Empowering green disposal behavior: the influence of gamification affordances and the multi-goal frame

Green disposal behavior (GDB) is the final, crucial behavioural outcome in the three stages of environmentally responsible consumption, which comprise the acquisition, use, and disposal of goods or services. With the increasing adoption of gamification in e-commerce platforms, many game-based green disposal activities have attracted millions of online users’ engagement and thus affected their cognition, motivation, and GDB. Previous studies have identified that motivation contributes to environmentally responsible consumption. However, the exploration of the inner psychological mechanism of multi-goal motives in gamification has been limited. Based on the ‘affordances–psychological outcomes–behavioral outcomes’ framework, we examine the relationships between gamification affordances, the multi-goal frame, and GDBs. The survey analysis of 420 users of a gamified disposal e-platform reveals that gamification affordances (i.e. autonomy support and interactivity) may energise GDB through the chain mediating intrinsic motivation of the multi-goal frame. The findings expand existing understandings of the inner psychological motivation and behaviour in the gamified context and call for design attention to influential gamification affordances that stimulate end-users’ attention and engagement.