Green and gamified! An investigation of consumer participation in green last-mile from a gamification affordance perspective

Abstract

As a recent phenomenon, gamification designs have gained increasing prominence in encouraging consumer participation in green logistics. The primary focus of this study is to investigate how gamification affects customer participation in green last-mile via e-commerce delivery platforms. Adopting an integrated perspective that combines gamification affordances and technology acceptance, this research explores both the utilitarian and hedonic motivations underlying green logistics. A survey questionnaire is designed for data collection (n = 387) and structural equation modelling is applied for data analysis. Our findings suggest gamification affordances of competition, achievement, self-expression, and interactivity as the factors that directly or indirectly influence consumers' intention to engage in green logistics behaviour. This influence is mediated through perceived enjoyment, ease of use, and perceived usefulness. Furthermore, we find that consumers may prioritise social factors such as interactivity affordance over competition and achievement affordances in the gamified green logistics behaviour. These insights not only contribute to a better understanding of consumers' green logistics behaviours but also provide valuable guidance for logistics providers seeking to promote environmentally friendly practices among e-commerce and logistics users.