Consumer understanding of climate targets is low and hard to improve: evidence from three online studies

Many firms publicize net-zero or carbon neutral targets, yet it is unclear whether consumers understand these targets. Policy proposals-as well as recent court rulings-call on firms to explain what those targets mean. We test whether such explanations enhance consumer understanding in two online studies with nationally representative U.S. samples (N=300; N=1,500) and in a large-scale webcam-based eye-tracking experiment (N=500). Baseline knowledge is low: 95 percent of respondents fail to name even one defining feature of net-zero or carbon neutral targets, yet they are willing to pay a price premium for gift cards from companies with such targets. Concise disclosures raise objective understanding when a single product is shown, but none of the formats alter willingness to pay. In a more realistic setting with multiple products and competing cues, disclosures attract substantial gaze time, yet no longer improve comprehension; the visually salient color-coded format is associated with more misconceptions. These findings contribute to the growing evidence that individual-level measures, such as information provision, may be a less effective response to systemic problems like global warming than previously thought.