The effect of greenwashing on online consumer engagement: A comparative study in France, Germany, Turkey, and the United Kingdom

Abstract

The effect of the Volkswagen emission crisis in 2015, the biggest greenwashing event in recent years, on the online consumer engagement of Facebook brand pages was investigated in France, Germany, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. These countries have been selected for the reason that Volkswagen sales and diesel-engine cars and the use of social media are quite common. For 6 years in these four countries, the likes, comments, and shares made by consumers on the Facebook brand page of Volkswagen have been examined. The monthly dataset covers January 2012 to December 2017. The obtained data were analyzed with autoregressive-moving average models. Despite a globally positive approach to green products, countries' attitudes toward greenwashing have been significantly different. The findings showed that online consumer engagement was negative in the United Kingdom and Turkey and in a positive direction in Germany, whereas there was no change in France in the fourth quarter of 2015.

Consumer perception of the sustainability of dairy products and plant-based dairy alternatives

“…Social media profiles, both those associated and not associated with dairy foods companies, were among the least commonly cited sources of sustainability-related information. While a company story that promotes sustainability was not considered important in the MaxDiff analysis, it is likely that consumers are looking for consistency in sustainability messaging between product labels and company websites, especially in the face of consumer backlash against "greenwashing" and misrepresentation of sustainability efforts by companies on social media (Lyon and Montgomery, 2013;Toptal et al, 2019). Because packaging is the primary source of sustainability-related information, dairy producers seeking to emphasize sustainability of their products should carefully consider how to present sustainability-related information in a clear, engaging, and accessible manner on product packaging.…”

Corporate climate‐related voluntary disclosures: Does potential greenwash exist among Australian high emitters reports?

“…Greenwashing occurs when a company deliberately publishes misleading information to gain a positive environmental‐related image and reputation (Torelli et al, 2020). By engaging in greenwashing, a company may be imaged as more green than it really is (Topal et al, 2020).…”

What drives and curbs brownwashing?

“…However, greenwashing activities help these firms present a positive, more favorable image (Wedari et al, 2021). Greenwashing can be an efficient tool to legitimize poor environmental history by deflecting stakeholders' attention from the issues and manipulating their perceptions (Topal et al, 2020).…”

“…Investors and creditors require precise corporate environmental information to assess how environmental risks can affect financial performance (Luo et al, 2019; Vasi & King, 2012). Customers are increasingly selecting products or services from firms that are dedicated to preserving the environment (Huang & Kung, 2010; Topal et al, 2020). Local communities are also interested in firms' environmental activities, because it can directly affect their immediate environment (Marquis et al, 2007).…”

“…Greenwashing and brownwashing, both special cases of decoupling, also arise when a gap occurs between a firm's policy and implementation. Firms are prone to losing their legitimacy when they fail to meet stakeholders' expectations (Topal et al, 2020), and these legitimacy losses cannot be reversed in the short run (Ashforth, 1989). In hopes of repairing their impaired image, some firms engage in greenwashing activities (Berrone et al, 2017), but firms that benefit from high levels of corporate legitimacy are inclined to do the opposite, that is, brownwashing.…”