An ethical triangulation approach to tourism

Abstract

This study examines how virtue and ethicality influence consumers' valuation of tourism. Drawing on the virtue principle and ethical triangulation theorization, this research implicitly and explicitly achieves its objectives. The findings in Study 1 reveal that responsible tourism (vs. mass tourism) is implicitly perceived as being more virtuous (vs. being a vice). In Studies 2–4 with explicit examinations, the three ethical perspectives of consumers' good, right, and authentic behaviors are stronger in sustainable tourism contexts than in mass tourism contexts. The results confirmed the gaps between consumers' desires, thoughts, and behavioral perceptions. This research, therefore, highlights sustainable tourism's contribution and relevance, offering tourism scholars and practitioners a guide to understanding consumers' reactions based on ethics to tourism offers.