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Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, our indoor and outdoor leisure activities have profoundly changed. However, research on the way people negotiate leisure motivations with constraints and the relationship between leisure and quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic is scant. On the basis of in-depth interviews with 32 residents in South Korea in 2020, this study reveals that they proactively overcome leisure constraints;their leisure activities are not reduced but slightly modified (e.g. watching baseball games online vs. at a ballpark) or even increased (e.g. camping). When people articulate quality of life during the pandemic, work, health, and family are more salient themes than leisure and travel. Such finding is incongruent with previous research emphasising the importance of leisure and vacations in the quality of life. This study extends the model of leisure constraints negotiation to the context of a pandemic and advances our understanding of the multi-dimensional nature of the quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Leisure Studies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This research explores the social mechanism of luxury hotel membership programs and extends current loyalty program literature that has mainly examined membership programs from a mental-accounting perspective. By building upon the social identity theory, this study posits that luxury hotel membership programs provide social platforms, allowing members to construct a collective identity and collective self-esteem. Consequently, collective self-esteem is proposed as an antecedent of customer–brand relationship constructs, such as commitment, switching resistance, and word of mouth. Members from two South Korean luxury hotel membership programs were recruited to participate in a survey to test these constructs’ relationship, and findings demonstrate that membership programs’ effectiveness in cultivating a robust customer–brand relationship is contingent upon members’ collective self-esteem with the program. This correlation involves the four dimensions of collective self-esteem: membership esteem, private esteem, public esteem, and importance to identity. This study is preeminent to the current literature by identifying a critical psychological mechanism, which luxury hotel brand managers can leverage to successfully launch a membership program that ultimately cultivates enduring customer–brand relationships. The results of this study also suggest several managerial implications for hotel marketers to effectively design and manage membership programs by considering collective self-esteem’s four dimensions.

The purpose of this study is to examine how tourists' self-congruity and emotional solidarity are related and how this thereby influences travel satisfaction and destination loyalty. Notably, the roles that the different dimensions (i.e., communality and fairness) of intragroup emotional solidarity played between the constructs were scrutinized for an enhanced understanding of the relationships. Addressing these research questions, this study collected survey data from South Korean tourists to Korea's Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)—a destination of symbolic and emotional significance to Koreans—and analyzed them via structural equation modelling. Results demonstrated positive relationships between self-congruity and all emotional solidarity dimensions. However, only fairness was a meaningful predictor of travel satisfaction which then translated into destination loyalty. The findings indicate that in an emotional destination like the DMZ, self-congruity with the destination can give rise to emotional solidarity toward others, but emotional solidarity dimensions may function differently in triggering further changes in travel satisfaction or destination loyalty. Implications for theory and practice are discussed within the close of the article.

Purpose This study aims to investigate ways in which hotel loyalty programs can be designed to enhance customer’s identification with a hotel brand and develop a sustainable customer-brand relationship. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a cross-sectional design survey questionnaire for data collection and used structural equation modeling data analysis to test the conceptual model. Findings The three loyalty program experiences proposed (member-to-member similarity, memorable loyalty program experience and loyalty program social benefits) exerted significant positive effects on customer-brand identification (CBI), which, in turn, influences customer-brand relationship elements, including trust, commitment and switching resistance. Originality/value This study expands the scope of CBI literature, which previously focused substantially on brand level experiences, by being the first to explore a new set of CBI antecedents with a focus on loyalty program experiences. Furthermore, the current study’s findings delineate specific strategies to uphold the social and experiential aspects of loyalty programs that can develop sustainable customer-brand relationships.

This study explores the relationships of perception toward protests and perceived constraints with the theory of planned behaviour constructs in the context of the ongoing Hong Kong protests. The s...

