The influence of awareness, social influence, and environmental factors on green banking services adoption among university students in Tanzania

The banking sector has increasingly integrated environmental sustainability into its operations through green banking. Green banking aims to reduce the carbon footprint of banking activities, promote sustainable development, and encourage customers to adopt environmentally friendly financial practices. Despite its benefits, individuals' adoption of green banking remains varied. Thus, this study aimed to assess the direct impact of awareness, social influence, and environmental factors on the adoption of green banking among university students in Tanzania, using the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology as the guiding theoretical frameworks. The targeted population of the study was university students in the Morogoro Region. A cross-sectional design was applied in collecting data through structured questionnaires from 287 students across four higher education institutions in the Morogoro Region. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling. The structural model demonstrated strong explanatory (R² = 0.597 for Perception; R² = 0.411 for Green Banking Services Adoption) and predictive power (Q² = 0.584 for Perception; Q² = 0.372 for GBSA), with satisfactory model fit (SRMR = 0.069). The findings show that while awareness significantly influenced perceived effectiveness (β = 0.047, t = 6.555, p < 0.05), it did not directly predict adoption. Instead, environmental attitudes (β = 0.080, t = 1.965, p < 0.05) and perceived effectiveness (β = 0.068, t = 3.102, p < 0.05) emerged as strong predictors of adoption behavior. Social influence, though unrelated to perceived effectiveness, had a direct and significant impact on adoption (β = 0.064, t = 5.210, p < 0.05), emphasizing the role of normative pressures in shaping behavioral intentions. The study concludes that awareness alone is insufficient; adoption is more effectively driven by environmental values, belief in the benefits of sustainable banking, and social influence. The study recommends that awareness initiatives strengthen environmental attitudes and highlight practical benefits, while universities and financial institutions leverage these efforts, peer influence, and student networks to normalize sustainable banking adoption. These results can be extended to any developing country.