Gaining in Giving: Unveiling Continuous Engagement Intentions with the Chinese Pro-Environmental Gamification Ant Forest

Gamification is increasingly recognized as a promising intervention to promote individual environmental contributions. However, the understanding of the motivations for users’ continuous engagement intentions with gamified environment protection remains insufficient. This study explores users’ continuous engagement intentions with Chinese pro-environmental gamification Ant Forest, using a research model that integrates the norm activation model, warm glow theory, and technology acceptance model. By analyzing quantitative survey data collected from 525 players of Ant Forest, the model is empirically examined through structural equation modelling. The research results show that Ant Forest users are motivated by a combination of altruistic, egoistic, and pragmatic factors. The identified positive impact factors include personal norms, ascription of responsibility, awareness of consequences, perceived warm glow, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness in improving users’ environmental contribution efficiency. Surprisingly, users find Ant Forest enjoyable as a game irrespective of its environmental benefits, but they are not primarily driven by the perceived pure fun from game playing. The findings of the study not only offer a comprehensive explanation for the antecedents of continuous engagement intentions with pro-environmental gamification but also provide theoretical and practical implications for gamification research and design in environment protection contexts.