Understanding the factors that drive green buying intentions has become critical, as environmental issues continue to rise globally. The study investigates the influence of environmental commitment and green motivation on environmental identity and green purchasing intentions. Additionally, it assesses the mediating role of environmental identity in the relationships between environmental commitment, green motivation, and green purchasing intentions. Moreover, it examines the moderating effect of eco-conscious behaviour on the relationships between environmental commitment, green motivation, green identity, and green purchasing intentions. A total of 440 participants, who stayed in high-rate hotels in Sharm el-Sheikh, were asked to fill out the survey distributed. (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze data. The study outcomes confirmed that environmental commitment and green motivation significantly affect green identity and purchasing behavior. Besides, the results showed the essential mediator contribution of the environmental identity between environmental commitment and green motivation. In addition, it explains eco-conscious behavior as a moderator between the previously mentioned variables. The study contributes to the existing tourism literature by demonstrating the impact of green commitment and environmental motivation on making choices to buy eco-friendly products. Moreover, the results hold significant implications for researchers, policymakers, and tourism stakeholders.

Grounded in the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, this study investigates how negative workplace gossip (NWG) influences counterproductive work behavior (CWB) in the hospitality industry. It further examines the mediating role of self-esteem and the moderating influence of emotional contagion in shaping this relationship. While prior research has predominantly treated NWG as a social stressor or reputational threat, this study extends the COR theory by explicitly modeling the resource depletion mechanism, specifically, the erosion of self-esteem as a key pathway linking NWG to CWB. By doing so, it posits that gossip erodes self-esteem, a fundamental psychological resource that eventually leads to behavioral retreat or revenge. Within the COR framework, the study also presents emotional contagion as a unique moderating variable, emphasizing how individual differences in emotional susceptibility may either accelerate or buffer the process of resource loss. Data was collected from 437 employees working in five-star hotels in Sharm El-Sheikh using a structured questionnaire. Analysis via PLS-SEM revealed that NWG significantly increases CWB, both directly and indirectly, by undermining employees’ self-esteem. Additionally, self-esteem was found to mediate the NWG–CWB link, while emotional contagion moderated the impact of NWG on self-esteem, suggesting that individuals with better emotional regulation can maintain self-worth in the face of workplace gossip. The study offers both theoretical and practical insights, highlighting the value of incorporating emotional contagion within the COR theory to understand and manage gossip-induced stress. It also underscores the importance of emotional intelligence and HR practices such as training and selection in minimizing the harmful effects of gossip at work.

Environmental sustainability in tourism and hospitality has emerged as a critical focus of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, aligning with global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and national priorities such as environmental stewardship, human health, and future economic diversification. This study examines how perceived leader favoritism influences non-green behavior among hospitality employees, exploring malicious envy as a mediator and perceived organizational injustice as a moderator. A cross-sectional survey was administered to 412 employees across five major hotels in Riyadh. Measures included validated scales for perceived leader favoritism, malicious envy, non-green behavior, and organizational justice. Structural equation modeling tested hypothesized relationships and moderation effects. Perceived leader favoritism was positively associated with non-green behavior (β = 0.39, p < 0.001) and malicious envy (β = 0.58, p < 0.001). Malicious envy mediated the favoritism–behavior link (indirect effect β = 0.17, p < 0.01). High perceptions of organizational injustice strengthened these effects, exacerbating environmentally harmful behaviors. Interpretation: The findings reveal that unfair leadership practices undermine corporate sustainability efforts by provoking negative emotions and unethical environmental actions. Managerial interventions to enhance fairness and mitigate envy are imperative for achieving SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 13 (Climate Action), supporting Saudi Arabia’s goals in environmental sustainability, basic needs fulfillment, and future economies. Implementing justice-centered leadership programs can foster healthier organizational climates, promoting both employee well-being and ecological resilience.

