Understanding the Digital-Green Nexus: Generational Insights into Sustainable Buying Behaviour

Abstract

The growing penetration of digital technologies into the daily life has changed the way consumers obtain, process, and react to information that is related to sustainability. The digital platforms are now considered to be powerful spaces of communicating and assessing environmental discourses, and credibility and trust become essential in consumer decision-making. The paper discusses how perceived credibility of digital platforms and environmental concern affects sustainable buying behaviour and how digital engagement and trust in green advertising affect consumer responses. It also examines the effect of age in the strength of these relationships among generational groups. The research is based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) theory, which suggests that believable digital environments and an increased awareness of the environment provoke internal consumer appraisals resulting in responsible purchasing behaviour. The combination of technological, psychological, and communication-related considerations results in the comprehensive understanding of the functioning of the sustainability messages in the digital ecosystems. The results are likely to provide the marketers and policymakers with knowledge on how to develop clear and reliable sustainability communications policies that can help motivate veritable behavioural change and enhance responsible consumption patterns.