Emotional labor is considered as part of occupational norms, especially in the upscale hotel industry that offers high-end customer services. This study focuses on the positive effects of surface acting and examines how hotel employees' surface acting, or the masking of real feelings and the corresponding display of desirable emotions is related to job satisfaction. The study tests the moderating role of emotional intelligence and the mediating role of perceived individualized consideration in the relationship between surface acting and job satisfaction. The current study highlights the role of supervisors’ individualized consideration as a moderated mediator of the surface acting–job satisfaction relationship. This research contributes to the literature by adding evidence in support of the bright side of emotional labor.

Although scholars have been interested in the relationships between various personality types and flow experience, research has neglected to examine consumer-oriented behavior from the standpoint of employee attachment styles when placed within specific types of hospitality settings. To address this gap, a comprehensive framework based on theories of personality and attachment was developed and tested to examine the effects that five personality types, in combination with job flow experience, organizational commitment, and consumer-oriented behavior have upon frontline casino service employees, when moderated by anxiety and avoidance attachment. Results reveal that employee personalities involving openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, and neuroticism have significant effects on job flow experience, which, in turn, positively influences employee organizational commitment and consumer-oriented behavior. Anxiety attachment moderates the relationships between these five personalities and job flow experience. Avoidance attachment was found to moderate the relationships between four of the five personality traits and job flow experience.

This study developed an extended model of goal-direct behavior (EMGB) to investigate the role of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) in predicting latent cruise travelers’ decision-making process in the COVID-19 pandemic context to foster the growth of a sustainable cruise business. An online survey was conducted for Korean respondents with experience of being on a cruise, and a total of 288 valid data were collected. The proposed model was examined using SmartPLS 3.0. Results show that in general, antecedents of MGB affected the desire, which in turn influenced cruise travelers’ behavioral intentions. Desire was also found to affect NPIs, which influenced behavioral intentions. Results reveal that the perception of COVID-19 affected NPIs and behavioral intention during COVID-19. Findings provide academia with theoretical implications and cruise managers with practical implications.

Service recovery performance has been identified as a key component for positive organizational outcomes and organizational success. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate unique factors that can influence service recovery performance. Although scholars have studied different types of organizational climate, there is no adequate research examining the mechanism between forgiveness climate and organizational outcomes. Linking these two areas of research for the first time, this current study examines the influence of a perceived forgiveness climate on service recovery performance through psychological safety and organizational fairness as mediators. Using quantitative data collected from 431 casino employees, this study revealed that employee perceptions of forgiveness climate was significantly positively related to perceived service recovery performance. More important, the study demonstrated the underlying mechanisms linking the two concepts. Specifically, the results demonstrated the mediating effect of psychological safety and organizational fairness between perceived forgiveness climate and service recovery performance. The findings suggest that organizations should promote a climate of forgiveness to enhance employees’ service recovery performance.

Temple stay is a creative form of religious tourism in Korea that offers an authentic local experience at a Buddhist temple. This study is to describe the experiences of international parti...

Integrated resorts have recently become a very popular destination for tourists. However, there is a lack of knowledge about general customers’ behavior in the integrated resort setting. Thus, this study focused on the perceptions, emotions, and behavioral intentions of recreational customers who had previously visited an integrated resort. The authors examine the structural relationship among the cognitive (i.e., passion and motivation), affective (i.e., affective attitude), and conative intention outcome of general integrated resort customers. Structural equation modeling analysis of 401 survey participants showed that the link between extrinsic motivation and obsessive passion reduced affective attitude. By contrast, the association of intrinsic motivation and harmonious passion promoted affective attitude. The conative intention outcome of customers is directly influenced by intrinsic motivation and affective attitude. This study contributes to academic and practical implications in the integrated resort brand marketing by focusing on recreational customers’ behavior.

