Presenting a Paradigm Model of Green washing based on the Grounded Theory Approach

Greenwashing is considered as a deliberate and conscious deception of the consumer in relation to the environmental activities of an organization or the environmental benefits of a product, which has adverse consequences for various groups, including consumers, stakeholders and the environment, therefore, the purpose of this article was to analyze the different angles of greenwashing in the real context of the companies active in the dairy industry, as well as to identify and explain this phenomenon. The philosophy of this research is interpretive, its approach is qualitative, and the strategy used is grounded theory based on the emergent approach. The studied community included managers and activists of the dairy industry and related organizations, 15of whom were selected through purposive sampling until reaching theoretical saturation, and the research data was collected through semi-structured interviews. In order to check the strength of the research, the four criteria of reliability, transferability, reliability and verifiability have been used. The relevant data analysis has been done using MAXQDA software and open, central and selective coding processes, and during continuous comparison, 427codes, 27concepts, 11categories and 2categories have been obtained. which has led to the emergence of the final model of research around the central category under the title of "companies greenwashing actions" model. The mentioned model includes the causes and results related to the central category of the research. In general, this study, by explaining the greenwashing measures theory, has provided the necessary platform for understanding this category of measures as well as their control and prevention.