Abstract

This study examines the impact of parental gender and the number of children on pro-environmental consumption intentions, utilizing data from South Korea. Traditionally, mothers with children have been regarded as the primary consumers in the green market, with prior research emphasizing gender differences and child presence as key determinants. However, emerging evidence suggests that the number of children, rather than child presence alone, may be a more precise predictor of pro-environmental behavior. The present study examines the interaction between parental gender and the number of children and explores the underlying psychological mechanisms through motivational(climate anxiety) and cognitive(cognitive fluency) perspectives. An online survey of 1,217 Korean adults revealed a significant interaction between gender and the number of children. Specifically, having more children was positively associated with pro-environmental consumption intentions for men, whereas no such relationship was observed for women. Mediation analyses confirmed that this effect was explained by climate anxiety, with the indirect pathway being significant only for men. Conversely, when analyzing child presence instead of the number of children, only the main effects of gender (women > men) and child presence (presence > absence) were significant. These findings challenge traditional gender-based assumptions in pro-environmental consumption and underscore the evolving role of fathers in pro-environmental consumption. Implications for consumer behavior, green marketing strategies, and environmental policy are discussed.