Experience, appraisal, and sustainable action: why memorable tourism experiences activate green consumption and pro-environmental behavior differently

Despite acknowledgment that tourism experiences shape environmental behavior, the psychological processes through which experiential memories translate into forms of sustainable action remain poorly theorized. Drawing on Appraisal Theory of Emotion and Experiential Value Theory, this study offers a theory-building interpretation of how memorable tourism experiences (MTE) relate to two sustainable outcomes – pro-environmental behavior (PEB) and green consumption (GC) – through cognitive–affective pathways. Destination attractiveness (DA) is conceptualized as a cognitive appraisal outcome reflecting tourists' retrospective evaluations of whether a destination met their expectations, while positive emotions (PE) are positioned as an affective appraisal outcome. Survey data from 387 tourists across five eco-certified island destinations in Vietnam, analyzed via PLS-SEM, reveal a theoretically meaningful asymmetry: MTE is associated with GC but not PEB, with DA and PE fully mediating the MTE–PEB relationship but only partially mediating the MTE–GC relationship. This pattern is consistent with the interpretation that experience-to-behavior translation depends on the motivational demand of the target behavior. Because the data were not originally collected to test appraisal theory, the appraisal-based reinterpretation remains provisional and subject to confirmation in prospectively designed studies. The consistency between empirical patterns and theoretical expectations supports this interpretation, with implications for experience design and sustainability programming.