The impact of perceived environmental responsibility on tourists' intention to visit green hotel: The mediating role of attitude

Abstract

Although the hospitality and tourism industries contribute considerably to every country's economy, at the same time, it has negative effects on the climate. Hotel industry operations consume enormous amounts of energy which eventually contribute to environmental degradation. Hotel operations do not only cause environmental issues, but customers also play a significant role in creating these issues. Scholars, mainly in this field, have investigated the causes of environmental degradation from the perspective of hotel operations rather than customers. Therefore, this study aims to examine the influence of perceived environmental responsibility on tourists' attitude and intention to visit green hotels in Malaysia. It further examined the mediating role of attitude in between perceived environmental responsibility and intention. The study used a quantitative research design and interviewed 393 international tourists in Malaysia using systematic random sampling. For analysis techniques, the study used Structural Equation Modelling by PLS-SEM. The study found that consumers' perceived environmental responsibility influences significantly on tourists' attitude and intention. It also revealed that consumers' attitude mediates the in-between perceived environmental responsibility and intention to visit green hotels in Malaysia.