Determinants of intention to use electric vehicles: The role of environmental awareness and concern of young consumers
Abstract
This study investigates the socio-psychological and cognitive factors that shape the behavioral intention to adopt electric vehicles (EV) among young consumers, a demographic essential to the nation's transition toward sustainable urban mobility. Utilizing an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) framework, the study explores the influence of environmental awareness and concern alongside traditional behavioral constructs. The authors adopted a mixed-methods approach: qualitative research was first conducted to develop measurement scales, followed by a quantitative survey distributed online. The data were collected via an online convenience sampling method, resulting in 255 valid responses from participants predominantly aged 18 - 35. Analysis using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) reveals that perceived behavioral control (β = 0.363, p<0.01) is the most significant predictor of intention, followed by attitude (β = 0.350, p<0.01) and subjective norms (β = 0.144, p<0.01). Crucially, while environmental awareness (β = 0.472, p<0.01) and environmental concern (β = 0.298, p<0.01) significantly impact consumer attitudes, they exhibit no direct statistical effect on usage intention. This finding confirms an indirect - only mediation model, where environmental consciousness must be internalized as a positive attitude toward the product before it translates into actionable intent. The proposed model explains 64.3% (R²= 0.643) of the variance in usage intention, demonstrating moderate to strong explanatory power. The findings highlight that, in the context of an emerging EV market such as Vietnam, environmental cognition alone is insufficient to drive behavioral intention unless it is translated into favorable attitudes. Practical constraints, such as infrastructure availability and financial capability, play a more decisive role. This study contributes to the literature by clarifying the indirect mechanism through which environmental factors shape EV adoption and provides implications for policymakers and businesses to enhance EV adoption through infrastructure development, financial incentives, and targeted communication strategies.