Good deeds deserve good outcomes: Leveraging generative artificial intelligence to reduce tourists' avoidance of ethical brands embracing stigmatized groups

Abstract

Incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusivity often leads tourism brands to support stigmatized groups, yet tourists may perceive these groups negatively and avoid these brands. Drawing from one field study on the Facebook Ad platform and two experimental studies, we find that brand avoidance among tourists is reduced when tourism brands adopt AI-generated (vs. human-generated) moral content to support stigmatized dissociative out-groups. This effect is mediated by tourists' psychological proximity to these groups and is weakened for those with a strong sense of common fate with these out-groups. These insights contribute to tourism literature on generative AI and diversity, equity, and inclusivity while offering strategic guidance for brands seeking to embrace stigmatized groups.