Navigating sentiment dynamics in social media: The role of information characteristics in promoting green consumption across multiple domains

Abstract

In the context of growing attention to environmental crises and sustainable development, the emotional expressions of social media users not only shape the formation of green consumption concepts but also facilitate the spread of related products and ideas. Understanding how information characteristics influence emotional expression and dissemination can enhance public guidance and emotional support for green consumption, thereby fostering a more effective green consumption culture. This study applies emotional contagion theory to conduct a comparative analysis of the dissemination mechanisms of emotional information across six domains: green clothing, green food, green housing, green transportation, green products, and green tourism. Using deep learning models, a cognitive-emotional evaluation framework, an extended Maslow's hierarchy of needs model, and social network analysis, the study extracts indicators such as sentiment classification, information demand hierarchy, and information presentation from textual data. These indicators are used to examine the breadth, depth, and influence of public sentiment in various green consumption networks. The results show that positive emotional information generally has a broader reach and stronger influence than neutral emotional information. Additionally, greater cognitive homogeneity tends to enhance the effectiveness of positive emotional information dissemination. The study also finds that dissemination behaviors vary across different green themes and information formats. Based on these findings, strategies for promoting positive sentiment and managing negative sentiment are proposed.