How counterfactual thinking and gamification influence green tourism consumption intention: a case study based on the role-playing game design of ‘Journey to the West’

While green consumption as an effective means to support sustainable development has permeated our daily lives, people frequently fail to translate this awareness into practical action. This paper introduces role-playing gamification design games in tourism environments to explore how thinking counterfactually about environmentally friendly behaviour can enhance one’s green tourism consumption intention. We designed the experimental context of the role-playing game based on the traditional Chinese myth ‘Journey to the West’ to better accommodate Chinese participants. Study 1 showed that environmental identity partially mediates the effect of counterfactual thinking on green tourism consumption. Study 2 demonstrated that the difference between the gamification presence group and the gamification absence group was statistically significant. Our findings provide evidences for the positive effects of counterfactual thinking on environmental identity, and offer a useful exploration of how to enhance green tourism consumption intentions.