This study will investigate the effects of induced awe on ethical tourist behavior. The positive emotion of awe has not been fully investigated in the context of tourism. This study will fill the gap by conducting an experimental design. The purpose of this study is to identify a message type that appeals to awe effectively. This study will be built on the construal theory. We will use a 2 (emotion: positive awe vs. negative awe) × 2 (message appeal: desirability vs. feasibility) between-subject design in study 1 and a 2 (emotion: positive awe vs. negative awe) × 2 (message appeal: desirability vs. feasibility).

Religious tourism is one of the most important touristic segments globally. Yet, the cognitive and emotional processes shaping destination loyalty in this context, and the impacts of Augmented Reality (AR) technology were not fully investigated. This study takes a unique approach to examine how awe influences recommendation and revisiting intentions through the mediation of rational (e.g., authenticity) and affective (e.g., emotional) mechanisms. Furthermore, our research unveils the role of AR for reinforcing the future intentions of tourists towards a religious site.