thereby proposing the following hypotheses.
Hypothesis H7: Culture moderates the impact of customers’ functional value on the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H8: Culture moderates the impact of customers’ social value on the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H9: Culture moderates the impact of emotional value on the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H10: Culture moderates the impact of conditional value on the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Hypothesis H11: Culture moderates the impact of epistemic value on the purchase intention of sustainable products.
Methodology
The study adopts a quantitative research methodology, focusing on collecting and analyzing data from a Canadian sample regarding the purchase behavior of plant-based meat products. A combination of purposive and snowball sampling strategies is utilized to gather data. Data will be collected through structured questionnaires designed on Qualtrics to capture information pertinent to the research objectives.
The collected data will be analyzed using PLS-SEM with SmartPLS 3.3.3 software. PLS-SEM is chosen for its robustness in analyzing complex models and its ability to handle small to medium sample sizes efficiently (Hair et al, 2022). The measurement model will be evaluated by the reliability and validity of the constructs through indicators such as Cronbach's alpha, composite reliability, average variance extracted (AVE), and discriminant validity.
Structural model assessment will be done by examining the relationships between constructs by assessing path coefficients, R-square values, and the significance of the relationships through bootstrapping procedures. The moderating effect of culture will be investigated within the model to more comprehensively understand the dynamics between variables.
Conclusion
This study aims to explore how consumption values affect the intention and behavior towards buying plant-based meats and how culture influences this relationship, offering insights into consumer behavior and providing implications for marketing, policy, and promoting sustainable food choices, emphasizing the need for strategies that resonate more with personal motivations, societal influences, and values.
