Sustainability or instant gratification? A study on Chinese perspectives of ‘pay-as-you-use’ smart energy meters in budget hotels

Abstract

In response to the growing demand for sustainable practices in the hospitality industry, many hotels have concentrated on operational measures to reduce energy consumption. However, the potential for promoting voluntary customer-initiated energy-saving behaviors has been largely overlooked. This study fills that gap by investigating how environmental values (egoistic, altruistic, and biospheric) among Chinese consumers shape their attitudes, personal norms, and behavioral intentions to book budget hotels equipped with ‘pay-as-you-use’ smart energy meters (SMEMs). Unlike previous research, which primarily focuses on consumers’ willingness to pay a premium for green hotels, this study emphasizes cost-saving, pro-environmental behaviors—particularly relevant for cost-conscious travelers. The central challenge lies in understanding how financial incentives and real-time energy usage feedback can effectively drive sustainable behavior in transient hotel settings. The study also examines the moderating role of instant gratification in these relationships. This study employed Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS and multiple-group analysis (MGA) on data collected from 929 Chinese participants. The findings reveal that environmental values significantly influence attitudes, personal norms, and intentions to book hotels with SMEMs. Moreover, the relationship between environmental values and behavioral intentions is moderated by the level of instant gratification, underscoring the importance of immediate rewards in promoting sustainable consumer behavior. This study contributes to the literature by extending the Values-Attitude-Behavior theory and also provides practical insights for hotel managers seeking to align sustainability goals with consumers’ preferences for cost savings and instant gratification.