Based on complexity theory, this study examines a configurational model that uses motivation antecedents and demographic configurations to explore the causal recipes that lead to high and low levels of Asian visitor satisfaction and loyalty. Data were collected from 183 Chinese and Japanese visitors to the Hanok heritage site in Seoul, South Korea. Asymmetrical modeling using a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis was applied and a combination of desired behavioral outcomes identified. Hanok experience from the motivation configuration and gender from the demographic configuration appeared as necessary conditions to make visitors satisfied and loyal. Key tenets of complexity theory are supported by the study's findings.

This study investigates how resident support for the development of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) Peace Park incorporates two key components (support and patriotism) as part of the theory of planned...

This study investigated (1) the positive effects of a company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) and responsible gambling (RG) strategies on residents’ perceived benefits and their quality of life (QOL); (2) the effects of residents’ perceived negative social impacts from casino development on their perceived benefits and QOL; and (3) whether these relationships are invariant across two gaming communities. We collected data from 458 residents of two gaming communities in the Gangwon Province of South Korea. The findings showed that economic CSR had the strongest positive impact on residents’ perceived benefits, followed by philanthropic CSR and supplementary RG. These factors also had significant indirect effects on residents’ QOL via perceived benefits. The negative social impacts factor was found to negatively influence residents’ perceived benefits and QOL. These relationships were statistically invariant across the two gaming communities. The current study offers a legitimacy and stakeholder theory-driven approach to examine CSR, gaming communities’ perceived negative social impacts and benefits from casino development, and QOL.

This study developed and tested a theoretical framework of event quality, motivation, value, and destination image in order to investigate visitors’ behavioral intentions to revisit an inte...

This study explores how residents' lives are influenced by their emotional and psychological responses to tourism development. In particular, we propose that residents' emotional solidarity with tourists and perceived tourism-related stress significantly affect individuals' quality of life (QoL) within their community. Findings reveal that the relationship between residents' emotional solidarity with tourists and perceptions of QoL are mediated by perceived tourism-related stress. Though the research connecting residents' emotional and psychological responses to tourism and their QoL continues to grow within the tourism literature, this work marks a new research direction that establishes connections among residents' emotional solidarity, stress, and QoL, using an integrated model. By focusing on the emotional and psychological aspects of tourism impacts rather than tangible ones, this study provides alternative perspectives to the existing QoL literature. Findings further expand the nomological network of tourism and the QoL research paradigm and inform tourism development policy.

This study explores whether heavy spenders in casinos are really loyal customers. It applies a volume segmentation technique in order to identify segments of the Korean casino market and then examines differences among emergent segments in terms of service quality, satisfaction, and loyalty. An onsite survey was conducted for casino gamblers at K casino, which allowed the research team to interview gamblers in a live gambling situation. A total of 470 usable questionnaires were collected. A two-step cluster analysis identified three emergent segments: recreational players, high spending players, and high frequency players. The results show that high frequency players were less satisfied with all four dimensions of casino service quality than recreational players. Ratings for satisfaction, loyalty, recommendation, and word-of-mouth were significantly lower for high frequency players and high spending players than for recreational players. These findings imply that, interestingly, traditional assumptions regarding customer loyalty do not seem to apply to the casino market. Casino marketers should focus on identifying truly loyal customers rather than merely heavy players to ensure their sustainable operation. This study addressed that volume segmentation appeared to be important in the casino industry and revealed unique characteristics of the Korean casino market.

The recent deployment of the THAAD system to South Korea has resulted in complex and controversial issues, particularly in the political, diplomatic, and economic relations between Korea and China [Perlez, J. (2017, May 31). China woos South Korea’s new leader, but the U.S. left behind a spoiler. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/31/world/asia/china-south-korea-xi-jinping-moon-jaein-thaad.html?_r=0]. To minimize its negative impact on international tourism, the underlying psychological mechanisms of Chinese tourists associated with this complex political issue should be determined. As an attempt to resolve the current crisis, this study identified the subjective characteristics of Chinese tourists who cancelled visits to Korea using Q-methodology and classified Chinese tourists’ attitude towards the THAAD issue. Based on respondent’s evaluations on Q-sample statements, four types of Chinese tourists were articulated, namely, patriotism, risk awareness, external dep...

