Bridging Awareness and Intention in Sustainable Mobility: A Value–Belief–Norm-Informed Technology Acceptance Analysis of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle Purchase Intention

Even though hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are essential for decarbonization, getting consumers to accept them remains a tough issue. This research combines normative and cognitive theories to find out if environmental values actually take precedence over logical risk assessments. We analyzed data from 761 consumers in Türkiye, using the structural equation model and Hayes’ PROCESS Macro. The results show that, although environmental concerns strongly increased awareness (β = 0.80) and awareness lowered perceived risk (β = −0.34), perceived risk itself did not significantly predict purchase intention (β = 0.03, p > 0.05). Instead, decisions were motivated by a hope-based path: Concern → Awareness → Usefulness → Intention. We tentatively interpret this as Green Motivation Dominance, whereby environmentally motivated early adopters appear to prioritize environmental benefits over technical hazards; notably, perceived usefulness significantly predicted intention (β = 0.29), and the serial path Concern → Awareness → Usefulness → Intention was significant (effect = 0.25, 95% CI [0.17, 0.35]). This interpretation, however, warrants direct testing in future research. Thus, the main factor driving adoption is the presence of advantages, not the absence of risk. Therefore, policymakers should focus on maximizing benefits rather than just trying to reduce risks.