An intercultural study on how consumers’ attitudes about corporate sustainability influence purchase intention

2017-06-20In recent years, the issue of sustainability has become one of the most important concerns for the whole society. To assess the relationship between consumers’ attitude and their purchase intentions, this study used the IKEA brand as the model. The author conducted a quantitative, online survey to examine the relationships between the consumers’ attitude towards sustainability principles, and their purchase intention. The paper concludes that: (1) Consumers’ attitude towards a corporation’s sustainability principles and strategies are positively related with purchasing intention; (2) For both Chinese and US consumers, neither their attitude nor purchase intention differed significantly when considered among IKEA’s three defined sustainability domains (“Sustainable Lifestyle at Home”, “Energy & Resource Independence” and “A Better Life for People and Communities”); (3) Chinese consumers expressed a significantly more positive attitude towards all three of IKEA’s sustainability principles, and stronger purchase intentions based on their awareness of the environment-related principles, than did US consumers