The role of social aspiration and identity congruence in driving anti-green consumption: evidence from India

This study investigates how social exclusion influences consumer rejection of sustainable products through heightened social aspiration, moderated by identity congruence. Drawing on Social Aspiration Theory and Social Identity Theory, the research explores the psychological mechanisms underlying status-driven anti-green consumption. Across three experimental studies conducted in India, we manipulated social exclusion and measured its effects on attitudes and intentions toward green products. The results consistently demonstrate that socially excluded individuals are more likely to reject sustainable products as a means of signalling status, particularly when their perceived identity congruence with green consumption is low. These findings make significant theoretical contributions by extending compensatory consumption and identity-signalling literature into the sustainability domain. Practically, the study offers actionable insights for marketers, policymakers, and public interest campaigns by underscoring the importance of repositioning green products to align with aspirational and status-related motivations in emerging markets. This research adds novel empirical evidence to the limited literature on anti-green behaviour and highlights the relevance of social and identity-based factors in shaping sustainable consumption avoidance.