Running head: IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING

BEHAVIOR 1

The Impact of GHRM Practices on Consumer Purchasing Behavior Private Organizations

in Northern Iraq as Case Studies

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IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING BEHAVIOR 2

The Impact of GHRM Practices on Consumer Purchasing Behavior Private Organizations

in Northern Iraq as Case Studies

Introduction

In recent years, there has been a rise in research investigating how Green Human

Resource Management (GHRM) influences consumers' purchasing behaviors. The growing

number of people concerned about climate change and other environmental issues has increased

the number of people interested in sustainability methods, such as those tied to human resource

management. Through analysis of case studies involving private organizations in Northern Iraq,

this study explores the impact of GHRM practices on consumers' purchasing behaviors.

The emergence of global issues such as global warming and climate change in the recent

past has compelled different stakeholders to call for the implementation of green practices in

business operations, particularly consumers who are at the receiving end of such adverse effects.

GHRM is a solution that has emerged due to substantial environmental issues and the desire

from consumer groups for products that are friendly to the environment (Joshi & Rahman, 2019).

This need has led to the creation of GHRM as a solution to address these needs.

Previous studies indicate that an increasing number of companies are adopting business

practices that are less harmful to the environment. This is because implementing such measures

lessens the detrimental effects on ecological systems. "Green practices" refers to activities that

cause the least harm to the surrounding environment. It is now very necessary for enterprises to

undertake environmentally friendly practices, which typically involve the HR department as a

potential driver of organizational change (Welz & Stuermer, 2021). To improve their

environmental performance by cultivating their human capital, many companies are moving

away from the traditional HRM techniques and towards the Green HRM strategies.
IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING BEHAVIOR 3

Green HRM refers to the shift towards a more environmentally conscious and responsible

workforce by encouraging employees to behave ecologically responsibly. The change towards

Green HRM will affect the company's other stakeholders, including customers (Panda et al.,

2020). The phenomenon of environmentally conscious behavior by workers and consumers has

attracted much more attention in recent years. Even though there is a growing interest in green

HRM, the literature on this subject has not been well examined, and it is still in the early stages

of research (Joshi & Rahman, 2019. First, recent research has shown that GHRM practices can

affect environmentally responsible behavior and increase individual and organizational

productivity (Welz & Stuermer, 2021). In addition to examining other issues to research eco-

friendly practices, the research demonstrated that the longevity of an organization, the

environmental sustainability, and the positive environmental practices of staff are significantly

impacted by GHRM practices.

In addition, most of the previous studies on GHRM practices concentrate on just one of

the aspects of the large spectrum of GHRM: the performance of employees or ecologically

responsible behavior (Waqas, Yahya, Ahmed, Rasool & Hongbo, 2021). However, there has

only been very little research that has sought to investigate the impact that GHRM practices have

on the purchasing behavior of consumers.

Secondly, one of the studies concluded that green HRM influences many groups,

including workers, investors, consumers, and suppliers (Yusliza et al., 2019). Consumers'

attitudes and actions toward green private business practices have been studied previously (Yu,

Chavez, Feng, Wong & Fynes, 2020), as have consumers' intentions to engage in

environmentally conscious purchasing practices. The private industry has adopted green human

resource management strategies to increase customer satisfaction and loyalty (Martinez-Ruiz,

IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING BEHAVIOR 4

Ruiz-Palomino, Izquierdo-Yusta & Pick, 2023). Despite the studies mentioned above' efforts to

explain how green HRM affects employee behavior's foundations, no studies have yet

documented how foundations in employee relations affect customers' purchasing decisions.

Conserving the environment has become increasingly crucial in recent years (Kim, Kim,

Choi & Phetvaroon, 2019), prompting practically all businesses to adopt greener policies and

procedures. Only a few of the factors that influence sustainable purchasing behavior on the part

of buyers have been examined in previous research. The purchasing procedure has been studied

extensively (Welz & Stuermer, 2021). Also, both subjective norms and the perception of one's

behavioral control have been the topic of previous studies (Yang, Su, Wang & Hua, 2019). Other

areas that have been studied are the purchasing process's leadership and fairness and how it is

influenced by GHRM practices (Newman, Fast & Harmon, 2020).

Green human resource management incorporates environmental considerations into HRM

strategies. Increased employee engagement and environmental commitment are central to

GHRM, which aims to boost an organization's environmental performance and improve

consumer satisfaction (Gilal, Ashraf, Gilal, Gilal, & Chaana, 2019). Given the range of issues

and concerns that might arise from GHRM practices, the field employs a multidisciplinary

strategy that draws on concepts and methods from economics, management, psychology, and

sociology (Yusoff, Alias, & Ismail, 2022). GHRM encompasses all the research on the study,

acceptance, and adoption of human resource practices that affect long-term viability.

