Beyond Standard Defaults: How Reason Defaults Promote Green Product Purchase Through Reduced Psychological Reactance

Although default options have been increasingly applied to encourage sustainable consumption, their effectiveness in green product contexts remains constrained. Traditional default designs may unintentionally evoke psychological resistance when consumers perceive the recommended choice as insufficiently justified or as a threat to their autonomy. This study examines whether reason defaults can reduce such resistance and increase consumers’ stated green product choices. Across three empirical studies in hypothetical, lab-style online shopping contexts, the results show that reason defaults increase stated green product choices relative to standard defaults by reducing inferences of manipulative intent and compulsive feelings, with this effect stronger for typical green products and diminishing for atypical ones. This study extends reason defaults to green product purchase choice and offers practical implications for designing effective green nudging strategies.