Consumer Intention toward Genetically Modified Food: A Moderated Mediation Model

Debate about Genetically Modified Food (GMF) has received much attention in concurrence with the development of biotechnology. This paper examines consumers’ intentions towards GM food in Iran. Given the potential of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in shaping consumers’ behavior, relationships between CSR, trust, and health concerns with consumer intentions towards GM foods have been investigated rarely. This study used a moderated mediation analysis to understand how health concerns, trust in GM foods, and CSR perceptions affect consumer intentions towards GM foods. A survey study with 389 consumers indicates that health concerns reduce trust in GM foods, but trust exerts a positive influence on consumers’ intentions toward these products, thus playing a mediating role between health concerns and consumers’ intentions. More importantly, CSR perceptions magnify the positive effect of trust in GM foods on consumers’ intentions, thus offering evidence for a moderating role of CSR perceptions.