Positive Emotional Appraisal and Tourist Misbehavior Intention: A Stimulus–Organism–Response Perspective on Moral Disengagement and Relative Power

Tourist misbehavior poses significant challenges for destinations worldwide, yet the psychological mechanisms through which exposure to others’ misbehavior shapes tourists’ own behavioral responses remain undertheorized. Drawing on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model, this study conceptualizes observed tourist misbehavior as an environmental stimulus that elicits positive emotional appraisal in observers, which influences moral disengagement and misbehavior intention. Data were collected from a U.S. sample (n = 583) through a survey depicting low-severity tourist misbehavior at an international destination. Results indicate that positive emotional appraisal relates to moral disengagement and misbehavior intention. Relative national power moderated the relationship between emotional appraisal and moral disengagement, such that the positive effect was stronger among tourists who perceived their home country as comparatively powerful.