Influência da certificação ecológica de produtos de tecnologia da informação no comportamento do consumidor

Abstract

Green Information Technology (Green IT) involves the effective and efficient consumption of resources, through the use of IT infrastructures to address environmental sustainability (HERNANDEZ, 2017), and it began to be addressed in the academic literature from 2007 onwards. The objective of this work was to verify the influence of ecological certification on consumer behavior, considering the scenario of Brazilian information technology. Bibliometrics and interviews were carried out with internationally and nationally relevant authors in the Green IT area in order to support the construction of an online experimental model, based on the identified gap in relation to the individual's behavior. The themes of green consumption and brand equity were also integrated – using the constructs of Lages and Vargas Neto (2002) and Oliveira (2013), respectively. The subjects who participated in the research were professors and administrative technicians in education at the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM). Among the four notebooks in the experiment task, the “winner”, in terms of purchase choice, was the HP model, with an i5 processor and ecological certification. The other three models are: HP, i3, certified; Dell, i3, uncertified; Dell, i5, uncertified. Overall, the research sought to demonstrate the outlook of the Green IT market in the Brazilian context. Nonparametric statistics and qualitative analysis were used to obtain the results. Regarding the hypotheses, based on what the respondents said: the most considered attribute when choosing notebooks by the subjects is performance. Then comes price and brand. Ecological certification occupies the last position. However, it is important to bear in mind that what is expressed as the most important attribute does not always appear as the main reason for purchasing a notebook. For example, in the qualitative analysis, the ecological certification overlaps the brand in reasons for choosing to buy the two products that have ecological certification in the experiment (from the HP brand). The second hypothesis tested in the research: “the greater the sustainable consumption, the greater the intention to purchase products with ecological certification” was partially accepted by 29% (in 7 of 24 variables of the sustainable consumption construct). The third hypothesis: “a positive attitude towards ecological certification leads to greater purchase intention” was partially accepted by 26%, when considering the quantitative analysis. The qualitative analysis showed that the ecological seal is cited in second place as the reason for choosing the winning notebook, as specified above. However, it is important to consider that the results of initial preferences and, later, of brand equity point to Dell brand. Hypothesis 4: “a positive attitude towards ecological certification leads to a greater perception of brand equity in ecologically correct products” has an acceptance percentage of 31% (8 out of 24 variables of the brand equity construct). The findings are in agreement with Schmidt et al. (2010) 12 years ago: 26.6% of the market for green products in the IT area, taking the period of completion of this study as a parameter. So, even though more than a decade has passed, the findings still seem to be very close. It is believed that the high number of respondents with a lack of knowledge regarding the ecological certification of products (57% and 55% in the two products that present this specification) brings the need for actions to clarify and disseminate ecological seals and, specifically, in the IT area. Overall, around 9% of participants are not familiar with the EPEAT seal. For Alves (2017a), many seals are unknown to consumers. Regarding the sustainable consumption construct, the aspects that stand out are related to energy savings and recycling. According to Schmidt et al. (2010), low energy consumption and the concept of disposal are important arguments for consumers. It is noteworthy that the results of the qualitative analysis, the statistical notes and the results regarding the choice of notebook purchase suggest that female individuals pay more attention to ecological certification than male individuals. In the study by Schmidt et al. (2010), female clients valued ecologically correct attributes. According to Young et al. (2010), in each decision to purchase a product or service, there is a greater or lesser potential to contribute to a more or less sustainable consumption pattern, which involves aspects such as ethics, resources, waste and impact on the community. It was also found that: liking a product does not necessarily indicate that the consumer will buy it. Differences are noted when variation occurs: products shown separately versus the 4 products shown together. It is hoped that the results of this study can encourage academia and the Brazilian market so that advances can be made in the discussion and implementation of sustainability measures in the area of information technology. Furthermore, it seeks to contribute to the dissemination and implementation of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda.