Multiple mediating effects in the association between hotels’ eco-label credibility and green WOM behavior

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of hotels’ eco-label credibility (HELC) on customers’ green word-of-mouth behavior through triple mediating effects of biospheric and egoistic values, pro-environmental attitude, and green patronage intention. Data were collected from 304 customers of eco-label hotels in Hong Kong. The PROCESS Macro plug-in software model (6) was employed to assess the hypotheses’ direct, indirect, and triple mediating effects. The results showed that HELC did not have a significant link to green word-of-mouth behavior. However, the triple mediation effects of biospheric and egoistic values, pro-environmental attitude, and green patronage intention between the impact of HELC and green word-of-mouth behavior were confirmed. This study contributes to the existing literature in the hospitality field by applying a robust theoretical background and examining consecutive chain-of-effects in environmental issues.