Third-Party Certification, Sponsorship and Consumers’ Ecolabel Use

27 Pages Posted: 12 Nov 2016 Last revised: 8 Feb 2018

See all articles by Nicole Darnall

Nicole Darnall

School of Sustainability, Arizona State University; Sustainable Purchasing Research Initiative, Arizona State University

Hyunjung Ji

University of Alabama- Department of Political Science

Diego Vazquez-Brust

Cardiff University - ESRC funded centre for Business, Relationships, Accountability, Sustainability and Society (BRASS)

Date Written: November 11, 2016

Abstract

While prior ecolabel research suggests that consumers’ trust of ecolabel sponsors is associated with their purchase of ecolabeled products, we know little about how third-party certification might relate to consumer purchases when trust varies. Drawing on cognitive theory and a stratified random sample of more than 1200 consumers, we assess how third-party certification relates to consumers’ use of ecolabels across different program sponsors. We find that consumers’ trust of government and environmental NGOs to provide credible environmental information encourages consumers’ use of ecolabels sponsored by these entities, and consumers do not differentiate between certified versus uncertified ecolabels in the presence of trust. By contrast, consumers’ distrust of private business to provide credible environmental information discourages their use of business association sponsored ecolabels. However, these ecolabels may be able to overcome consumer distrust if their sponsors certify the ecolabels using third-party auditors. These findings are important to sponsors who wish develop ecolabels that are more credible to consumers, and thus encourage more widespread ecolabel use.

Keywords: Ecolabel, Environmental label, Ecolabel sponsor, Consumer perceptions, Ecolabel credibility, Third-party certification, Verification

JEL Classification: M14, Q56, Q58

Suggested Citation

Darnall, Nicole and Ji, Hyunjung and Vazquez-Brust, Diego, Third-Party Certification, Sponsorship and Consumers’ Ecolabel Use (November 11, 2016). Journal of Business Ethics, DOI: 10.1007/s10551-016-3138-2, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2868197

Nicole Darnall (Contact Author)

School of Sustainability, Arizona State University ( email )

PO Box 875502
Tempe, AZ 85287-5502
United States

HOME PAGE: http://isearch.asu.edu/profile/1811617

Sustainable Purchasing Research Initiative, Arizona State University ( email )

PO Box 875502
Tempe, AZ 85287-5502
United States

HOME PAGE: http://https://sustainability-innovation.asu.edu/spri/

Hyunjung Ji

University of Alabama- Department of Political Science ( email )

310 ten Hoor Hall
Tuscaloosa, AL Tuscaloosa 35487
United States

Diego Vazquez-Brust

Cardiff University - ESRC funded centre for Business, Relationships, Accountability, Sustainability and Society (BRASS) ( email )

Cardiff University
55 Park Place
Cardiff, Wales CF10 3AT
United Kingdom

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