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Abstract
Tourists’ environmentally responsible behavior (TERB) is crucial to the destination’s natural environment. Drawing on self-congruity theory, this study extends the existing literature on the underlying mechanism of TERB from the perspective of self-image congruity. Specifically, this study investigates the effects of actual and ideal self-image congruity on TERB by addressing the mediating role of destination psychological ownership (DPO) and the moderating role of endorsement of the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP). With 424 valid questionnaires collected from domestic tourists visiting Xiamen in China, this study finds that DPO fully mediates the positive effect of actual self-image congruity on TERB, whereas partially mediates the positive effect of ideal self-image congruity on TERB. Furthermore, the findings of this study suggest that endorsement of the NEP moderates the effects of actual and ideal self-image congruity and DPO on TERB, such that the relationships are stronger when endorsement of the NEP is high rather than low. Theoretically, this study makes a valuable addition to the TERB literature by empirically examining the roles of self-image congruity, DPO, and endorsement of the NEP. Practically, some helpful implications are proposed to stimulate TERB.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank the reviewers for their beneficial suggestions that helped improve this paper.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
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Notes on contributors
Shuhao Li
Shuhao Li is a PhD candidate at the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, School of Management, Xiamen University. His research interests include tourism impact and tourist behavior.
Min Wei
Min Wei is a Professor at the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, School of Management, Xiamen University. His research interests include tourism impact and tourist behavior.
Hailin Qu
Hailin Qu is the Regents Professor and William E. Davis Distinguished Chair as well as the Director of the Center for Hospitality and Tourism Research in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Oklahoma State University. His research interests are hospitality and tourism service quality and consumer behavior and loyalty.
Shangzhi (Charles) Qiu
Shangzhi (Charles) Qiu is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, School of Management, Xiamen University. His research interests include hospitality and tourism marketing, tourist behavior, and rural tourism.