Social media, awareness linked to green purchase intentions in young Vietnamese adults

A survey of 936 consumers aged 18–30 in Da Nang, Vietnam, found that social media and green environmental awareness were associated with stronger intentions to purchase green products. Researchers analysed the responses using an integrated stimulus-organism-response and theory of planned behaviour framework, which accounted for 74.7% of the variance in green purchase intention. The results identify statistical relationships among reported attitudes, intentions and perceptions rather than demonstrating that social media or environmental awareness caused purchasing decisions.

Social media had a positive direct association with green purchase intention, with a standardised coefficient of β = 0.123. It was also indirectly associated with purchase intention through four statistically significant pathways involving attitude, subjective norms, perceived green product value and perceived behavioural control. The coefficients for these indirect effects ranged from β = 0.046 to β = 0.095.

Green environmental awareness showed the largest direct association with green purchase intention, at β = 0.322, indicating that respondents reporting greater awareness also tended to report stronger intentions to buy green products. The analysis produced mixed evidence for the idea that environmental awareness might strengthen the other relationships in the model. Two interactions were statistically significant in the primary analysis, but neither remained supported in a post hoc sensitivity model that screened the content.

The researchers therefore advise against assuming that greater awareness will consistently amplify every psychological pathway. Their importance-performance map analysis placed social media and green environmental awareness among the variables with the largest model-based total effects on green purchase intention. Rather than treating the findings as proof that a communication campaign will change behaviour, the authors frame credible social media communication and value-based messages as candidates for further testing.

The survey measures intentions, not observed green purchases, and its population was restricted to consumers aged 18–30 in one Vietnamese city. As a survey-based analysis, it cannot establish the direction of causality or determine whether social media exposure precedes environmental awareness, altered perceptions and stronger purchase intentions. Its results may also be limited to the specific participants and context of Da Nang, so they cannot automatically be extended to older consumers, other Vietnamese cities or emerging markets more generally.

Even with those limitations, the study offers a detailed statistical picture of how several variables relate to young consumers’ stated green purchase intentions in Da Nang. Social media was linked both directly and through four indirect routes, while environmental awareness had the strongest direct coefficient. The instability of the interaction results across analytical models is particularly important: it suggests that apparent amplification effects should be treated cautiously.

Subject of Research: Survey analysis of social media, environmental awareness and green purchase intentions among young consumers in Da Nang, Vietnam

Article Title: Understanding green purchase intention among young consumers in an emerging market through social media influence, environmental awareness, and psychological mechanisms

Article References: Tam, D. T., Na, N. T. L., Tuan, T. A., Thao, N. T., Phuong, N. T. T., Binh, M. X., Hiep, N. M., Le, P. T. Q., & Dang, H. N. N. (2026). Understanding green purchase intention among young consumers in an emerging market through social media influence, environmental awareness, and psychological mechanisms. Discover Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-026-04718-0

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s43621-026-04718-0

Keywords: green purchase intention, social media, environmental awareness, young consumers, Da Nang, Vietnam, sustainable consumption, survey analysis, consumer behaviour, planned behaviour, Understanding, green