Gen Z’s Expectations of Brand Responsibility: Navigating Social Justice, Mental Health, and Sustainability

Abstract

Generation Z (Gen Z) is a socially conscious and digitally savvy consumer segment that is becoming more and more focused on the brand's commitment to social justice, mental health support, and sustainability. However, despite increased corporate interest in socially responsible practices, little research exists explaining how the three of these dimensions affect Gen Z's understanding of brand authenticity and trust in a unified way. This study addresses this gap by discussing about the responsible brand actions and how responsible actions affect the authenticity and authenticity leads to the prediction of trust among Gen Z consumers in Bengaluru. A quantitative and cross-sectional research design was adopted, a structured questionnaire was used with the sample size of 300 Gen Z respondents being between the ages of 18-28 years. Multi-item Likert scales were created and used to measure Social Justice Engagement, Mental Health Support, Sustainability Practices, Perceived Brand Authenticity and Brand Trust. Data was analysed by the structural equation modelling (SmartPLS 4) on reliability, validity, direct effects, and mediation relationships. Findings indicate that all three dimensions of brand responsibility have a significant, positive effect on perceived brand authenticity with sustainability practices being the most effective. Perceived brand authenticity became a very powerful predictor of brand trust. Mediation analysis confirmed some partial mediating effect of authenticity between the dimensions of responsibility and trust, pointing to the suggestion that the reason why Gen Z trusts brands is not only because of the responsible action, but because of the authenticity of the action and its communication. The findings underscore the importance of authenticity as a key mechanism by which brands are connected to trust formation among Gen Z. Brands seeking to build strong and valuable relationships with young consumers must show consistent, transparent and long-term commitments to social and environmental issues. The research provides some practical information to marketers who are trying to create meaningful, honest branding strategies which will fit in with Gen Z's ethical expectations.