Elderly Tourists' Motives for Virtual Tourism and Its Impact on Subjective Vitality

ABSTRACT Tourism serves as a vital approach for promoting active aging. In recent years, virtual tourism has emerged as a promising alternative to traditional travel, offering the elderly new opportunities to enhance their mental health and well‐being. Grounded in self‐determination theory, this study explores how elderly tourists' motivations—specifically autonomy (convenience, usability), relatedness (cultural exploration, interpersonal seeking), and competence (continuous learning, ego‐enhancement)—influence virtual tourism involvement, destination psychological ownership (DPO), and subjective vitality. Survey data from 364 participants aged 60 and above across multiple countries were analyzed using AMOS and SPSS. The results reveal that all six motivations positively predict virtual tourism involvement. DPO mediates the relationship between involvement and subjective vitality, whereas fear of missing out moderates the link between involvement and DPO. This study deepens the understanding of elderly tourists' psychology in virtual tourism, offering insights for designing age‐friendly virtual experiences that promote well‐being and engagement among them.