Research On The Impact Of Social Norm And Norm Conflict On Green Consumption

Focusing on how to promote consumers' green consumption,domestic and foreign scholars mostly analyze the influencing factors and formation mechanism of green consumption from the inner psychological level of consumers.However,the study of green consumption mainly foucses on the internal psychological characteristics,which ignores the social characteristics of consumers and the influence of the external social environment of green consumption on consumers' purchase decisions.According to the theory of social interaction,the public is not an independent individual in society,and the communication between members is carried out all the time.Individual actions are dual influenced by both the consciousness of their own actions on the effect of others and the expectations of others.In the process of social interaction,the attitude and behavior of other members on green consumption will have an important impact on individual green consumption behavior.At the same time,green consumption is different from ordinary egotistic consumption,which has obvious pro-environmen altruism characteristics.Green consumption has the environmental characteristics of saving resources and reducing pollution emissions.At the same time,it requires consumers to pay extra efforts such as economic expenditure,habit change,risk taking,etc.The environmental benefits generated by green consumption are also shared by the whole society,not by individuals.Under the society's advocacy of forming a diligent,green,low-carbon,civilized and healthy lifestyle and consumption pattern,green consumption will not only enable consumers to have a positive sense of environmental responsibility,but also serve as a symbol of status consumption and symbolic consumption to improve their own image of others.Therefore,this study focuses on the social norm theory of social interaction and social evaluation,and explores the relationship between social norm and green consumption.Social norms are unwritten behavioral standards recognized by most members of a certain group.In order to obtain group identity or reduce the uncertainty of behavior,individuals will naturally regard social norm as their own standards of behavior.In the study of the relationship between social norm and green consumption,this research mainly involves two major research issues,one is the impact of social norms on green consumption and the internal influence mechanism,and the other is the impact of social norm conflict on green consumption and conflict mitigation mechanisms.The relevant theoretical hypotheses were exaimed by two studies of four experiments.In the first study,this study divides social norm into descriptive norm,dynamic descriptive norm and injunctive norm based on the focus theory of normative conduct and the latest research results of social norm.Through two behavioral experiments,the promotion effect of social norm on green consumption,the internal mechanism and the moderating role of social identity are supported.The results of experiment 1 show that descriptive norm,dynamic descriptive norm,and injunctive norm enhance consumers' intention to green consumption,but compared with descriptive norm and injunctive norm,the dynamic descriptive norm have no significant difference in promoting green consumption intention.Descriptive norm and dynamic descriptive norm can make consumers aware that they have the same responsibility to the environment.Further,through Bootstrap mediating test method,it is examined that personal norms play a part of mediating role in the process of descriptive norm and dynamic descriptive norm affecting green consumption.The injunctive norm can make consumers realize that they may be alienated by others if they do not practice green consumption.Based on VBN theory and perceived risk theory,the risk of alienation by others is defined as the awareness of adverse consequences,which examines that the awareness of adverse consequences plays a part of mediating role in the process of injunctive norm affecting green consumption.The generation and solution of environmental problems have the characteristics of collectivity,which will enable consumers to evaluate environmental problems and environmental behavior from a collective perspective.The generation of environmental behavior is a process of individual "collective" thinking and action,and this collective process is the process of individual social identity.This study defines social identity in the field of pro-environmental behavior,and explores the moderating role of social identity in the relationship between social norm and green consumption.In experiment 2,based on the existing research results of environmental behavior and social identity,the social identity scale was developed and revised from three parts: cognition,emotional commitment and value evaluation.The results of Experiment 2 show that descriptive norm do not significantly enhance green consumption intention for consumers with strong social identity and has a significant impact on green consumption intention for consumers with weak social identity.In the relationship between dynamic descriptive norm and green consumption intention,for consumers with strong social identity,dynamic descriptive norm plays a greater role in promoting green consumption intention than consumers with weak social identity.In the relationship between injunctive norm and green consumption intention,social identity does not moderate the relationship between them.In the second study,two behavioral experiments examines that the conflict of social norm weakens the role of social norm in promoting green consumption,internal mechanism and mitigation role by self-affirmation.The results of Experiment 3 show that the conflict of social norm will weaken the promoting effect of social norms on green consumption,that is,negative descriptive norm weaken the positive injunctive norm on green consumption.The conflict of social norm can cause consumers to feel alienated from green consumption.Further,through Bootstrap marco,we examine that alienation(specifically the sense of powerlessness and meaninglessness)plays a part of mediating role in the process of weakening green consumption by social norm conflict.Self-affirmation is that when faced with self-threatening information,by affirming selfworth unrelated to threats,individuals will evaluate themselves in a broader perspective and a more calm way to maintain their overall well-being,that is,to maintain their integrity.The results of Experiment 4 show that under the condition of self-affirmation,the weakening effect of social norm conflict on promoting green consumption disappears.Further through Bootstrap marco,the mediating role of powerlessness and meaninglessness in the process of weakening green consumption by social norm conflict is supported to be moderated by self-affirmation.In the case of self-affirmation,the mediating effect of powerlessness and meaninglessness is not significant.In the case of no self-affirmation,the mediating effect of powerlessness and meaninglessness is significant.This study systematically explores the relationship between social norm and norm conflict and green consumption,and draws the following conclusions.Social norm can promote green consumption,descriptive norm and dynamic descriptive norm can promote green consumption by activating consumers' personal norm,and injunctive norm can promote green consumption by activating consumers' adverse consequences.There is no significant difference in promoting green consumption.Social identity moderates the relationship between descriptive norm and dynamic descriptive norm on green consumption;social identity does not moderate the relationship between injunctive norm and green consumption.Social norm conflict weakens the role of social norm in promoting green consumption.Alienation(powerlessness and meaninglessness)plays a mediating role between the two;Self-affirmation can alleviate the weakening effect of norm conflict on green consumption,and the the mediating role of alienation(powerlessness and meaninglessness)is supported to be moderated by self-affirmation.