This study investigated the relationships between tourism-related public relations, publicity, and tourism demand. Publicity was split into three aspects: attention, prominence, and valence based on multidimensionality of media salience. These relationships were tested in the context of United States tourists to South Korea using a system of equations. Empirical findings indicated that public relations and the three aspects of publicity had a significant effect on tourism demand. Public relations was also found to have a significant effect on the prominence and valence dimensions of publicity. However, public relations did not influence the attention dimension. Theoretical and practical implications along with suggestions for future research are presented.

More than two-thirds of seniors use smartphones and in South Korea, over half of all senior smartphone owners are mobile social media (MSM) users. This study tested two basic routes to persuasion in the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), applying the new concepts of benefits and authentic experience among senior MSM users for travel- and tourism-related purposes, along with the moderating role of discretionary time spent on MSM. To this end, an online survey was conducted for senior MSM users for tourism activities, and partial least squares structural equation modeling was employed to analyze data obtained from 500 study participants. Results reveal that argument quality had a stronger effect on benefit than source credibility. Benefits and authentic experience played important mediating roles in the ELM. Discretionary time on MSM played a significant moderating role in the central and peripheral routes. Theoretical and practical contributions are discussed in the conclusions section.

This study examines the antecedents and consequences of perceived “slow” value in a structural model – specifically, the role authenticity plays for visitors who seek slow food and participate in slow-life-related programme activities. Data were collected from participants in a slow-life festival in South Korea. Results show that slow-food-seeking behaviour has a significant effect on the authentic experience, and both concepts affect the perception of “slow” value of the event. Attitude and the intention to revisit were significant consequences of “slow” value. This study extends the knowledge about tourist behaviour in slow-life-related activities, particularly in a non-Western context, and suggests that a slow-life-related event should consider visitors’ preference for slow food and a programme that stages authentic experiences.

Purpose This study aims to explore the relationships among antecedents (i.e. quality) and outcomes (i.e. trust, support, theme awareness and extension effect) of satisfaction at the 2013 Osong Cosmetics & Beauty (C&B) Expo held in Korea. Design/methodology/approach An onsite survey with self-administered questionnaires was administered for this study. A structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was used to analyze the relationships among ten constructs in the research model. Findings The results indicate that hospitality and product dimensions of quality positively affect satisfaction, satisfaction exerts positive influence on trust and theme awareness, trust performs an important role as a mediator between satisfaction and support and theme awareness significantly mediates satisfaction and extension effect. Practical implications This study encourages the Expo’s organizers to manage quality attributes to ensure Expo satisfaction and to consider extension effects of Expo experiences from long-term perspectives. This study also recommends that local governments develop symbolic products with exhibitors to strengthen the association of Expo themes with regions. Originality/value The current study highlights the role of quality as an antecedent of satisfaction with the C&B Expo, which has not been well-known despite its crucial role in the industry and the regional economy. It also improves the understanding of the inherent cause–effect relationships among antecedents and outcomes of Expo satisfaction. Therefore, this study provides crucial insights that the C&B Expo could be an effective means to reach target markets and stimulate trust from visitors, which, in turn, would encourage support for the C&B industry and extension effects for C&B products as a whole.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether perceptions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives affect casino customers’ corporate image as well as the customers’ behavioral intentions (i.e., revisit intentions), through the lens of Carroll’s corporate social performance model, stakeholder theory, and legitimacy theory. This study also examines the mediating effect of corporate image on the relationship between perceived CSR and behavioral intentions. An onsite survey was conducted with 596 casino customers in South Korea. The results revealed that ethical CSR had the strongest impact on corporate image, followed by economic and philanthropic CSR. Only philanthropic CSR had a significant and direct effect on behavioral intentions. Corporate image mediated the relationship between three types of CSR (ethical, economic, and philanthropic) and behavioral intentions. Companies can benefit from these findings by understanding how specific CSR initiatives can enhance corporate image and increase customer retention. This study advances the emerging field of CSR in the gaming industry.

