Environmental awareness through green virtual reality scuba diving education for sustainable marine ecotourism

Marine ecotourism expansion has increased ecological pressures on fragile coastal ecosystems, highlighting the need for effective pre-dive environmental education. This study investigates the effectiveness of Green Virtual Reality (GVR)-based scuba diving education in enhancing environmental awareness within sustainable marine ecotourism contexts. A quantitative approach was employed using data from 212 undergraduate tourism students who participated in an immersive GVR intervention integrating scuba diving simulations, green learning principles, and local coastal wisdom. The results indicate that GVR scuba diving, usability, user experience, and cultural embeddedness significantly and positively influence learning engagement and environmental awareness. Learning engagement was found to partially mediate all antecedent–awareness relationships, demonstrating its critical role in transforming immersive and culturally contextualized VR experiences into environmental consciousness. The study extends the integration of the Stimulus–Organism–Response (S-O-R) framework and Experiential Learning Theory in marine education while offering practical guidance for educators, ecotourism managers, and policymakers designing sustainable pre-dive learning interventions.