Greenhushing: the deliberate under communicating of sustainability practices by tourism businesses

Abstract

Link to Leeds Beckett Repository record: http://eprints.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/2355/ Document Version: ArticleThe aim of the Leeds Beckett Repository is to provide open access to our research, as required by funder policies and permitted by publishers and copyright law.The Leeds Beckett repository holds a wide range of publications, each of which has been checked for copyright and the relevant embargo period has been applied by the Research Services team.We operate on a standard take-down policy. If you are the author or publisher of an output and you would like it removed from the repository, please contact us and we will investigate on a case-by-case basis.Each thesis in the repository has been cleared where necessary by the author for third party copyright. If you would like a thesis to be removed from the repository or believe there is an issue with copyright, please contact us on openaccess@leedsbeckett.ac.uk and we will investigate on a case-by-case basis. JOST2885FR Greenhushing: the deliberate under communicating of sustainability practices by tourism businesses AbstractGreenhushing selectively communicates fewer pro-sustainability actions by businesses than are practiced; based on a perception of customers' rights to consumerism. We first studied the gap between the communication of sustainability practices in the audits and websites of 31 small rural tourism businesses in the Peak District National Park (UK). The analysis showed that businesses only communicate 30% of all the sustainability actions practiced. Their websites emphasised customer benefits, using explicit, affective, experiential and active language that legitimises the customers' hedonistic use of the landscape, while downplaying complex issues and normalising sustainability to reduce customer guilt. Just one website mentioned climate change. We found that greenhushing results from a low moral intensity, masking potentially negative consequences of perceived lower competence, whilst protecting business from more cynical consumers who may interpret their statements as hypocritical. Subsequent textual analysis and interviews were used to understand how communication constitutes these organisations. We propose that greenhushing reshapes and constitutes tourism businesses through their communications. Moreover, greenhushing is a form of public moralisation that adopts communication practices similar to greenwashing, reflecting the social norms expected from a business; however, in this case, located in a moral muteness, rather than moral hypocrisy, that businesses accept but resent.

A social‐cognitive framework of small accommodation enterprise sustainability practices

“…A significant contribution of these findings is the priority of socio‐cultural sustainability among all three groups despite different sustainability knowledge and self‐efficacy beliefs. All three groups see sustainability as a tool for socialization and relationship building contrary to previous sustainability studies that report primary motivations to reduce cost and as a tool for marketing products to customers (Font, Elgammal, & Lamond, 2017; Zorpas, 2010). For the first time in sustainability research, an active tourism owner‐managers emerge who understand sustainability as a tool for socialization deviating from the conventional cost reduction motives.…”

Influencing altruistic tourist behaviour: Persuasive communication to affect attitudes and self‐efficacy beliefs

“…Earlier research has shown that sustainability messages, even from sustainability award-winning firms, are not persuasive (Villarino & Font, 2015). This has been deemed to stem from their lack of belief that their messages will be effective (Borden, Coles, & Shaw, 2017;Font, Elgammal, & Lamond, 2017).…”

Exploring human resources, marketing and promotion activities towards the sustainable tourism development in Phu Quoc islands, Vietnam

“…These challenges hinder the ability of the tourism sector to attract and retain a competent workforce. Human resource development in tourism focuses on developing professionally-trained and educated workforce the host community and the tourists (Font et al, 2017).…”