Social cynicism, greenwashing, and trust in green clothing brands

This research develops a theoretical model of the effect of social cynicism as a per-sonality trait on trust in green clothing brands. We conducted an online survey of arepresentative Australian sample to test the hypothesized relationships. Our findingsconfirmed that social cynicism affected green...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Manoela Costa Policarpo, Vanessa Apaolaza, Patrick Hartmann, Paredes Escobar, Mario Rolando, Clare D'Souza
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2023
Country:Colombia
Institution:Universidad del Rosario
Repository:Repositorio EdocUR - U. Rosario
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:repository.urosario.edu.co:10336/42166
Online Access:https://repository.urosario.edu.co/handle/10336/42166
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Brand trust
Conspicuous consumption
Greenwashing
Social cynicism
Sustainable fashion
Description
Summary:This research develops a theoretical model of the effect of social cynicism as a per-sonality trait on trust in green clothing brands. We conducted an online survey of arepresentative Australian sample to test the hypothesized relationships. Our findingsconfirmed that social cynicism affected green brand trust negatively and that thiseffect can be explained by an increase in perceived greenwashing. Conspicuous con-sumption moderates this indirect influence. This mediated influence decreased whenconspicuous consumption was more salient. Findings provide important practicalinsights for brand managers intending to avoid a decrease in brand trust regardinggarments marketed with sustainability claims.