Dual-route persuasion and moral norm activation as drivers of sustainable behavior adoption in UNESCO creative cities of gastronomy

Purpose This study examines how dual-route persuasion mechanisms, grounded in the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), shape sustainable behavior adoption in UNESCO Creative Cities of Gastronomy through the activation of moral norms. It seeks to identify both influential and necessary persuasion-based determinants that drive tourists' norm-based engagement with sustainable gastronomic practices. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 1,393 Thai domestic tourists visiting Phuket and Phetchaburi, Thailand. A hybrid analytical framework was applied, combining partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to assess probabilistic relationships and necessary condition analysis (NCA) to identify structural prerequisites for moral norm activation and sustainable behavior adoption. Constructs reflected central-route (argument quality, message relevance, cognitive elaboration and need for cognition) and peripheral-route (source credibility, esthetic appeal, social proof and emotional appeal) persuasion variables. Findings PLS-SEM results reveal that both central and peripheral persuasion cues significantly influence moral norms, with cognitive elaboration and emotional appeal being the strongest predictors. Moral norms exerted a dominant effect on sustainable behavior adoption, confirming their pivotal mediating role. NCA results further demonstrate that argument quality, message relevance, cognitive elaboration, source credibility and esthetic appeal are structurally necessary conditions for moral norm activation, while moral norms represent an indispensable prerequisite for sustainable behavior adoption. Originality/value This study contributes novel insights by bridging dual-route persuasion theory with moral norm activation in the context of UNESCO gastronomy, providing an integrated model that explains how gastronomic persuasion evolves into norm-driven sustainable behavior.