Understanding in-room water conservation behavior: The role of personal normative motives and hedonic motives in a mass tourism destination

Abstract

Water is a key resource in tourism destination management, especially in areas where water is scarce. Tourists' water consumption in hotels, especially in-room water use, is particularly relevant because of its magnitude and because it can be controlled by the tourists themselves. The present study therefore examines the underlying motives of tourists' in-room water conservation behavior using a sample of actual hotel guests at four-star hotels (n = 681) in the Spanish sun, sand, sea, and leisure tourist destination of Benidorm. Benidorm is one of the most important tourist destinations in the Mediterranean and is of great interest for studies of water consumption because it is located in an area of water scarcity. Building on goal-framing theory, this study shows that hedonic motives are more important than personal normative motives in relation to in-room water conservation behavior. The results also show that personal norms might be able to reduce the negative influence of hedonic motives on responsible water behavior. Furthermore, guests' outcome efficacy and local problem awareness are important factors in the norm activation process. The paper concludes by highlighting implications for the design of social marketing programs to reduce guests’ water consumption and discussing directions for future research in a hotel setting.