Even though GHRM practices have been shown to influence certain aspects of

sustainable consumer purchasing behavior, this topic has received little coverage in the literature

(Waqas et al., 2021). According to Joshi and Rahman (2019), the GHRM concept views

environmentally responsible purchasing practices on the part of consumers as an essential

IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING BEHAVIOR 5

component for enhancing environmental implementation and success of GHRM approaches. The

findings of the GHRM study offer unexplored ways of thinking about human resource

management and environmental sustainability. GHRM which addresses HRM practices

associated with environmental protection and the ecological effects of businesses, is directly

connected to green purchasing strategy and consumer environmental responsibility.

This study article aims to fill various research gaps in four different areas. First, the

research investigates how Green HRM practices affect consumers' purchasing behaviors.

Besides, it examines how eco-friendly practices in the workplace affect customers' reactions to

Green HRM. Thirdly, it explores how the performance of employees is a moderating element

between environmentally responsible human resource management and consumers' buying

decisions. Further, the study researches how the levels of self-doubt that employees experience

influence the connections between Green HRM and outcomes such as eco-friendly behavior and

productivity.

This research can potentially produce both theoretical and practical benefits in the future.

Green human resource management is a concept that plays a significant role in determining

customer purchasing behavior and employee behavioral outcomes such as eco-friendly behaviors

and productivity. In addition, it adds to the literature about how GHRM techniques influence

customers' purchasing decisions. Businesses should use Green HRM practices to protect their

reputations and increase their bottom lines.

The primary objective of this research is to investigate the influence of GHRM practices

on consumers' purchase decisions in Northern Iraq by using case studies of private organizations

in the region. This study aims to investigate the degree to which private organizations in

Northern Iraq have implemented GHRM and to determine how this has impacted their
IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING BEHAVIOR 6

customers' purchasing patterns. This study utilizes both primary and secondary sources of data.

The core data for the study was amassed through questionnaires and surveys from 150

respondents who had purchased from private organizations in Northern Iraq within the past six

months. Using questionnaires and surveys to gather data for this project is vital because the data

is accurate and relevant to the topic. The specificity of the data allows for the collection of

information relevant to the study's aims and objectives. Secondary sources utilized in the study

include reviewed journals, reliable websites, and reports from private businesses. These sources

are easily accessible and save time.

This research report examines several other significant elements, including the theoretical

framework, problem statement, study objectives, hypothesis, significance of the study, and

definition of terms used in the research paper. In the context of a commercial environment, this

study analyses individual disparities in performance via the lens of the AMO model. The AMO

Framework is a great tool for illustrating the impact of GHRM practices on consumers' purchase

decisions.
IMPACT OF GHRM PRACTICES ON CONSUMER PURCHASING BEHAVIOR 7

References

Gilal, F. G., Ashraf, Z., Gilal, N. G., Gilal, R. G., & Chaana, N. A. (2019). Promoting

environmental performance through green human resource management practices in

higher education institutions: A moderated mediation model. Corporate Social

Responsibility and Environmental Management, csr.1835.

Joshi, Y., & Rahman, Z. (2019). Consumers’ sustainable purchase behavior: Modeling the

impact of psychological factors. Ecological Economics: The Journal of the International

Society for Ecological Economics, 159, 235–243.

Kim, Y. J., Kim, W. G., Choi, H.-M., & Phetvaroon, K. (2019). The effect of green human

resource management on hotel employees’ eco-friendly behavior and environmental

performance. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 76, 83–93.

Martinez-Ruiz, M. P., Ruiz-Palomino, P., Izquierdo-Yusta, A., & Pick, D. (2023). The influence

of food values on satisfaction and loyalty: Evidence obtained across restaurant

types. International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science, 33(100770), 100770.

Newman, D. T., Fast, N. J., & Harmon, D. J. (2020). When eliminating bias isn’t fair:

Algorithmic reductionism and procedural justice in human resource

decisions. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 160, 149–167.

Panda, T. K., Kumar, A., Jakhar, S., Luthra, S., Garza-Reyes, J. A., Kazancoglu, I., & Nayak, S.

S. (2020). Social and environmental sustainability model on consumers' altruism, green

purchase intention, green brand loyalty, and evangelism. Journal of Cleaner

Production, 243(118575), 118575.
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Waqas, M., Yahya, F., Ahmed, A., Rasool, Y., & Hongbo, L. (2021). Unlocking employee’s

green behavior in fertilizer industry: the role of green HRM practices and psychological

ownership. International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, 24(5), 827–843.

Welz, T., & Stuermer, M. (2021). Monitoring Sustainable Public Procurement Behaviour –

Demand-side Analysis of public tenders in Switzerland. Verlag der Technischen

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Yang, S., Su, Y., Wang, W., & Hua, K. (2019). Research on developers’ green procurement

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Yu, W., Chavez, R., Feng, M., Wong, C. Y., & Fynes, B. (2020). Green human resource

management and environmental cooperation: An ability-motivation-opportunity and

contingency perspective. International Journal of Production Economics, 219, 224–235.

Yusliza, M.-Y., Norazmi, N. A., Jabbour, C. J. C., Fernando, Y., Fawehinmi, O., & Seles, B. M.

R. P. (2019). Top management commitment, corporate social responsibility, and green

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Yusoff, N., Alias, M., & Ismail, N. (2022). The role of GHRM practices towards sustainable

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Atlantis Press International BV.