Environmental concerns – uniting generations for a global cause in turbulent times

A radical set of social and structural shifts in the last years has transformed the world, bringing a confusing order that few have been able to predict. Common sense information and myths about Millennials’ generation define them as being very homogeneous and different from other generations, which would be already a complex dimension to analyze. However, the complexity increases according to some studies that suggest that other generations have a flawed perception of Millennials. Based on this, the purpose of this chapter is to assess the self-image Millennials regarding consumption behavior and compare it with how they are perceived by other generations, namely, Boomers and Generation Xers. Identifying and understanding the differences could assist in improving the ability to market to them. To conduct this study, a survey was developed to collect data from each group of interest located in the same institutional setting to avoid institutional distance. The constructs included were Technology Savviness, Social Responsibility, Environmental Concern, Status Consumption, and Brand Loyalty. The final sample consisted of 342 participants where 182 were Millennials (53.8%) and the remaining 160 were either Baby Boomers or Generation Xers (42.8%). The current results support the idea of differences between self and other perception, although not in every dimension. The results show that Millennials and older generations have different perceptions regarding Millennial technology savviness, social responsibility, status consumption, and brand loyalty. Environmental concern was the only dimension where the self-opinion of Millennials did not differ from the other generations. Current findings are pertinent because differences in Millennial’s behaviors are important for companies addressing international markets. These results challenge research conducted in other cultural landscapes and call for the need to validate the typical pattern, which lays over the idea that there are significant differences among Millennials’ self-perception and perception of others about them. Because this information provides useful knowledge for brands to become more effective, it is crucial for managers of companies conducting business in a global context to be acquainted with it. This will promote the possibilities to create and maintain close relationships with the Millennials, taking into account the institutional setting in which they grew up. Finally, this study emphasizes the importance of environmental concerns in the current world, which may have the power to unite different generations for a single global cause, thus sorting out some of the confusion.