Artificial intelligence (AI) marketing technologies are reshaping customer engagement in service sectors, yet their performance within integrated digital ecosystems remains poorly understood. Existing research often examines AI tools in isolation, overlooking how the holistic quality of the virtual customer experience (VCE) shapes their impact on consumer decisions, particularly in intangible service contexts such as telecommunications. This study addresses this gap by investigating the influence of four AI technologies—chatbots, dynamic pricing, voice search, and visual search—on purchasing decisions, with VCE tested as a critical moderating mechanism. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and survey data from 487 telecommunications customers in Saudi Arabia, the findings confirm significant positive direct effects for all four AI tools. Moreover, the VCE significantly amplifies these individual relationships and further strengthens their combined contribution to decision quality, enabling the model to explain 71.2% of the variance in purchasing decisions. The results indicate that competitive advantage in AI-enabled service markets depends not on deploying isolated technologies, but on orchestrating a coherent, high-quality virtual experience ecosystem. By integrating the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) framework, this study advances the theoretical understanding of how AI and experience design jointly enhance digital decision-making. Practically, it underscores the need for managers to prioritize integrated VCE design to drive sustainable consumption and strengthen customer loyalty in increasingly digital service environments.

The tourist and hospitality business, while economically significant, confronts rising pressure to line with sustainable development goals. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has evolved as a strategic instrument to increase sustainable performance (SP), however its internal pathways remain underexplored, particularly in developing nations. This study intends to explore the relationship between CSR and SP in Egypt’s tourist and hotel sector, adopting the Stimulus – Organism – Response (SOR) paradigm. It studies the mediating functions of green organizational culture (GOC) and green employee engagement (GEE), alongside the moderating influence of regulatory pressure (RP). Data were obtained through a standardized questionnaire issued via prominent travel agencies to employees across 34 multinational hotel brands in Egypt. A total of 295 valid responses were evaluated using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to test both direct and mediated effects. The results reveal that CSR considerably improves SP, with GOC and GEE acting as partial mediators. GOC demonstrated a stronger mediating impact than GEE. Furthermore, RP considerably affected the connections between CSR and the internal organizational components. These findings show the crucial significance of culture, employee involvement, and regulatory backing in transforming CSR initiatives into quantitative sustainable outcomes. Importantly, the study promotes the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals - particularly SDG 8, SDG 12, and SDG 13 - by identifying a roadmap by which hospitality organizations in emerging economies can institutionalize sustainability. This study provides practical guidelines for hotel managers and regulators and presents a robust conceptual foundation for future research on sustainable practices in service sectors.

This study examines the interplay between heritage value, cultural identity, and behavioral intentions in promoting sustainable roots tourism associated with Egypt’s Mamluk cultural heritage. While scholarly attention has predominantly focused on Egypt’s Pharaonic legacy, Mamluk-era sites (13th–16th centuries)—noted for their synthesis of Islamic architecture and geopolitical significance—remain understudied despite their potential for diaspora engagement. Employing the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), this research adopts a quantitative approach to analyze survey responses from 215 international visitors with ancestral ties to Mamluk-linked regions (Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Turkey). Regression analysis explained 62.3% of the variance in sustainable tourism intentions (R² = 0.623). Results revealed strong positive relationships among cultural heritage value (*r* = 0.730), cultural identity (*r* = 0.697), and sustainable behavioral intentions. Architectural aesthetics (M = 4.43/5) and emotional identity (M = 4.28/5) emerged as significant predictors, though perceived behavioral control (M = 3.98/5) suggested logistical barriers. The findings underscore the need for immersive storytelling, community-centered strategies, and policy reforms to enhance visitor experiences and preservation outcomes. This study promotes theoretical and practical approaches to sustainable tourism by integrating TPB with frameworks of historical values, so that Mamluk sites can be established as agents of socio-economic flexibility and cultural diplomacy. Limitations include the cross-sectional design and sampling focus, warranting longitudinal studies with broader demographic inclusion.