“Hey Friend Buy Green”: Influence of Green Blogging on Green Purchase Intention Through Green Trust and Perceptions of Information Usefulness

Abstract

Grounded in the Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) framework, Social Learning Theory, and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), this study investigates how social media usage affects green purchase intention (GPI) through the sequential and parallel mediating roles of green blogging, perceptions of information usefulness, and green trust. Drawing on data from 293 urban consumers in eastern China, the structural equation modeling results validate all seven proposed hypotheses. Social media usage significantly enhances green blogging, perceptions of information usefulness, and green trust. Green blogging further reinforces both perceptions of information usefulness and green trust. In turn, both perceptions of information usefulness and green trust positively influence GPI. Mediation analysis confirms that green trust and perceptions of information usefulness partially mediate the relationship between social media usage and GPI, with green trust emerging as the stronger mediator. Multi-group comparisons reveal that gender, age, education, and income significantly moderate the mediation pathways, with the effects more pronounced among women, individuals with higher education and income, and those with greater exposure to social media. These findings extend digital green marketing theory and offer actionable insights for platform managers, sustainability advocates, and policy developers aiming to foster environmentally responsible consumer behavior through digital channels.