The Influence of Disclosing Product Lifecycle Carbon Footprint Information on Consumer Purchase Intentions Based on the APE Model Perspective: An ERP and Questionnaire Study

Background Carbon emissions are increasingly becoming the primary cause of climate change, and carbon information disclosure can affect consumer purchase intentions. However, existing studies only focus on the disclosure of carbon information for a single lifecycle stage, gnoring consumers' overall perception process. Methods This study uses scenario experiments and event-related potential experiments in combination, based on the associative-propositional evaluation (APE) model, to explore the differences in the impact of disclosing product information with high carbon emissions in different lifecycle stages (production stage, use stage, recycling stage) on consumers' purchase intentions. Results The questionnaire results found that consumers' willingness to purchase products with high carbon emissions in the use stage was the lowest; The behavioral results found that the purchase rate of products with high carbon emissions in the recycling stage was the lowest; The brain electricity results found that products with high carbon emissions in the use stage induced the largest P2 component; Products with high carbon emissions in the recycling stage induced the largest N2 component. Conclusion The attitudes of evaluation with proposition dominance among consumers tend to attribute carbon emissions in the use stage to their own behavioral choices. The attitudes of evaluation with association dominance among consumers reflect the cognitive conflicts existing in consumers' understanding of carbon emission information during recycling. This study expands the perspective of researching the disclosure effects of product carbon footprints and provides references for corporate marketing strategies and policy formulation.