The influence of greenwashing perceptions on consumer purchase intentions in the Chinese fashion industry

With increasing consumer awareness of environmental issues, green marketing has gained prominence in the fashion industry. However, the rise of greenwashing has raised concerns about its impact on consumer behavior. The study aims to investigate the influence of greenwashing perceptions on consumer purchase intention in the Chinese fashion industry, proposing green skepticism as a mediating factor and brand loyalty as a moderating variable. A moderated mediation model, grounded in the theory of planned behavior, was proposed. Data were collected through an online survey conducted in June 2024, using random sampling to select 350 consumers who interacted with merchants during live-streaming sessions on Douyin in the fast fashion sector. The results largely supported the proposed framework. Specifically, the findings indicate that greenwashing perceptions negatively impact consumer purchase intention (β = –0.43, p < 0.01). Furthermore, green skepticism was found to partially mediate the relationship between greenwashing perception and purchase intention (β = –0.26, p < 0.01). Finally, the moderating role of brand loyalty was confirmed, as it moderates the effect of greenwashing perceptions on green skepticism (β = –0.22, p < 0.01), thereby buffering the indirect effect of greenwashing perceptions on purchase intention through green skepticism (β = 0.06, 95% CI = [0.028, 0.091]). This study contributes to the growing body of green marketing literature by emphasizing the interplay between consumer greenwashing perceptions, green skepticism, and brand loyalty in shaping purchasing behavior in the fashion industry.