Sustainable Consumer Behavior in the Phygital Environment: Determinants of Sustainable Decision-Making at the Interface of Physical and Digital Worlds

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Abstract
The growing integration of digital technologies with physical consumption spaces has led to the emergence of phygital environments, fundamentally transforming consumer decision-making processes. At the same time, sustainability has become an increasingly important normative and strategic context shaping contemporary consumption. While phygital solutions are often associated with sustainability-oriented claims, empirical evidence explaining how consumer behavior in phygital environments relates to sustainability remains limited. This study examines consumer behavior in phygital purchasing contexts through the prism of sustainability, focusing on the decision-making mechanisms that may support sustainability-oriented choices rather than treating phygital behavior as sustainable consumption per se. Using a two-stage analytical approach, the study first identifies key purchasing dimensions characterizing consumer behavior in phygital environments and then empirically tests the direction and strength of their relationships within a theoretically grounded structural model. Based on survey data collected from 2160 consumers, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was employed to identify latent purchasing dimensions, followed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) to validate the measurement model and examine hypothesized relationships. The results reveal four interrelated purchasing dimensions—purchase pragmatism, emotional commitment to the purchase, purchase comfort, and purchase pleasure—that shape consumers’ engagement in phygital purchasing processes. The findings suggest that phygital environments may foster sustainability-oriented decision-making by enhancing information access, decision efficiency, emotional engagement, and experiential value. However, the study does not directly measure environmental or sustainability outcomes; instead, it clarifies how established dimensions of consumer decision-making operate within phygital environments when analyzed from a sustainability-oriented perspective. The study offers theoretical implications for research on phygital consumer behavior and sustainability-oriented marketing, as well as managerial insights for designing phygital customer experiences that may support more informed and responsible consumption choices.
Funding Information
  • Ministerstwo Edukacji i Nauki (6_1_GZ_2024)

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