Published Online:December 2025
Product Name:The IUP Journal of Brand Management
Product Type:Article
Product Code:IJBRM011225
DOI:10.71329/IUPJBRM/2025.22.4.5-20
Author Name:Mehak Sanduja, Urmi Bansal, Soumyashree Bal, Manas Aseeja, Divyanshi Ahuja, Prashant Sahu and Vani Aggarwal
Availability:YES
Subject/Domain:Management
Download Format:PDF
Pages:5-20
The paper proposes a framework that connects consumer skepticism (CS) toward green claims, perceived artificial intelligence-driven hyper-personalization (AI-HP) and brand advocacy (BA) in the context of sustainable brands. Based on attribution theory, personalization-relevance theory and persuasion knowledge model, the framework sees skepticism as a mental barrier to advocacy, while AI-driven personalization improves relevance, credibility, and perceived authenticity. The primary data was collected from digitally active consumers in India through a structured survey and validated multi-item scales. The regression analyses show that both CS and AI-HP significantly impact BA. Skeptical consumers tend to engage more critically with sustainability information, while personalized AI communication boosts message trustworthiness, which in turn increases consumers’ willingness to recommend and defend sustainable brands. The results indicate that psychological scrutiny and technological personalization work together to influence advocacy outcomes. This study adds to the research on sustainability communication by questioning the assumption that skepticism always has a negative effect and highlighting the persuasive benefits of ethical AI personalization.
In recent years, sustainability has become a major focus in global marketing. Consumers increasingly expect brands to show real environmental responsibility. However, the rise of unverified or exaggerated environmental claims, known as greenwashing, has led to