Understanding the gap of tourists’ pro-environmental intention and behavior in nature-based destinations: a social dilemma perspective

Despite widespread pro-environmental awareness, tourists’ behaviors often fail to align with their intentions, creating a persistent intention-behavior gap in nature-based tourism. Drawing on social dilemma theory, this study reframes that gap as a weakening of conditional cooperation within shared-resource systems under perceived social loafing. Using a longitudinal field survey (Study 1, N = 263) and an incentive-compatible experiment (Study 2, N = 427), this study shows that perceived social loafing weakens the translation of pro-environmental intentions into actual behavior. This moderating effect operates through two parallel psychological defenses: powerlessness and moral disengagement. An anonymous donation task involving real monetary sacrifice further shows that the gap is most pronounced under high-cost conditions. These findings advance theory by framing the intention-behavior gap as a collective-action problem, clarifying the psychological mechanisms underlying behavioral withdrawal, and offering practical guidance for destination managers seeking to foster sustainable tourist behavior.