Antecedents, manifestations, and environmental consequences of destination anthropomorphism: The case of nature-based destinations

Abstract

Destinations are increasingly seen as representing human appeals. This research adopts a qualitative design, employing semi-structured interviews to delve into the anthropomorphism of nature-based destinations as perceived by travelers. It draws on psychological ownership theory to highlight the importance of anthropomorphism-induced psychological ownership in promoting tourist engagement in environmentalism. The results first unveil five essential stimuli of anthropomorphism: natural scenery, culture, referrals, self–place relations, and marketing promotion. Situational embodied experiences and dispositional anthropomorphic tendencies are also unfolded. These compelling forces can entice travelers to attribute human qualities to nature-based destinations. Moreover, perceiving nature-based destinations with human attributes can foster the development of psychological ownership toward such places, inducing travelers to act in environmentally friendly ways. Together, this research bridges the gap between destination anthropomorphism and environmental engagement through the lens of psychological ownership, introducing the nascent concept of anthropomorphism-induced psychological ownership. It addresses the pressing issue of environmentally less friendly behavior during vacations due to the hedonistic nature of tourism, highlighting the importance of anthropomorphism–psychological ownership–environmentalism development in motivating tourists to embrace environmentally friendly behavior during their travels. This anthropomorphism–psychological ownership–environmentalism development manifests the internal state of travelers with strong cognitive and emotional connections to destinations they visit, especially when induced by the anthropomorphic appeals of those destinations.