Disentangling Greenwashing Discourse: A Topic and Sentiment Analysis of Public Engagement on Twitter
The result's identifiers
Result code in IS VaVaI
<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F60460709%3A41110%2F25%3A103301" target="_blank" >RIV/60460709:41110/25:103301 - isvavai.cz</a>
Alternative codes found
RIV/60460709:41210/25:103301
Result on the web
<a href="https://www.acadlore.com/article/CIS/2025_13_2/cis130210" target="_blank" >https://www.acadlore.com/article/CIS/2025_13_2/cis130210</a>
DOI - Digital Object Identifier
<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.56578/cis130210" target="_blank" >10.56578/cis130210</a>
Alternative languages
Result language
angličtina
Original language name
Disentangling Greenwashing Discourse: A Topic and Sentiment Analysis of Public Engagement on Twitter
Original language description
Greenwashing—defined as the strategic misrepresentation of corporate environmental practices—has emerged as a focal point of critical discussion on social media platforms. In this study, discourse related to greenwashing on Twitter was analyzed to uncover key thematic structures, sentiment dynamics, and polarization patterns. A total of 308,075 tweets authored by 148,881 unique users between 1 January 2015 and 31 January 2023 were collected and subjected to topic modelling and sentiment analysis. Ten primary themes were identified: (1) Sustainability and Marketing, (2) Climate Change and Fossil Fuels, (3) International Summits and Activism, (4) The Green Deal, (5) Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Investments, (6) Plastic Waste, (7) Fast Fashion, (8) The Automotive Industry, (9) Deforestation, and (10) Food and Agriculture. Sentiment analysis, conducted using the Valence Aware Dictionary and Sentiment Reasoner (VADER), revealed a predominantly critical tone across the dataset. Negative sentiment was detected in 35.54% of tweets, while only 12.86% conveyed a positive stance; the remaining 51.6% were classified as neutral. These findings underscore the pervasive skepticism towards corporate environmental claims and highlight the perceived dissonance between green marketing narratives and actual corporate behavior. Furthermore, the study illustrates how public sentiment clusters around specific themes, suggesting issue-based polarization in perceptions of environmental credibility. By integrating topic modelling with sentiment polarity analysis, this research offers an empirical framework for evaluating public discourse surrounding greenwashing. The insights derived may inform both corporate sustainability communication strategies and policy interventions aimed at fostering transparency and accountability. Overall, the evidence points to an urgent need for more authentic, verifiable, and ethically aligned environmental messaging to restore public trust in sustainability initiatives.
Czech name
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Czech description
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Classification
Type
J<sub>imp</sub> - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database
CEP classification
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OECD FORD branch
50204 - Business and management
Result continuities
Project
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Continuities
S - Specificky vyzkum na vysokych skolach
Others
Publication year
2025
Confidentiality
S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů
Data specific for result type
Name of the periodical
Challenges in Sustainability
ISSN
2297-6477
e-ISSN
2297-6477
Volume of the periodical
13
Issue of the periodical within the volume
2
Country of publishing house
CZ - CZECH REPUBLIC
Number of pages
21
Pages from-to
295-315
UT code for WoS article
001524139800010
EID of the result in the Scopus database
2-s2.0-105010969478