The Impact of Positioning on Brand Equity with Mediating role of Perceived Knowledge and Moderating role of Skepticism in Green Brands

Introduction
In recent decades, public awareness regarding the depletion of natural resources, which plays a significant role in environmental degradation, has increased, and more individuals are now aware of environmental issues (Lotfian and Nasri, 2016). Sharples and colleagues analyzed the severe wildfires in Australia, which resulted in the loss of human lives, livestock, forests, infrastructure, etc. (Sitomrang et al., 2022). Among the environmental crises in Iran, the pollution of the Caspian Sea can be mentioned (Ramazani et al., 2017). On the other hand, the problem of global warming, caused by greenhouse gas emissions, significantly affects climate change, which can be somewhat controlled through recycling. According to researchers, the use of plastic packaging and disposable containers generates the most waste (Chen et al., 2017). Plastic waste ultimately ends up in landfills, generating methane, a hazardous greenhouse gas, and even reaches oceans, threatening marine life (Dehdar and Zahtabchian, 2022). Therefore, this research emphasizes the importance of using biodegradable plant-based disposable tableware from the Akuba brand instead of plastic disposables to mitigate its harmful effects on nature.
 
Methodology
The statistical population of this research consists of customers of Akuba 's plant-based disposable tableware. In this study, since the population size was not precisely known, it was considered infinite; therefore, a sample size of 384 individuals was selected using Morgan's formula. To collect data, convenience sampling was used, and the questionnaire was distributed virtually via social media platforms, including Telegram, Instagram, Eitaa, WhatsApp, etc. The questionnaire collection process occurred in several stages, ultimately yielding the desired sample size of 384 individuals. For data collection, standard questionnaires were utilized. The questionnaire used in this research was developed based on several standard questionnaires and a Likert scale. In this study, Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to determine reliability, with all values exceeding 0.7 (Danayi-Fard et al., 2008). To test the research model, structural equation modeling, a statistical method that provides researchers with tools to examine relationships among multiple variables in one model, was employed. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to assess the normality of the data. For statistical methods, SPSS version 27 and Smart PLS version 3 software were used.
 
Findings
In the first hypothesis, we sought to examine the impact of green brand positioning on perceived green brand knowledge in the Akuba brand. Based on the obtained data, as green brand positioning increases, perceived green brand knowledge also increases, indicating a direct and positive relationship between them; thus, the first hypothesis is confirmed. In the second hypothesis, we aimed to investigate the impact of green brand positioning on green brand equity in the Akuba brand. According to the obtained data, as green brand positioning increases, green brand equity also increases, demonstrating a direct and positive relationship; this hypothesis is also confirmed. The third hypothesis concerns the impact of perceived green brand knowledge on green brand equity in the Akuba brand, which, according to the findings, is confirmed, showing a positive and direct relationship between perceived green brand knowledge and green brand equity. The fourth hypothesis of this study examines the mediating role of perceived green brand knowledge in the relationship between green brand positioning and green brand equity in the Akuba brand, which was confirmed using the Sobel test, indicating that perceived green brand knowledge serves as a mediator between green brand positioning and green brand equity. The fifth hypothesis investigates the moderating role of green brand skepticism in the relationship between green brand positioning and perceived green brand knowledge in the Akuba brand, and the results indicate no significant effect between the examined variables. Finally, the last hypothesis examines the moderating role of green brand skepticism in the relationship between perceived green brand knowledge and green brand equity in the Akuba brand, which, according to the findings, indicates that green brand skepticism cannot moderate the relationship between perceived green brand knowledge and green brand equity; therefore, the impact of green brand skepticism as a moderating variable cannot be confirmed, and this hypothesis is rejected.
 
Discussion and Conclusion
As mentioned earlier. If the significance value (0.000) is less than 0.05 and the t-coefficient value is greater than 1.96, the null hypothesis is rejected and the first hypothesis is confirmed. According to these explanations and the presented results, it is clear that hypotheses 1 to 4 based on the lack of effect at the 5 percent error level are rejected. Therefore, the first to fourth hypotheses of the study based on the positive and significant effect of the variables are confirmed. In other words, the results of this study showed that green brand positioning has a positive and significant effect on perceived green brand knowledge and green brand equity in the Ecoba brand. Similarly, the mediating role of perceived green brand knowledge in the relationship between green brand positioning and green brand equity in the Ecoba brand was confirmed by the Sobel test and has a positive and significant effect. In hypotheses 5 and 6, the null hypothesis based on the lack of effect at the 5 percent error level is confirmed. Therefore, hypotheses 5 and 6 based on the significant effect of green brand hesitation as a moderator are rejected. Finally, the moderating role of green brand hesitation does not have a significant effect on the relationship between green brand positioning and green brand equity as well as between perceived green brand knowledge and green brand equity in the Acuba brand.