How the frequency of hotels’ donations to sustainability initiatives affects tourists’ brand attitudes: The mediating role of goal focus

This study examines the impact of the frequency of hotel donations on tourists’ brand attitudes. Drawing on goal focus theory, we demonstrate that the frequency of donations activates two goal focus orientations. A process-focused goal orientation, which emphasizes the feasibility of the actions required to achieve a goal, is typically triggered by frequent donations. Conversely, an outcome-focused goal orientation, which highlights the desirability of the benefits associated with achieving the goal, is activated by one-off donations. Our findings show congruence effects between goal focus orientations and the framing of donation messages, including the framing of the donation target (what), location (where), and time (when). Specifically, in the context of frequent donations, a process-focused goal orientation generates more positive brand attitudes when hotels’ donation messages are framed with a specific donation target, aimed at serving local communities and offering immediate benefits. In contrast, with one-off donations, an outcome-focused goal orientation leads to more positive attitudes when donation messages are framed with a general donation target, aimed at a global contribution and providing distant-future benefits. This congruence ensures that the cognitive construal of donation messages aligns with tourists’ goal orientation, fostering positive brand attitudes and optimizing the effectiveness of hotels’ CSR communications.