The Repurchase Intention of Organic Food: Comparison Between a Theoretical and a Nested Model
Abstract
The Studies concerning environmental awareness seek to understand the problems and the impact that human behavior can cause to the environment. In this sense, in this research, we investigated some of the main determinant factors of organic product repurchase intention, among them, environmental awareness and consumer attitude. For this purpose, the research was operationalized through a survey, comprising a sample of 249 organic food consumers from Serra Gaúcha - Brazil. For data analysis, we applied structural equation modeling, comparing the results of the initial theoretical model with a nested model. The results proved that the relationship between environmental awareness influencing consumer attitude (theoretical model) presents better fit indexes and higher explanation power than the relationship between consumer attitude influencing environmental awareness (nested model), even confirming that these two constructs are determinants of organic food repurchase intention. It should also be noted that in the case of the coefficient of determination, the Theoretical Model presented a better explanatory power (87%) compared to the Nested Model (86.3%) of organic food repurchase intention by Brazilian consumers. From a managerial perspective, this study provided a broader understanding of the importance of expanding the supply and exposure of organic food (or products), taking advantage of the distribution networks that expose in greater quantity and with more quality the possible benefits associated with the consumption of these products, and the potential associated with greater environmental awareness and a more favorable consumer attitude.