The persuasive effect of humorous prompts on tourists’ heritage responsible behaviors

Purpose This paper aims to elucidate how humorous prompts affect tourists’ heritage responsible behaviors (THRBs). Design/methodology/approach Three scenario-based experiments were conducted through Credamo (an online survey platform). Studies 1 and 2 used a single-factor (language style: humorous vs serious) between-subject design to test the direct and indirect effects of humorous prompts. Study 3 used a 2 (environmental quality: high vs low) × 2 (language style: humorous vs serious) between-subject design to further reveal the boundary condition (environmental quality) of the humor effect. Findings The results revealed that humorous (vs serious) prompts better persuade tourists to engage in heritage responsible behaviors (HRBs). Content liking mediates the relationship between humorous prompts and THRBs. Moreover, environmental quality significantly moderates the effect of humorous prompts on THRBs, whereby the persuasive effect of humorous prompts is greater in high environmental quality conditions than in low environmental quality conditions. Practical implications Destination management organizations can use humor to reduce tourists’ reactance against prompts for behavioral persuasion. Moreover, it is also important to adapt humorous prompts to changes in environmental quality in a timely manner. Originality/value Based on psychological reactance theory, the research confirmed the dominant effect of humorous prompts by using content liking as a mediating variable, providing a new research perspective for research on the regulation of THRBs. Moreover, the authors clarified a boundary condition for the persuasiveness of humorous prompts, which helps reinforce the comprehension of humor persuasion.