The power of 'executional greenwashing'. Evidence from the automotive sector

Béatrice Parguel (1) , Florence Benoît-Moreau (2)

1 DRM - Dauphine Recherches en Management
2 DRM ERMES

Using classical models of information processing and persuasion, this study examines two interdependent issues regarding 'executional greenwashing'. First, it questions the efficiency of executional elements evoking nature to artificially enhance the brand's ecological image. Second, it studies the potential efficiency of environmental performance labels to help consumers form an accurate evaluation of the brand's ecological image and counterbalance this specific type of greenwashing. An experiment conducted with a representative sample of French consumers reveals the efficiency of greenwashing to mislead consumers in their evaluation of brand ecological image, whatever their degree of environmental expertise. Furthermore, the display of environmental performance labels is not enough to help consumers to revise their judgment, even expert ones. Precisely, environmental performance labels are efficient to guide brands' perceptions but only among expert consumers, and only in neutral advertising setting: they are not sufficient to counterbalance greenwashing. The authors discuss theoretical and regulatory implications.

Mots clés: Greenwashing; Advertising execution; Environmental labeling; Environmental policy

Domaines: Gestion et management

Béatrice Parguel, Florence Benoît-Moreau. The power of 'executional greenwashing'. Evidence from the automotive sector. Lalonde Conference, May 2013, France. ⟨halshs-00948933⟩