The Influence of Consumer Optimism and Pessimism on Purchasing Intention of Eco-Friendly Clothing by Generation Z: Model Proposal

Overconsumption has caused a significant reduction in the world's natural resources, negatively influencing the sustainability of individual companies and the sustainable development of the planet. The textile/apparel industry has negatively impacted the ecosystem with the carbon footprint of production units and landfills from non-ethical consumption and waste. This study aims to propose a conceptual model to understand the influence of the psychological mood of consumers (optimism and pessimism) over the intention to purchase eco-friendly clothing by generation Z exploring a novel set of antecedents. Considering these relationships, the proposed study also intends to study the mediating effect of environmental concern and perceived consumer efficiency/effectiveness. An unstructured literature review was used to identify the main factors influencing the intention to purchase eco-friendly clothing by generation Z and suggest a model based on it. The suggested model can help to support future research about the buying behavior of generation Z regarding eco-friendly clothing. This study is the first to suggest the influence of optimism and pessimism of generation Z on the intention to purchase eco-friendly clothing by using as intermediate factors the environmental concerns and the perceived consumer efficiency and effectiveness.