The Comparative Effects of Digital Green Nudging, Gamification, and Monetary Incentives on Return Motivation in E-Commerce
Caterina Rauh, Eric Sucky, and Christian Straubert
International Journal of Electronic Commerce,
Volume 30, Number 2, 2026, pp. 254-288.
Abstract:
Online fashion retailers often use lenient return policies to compensate for the lack of physical product experience, effectively turning customers’ homes into fitting rooms. This convenience, however, contributes to high return rates. Digital nudges are widely used in e-commerce to influence decision-making. When these nudges promote environmentally friendly behavior, they are referred to as digital green nudges. Drawing on self-determination theory, this study examines how and whether digital green nudges influence return motivation. Within e-commerce loyalty programs, digital green nudging is often combined with other measures, such as gamification or financial incentives. Therefore, we analyze and compare how and whether combining digital green nudges with gamification or gamification and monetary incentives influences return motivation. Using structural equation modeling, we analyze data from a survey-based online experiment with US online shoppers (n=1949). Among other results, we show that these measures directly affect return motivation, indicating their role as extrinsic motivators. This study is the first to compare digital green nudges and their combinations with gamification and monetary incentives in the context of online returns. Overall, our results show that all three measures can help mitigate the challenges of lenient return policies. However, we observe side effects on intrinsic motivation that reduce purchase motivation.