Bonding social capital affects interpersonal and group attachment to SNSs.Bridging social capital highly influences interpersonal and group attachment.Group attachment is significantly influenced by interpersonal attachment to SNSs.Group attachment has a strong effect on site attachment to SNSs for tourism.Seniors loyalty to SNSs is highly influenced by site attachment to the SNSs. The populations of seniors in developed countries around the world are increasing rapidly, resulting in changes in social dynamics and purchasing behaviors, specifically in information technology and tourism. This study analyzes relationships among bonding and bridging social capital (SC), interpersonal, group, and site attachments, and loyalty to identify what makes seniors loyal to social network sites (SNSs) for tourism. Results show that bonding SC affects interpersonal and group attachment and that bridging SC highly influences interpersonal and group attachment. Also, interpersonal attachment has a positive effect on group attachment, which, in turn, is highly influential on site attachment. In particular, group attachment has a strong effect on site attachment, but interpersonal attachment is not shown to affect site attachment. It is also notable that loyalty to SNSs is greatly influenced by site attachment. The findings contribute to the academic literature and provide useful information for practitioners maintaining SNSs.

Slow lifestyles have become a way for individuals to reduce the amount of stress in their lives. Moreover, along with wellness and slow food, slow life seeking is emerging as an area of study, though little research has been studied at Slow Life Festivals (SLFs) associated with consumers&rsquo, wellness pursuits, slow life seeking, and perceptions of slow food. To address this gap, this study examined visitors&rsquo, decision-making processes using an extended theory of planned behavior (ETPB) by incorporating wellness pursuit, slow life seeking, and perceptions of slow food at an SLF. Thus, this study developed a theoretically comprehensive framework by applying field survey. Results revealed significant impacts of visitors&rsquo, wellness pursuits and slow life seeking on their decision-making, indicating that wellness and slow life were important factors to consider for SLF management. The research further identified the perception of slow food as a mediator in predicting behavioral intentions. Results further demonstrated a strong relationship between wellness pursuit and perception of slow food for highly attached visitors while revealing a significant relationship between slow life seeking and perception of slow food for less attached visitors. Consequently, this study shed significant light on our understanding of why visitors intend to revisit SLFs.

This study explores how COVID-19-induced stress (CID) influences organizational trust, job satisfaction, self-esteem, and commitment in tourism and hospitality organizations. A total of 427 tourism affiliated employees in South Korea participated in an online survey. Using structural equation modelling (SEM), the proposed conceptual model reveals that CID stress in tourism/hospitality employees is negatively related to organizational trust, job satisfaction, and self-esteem which, in turn, is positively related to organizational commitment. CID stress also indirectly affects organizational commitment. The findings have significant strategic implications for tourism and hospitality organizations‒specifically, the provision of instrumental resources (e.g., safety glasses, latex gloves, hand sanitizers, facial masks) to alleviate their employees&rsquo, work-related stress during pandemics.

Our study investigated the follower perceptions of leader–member exchange (FPLMX) as a mediator between leader political skill (LPS) and follower morale and tested these relationships using data obtained from casino dealers in Korea. Social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability, and apparent sincerity are the indicators of LPS, while follower morale is composed of job satisfaction and affective organizational commitment. The results from structural equation modeling suggest that the research model we have proposed is viable. Broadly speaking, FPLMX is a partial mediator between LPS and follower morale.

The purpose of this study was to propose and test a quality–value–attitude model by examining the antecedents and relationships among these three constructs at the Shanghai Expo 2010. The results of the structural equation modeling revealed that controllable service quality characteristics, such as program content, staff, and convenience, significantly affected both visitors’ emotional and economic values that, in turn, influenced visitors’ attitude. The findings of the study render important conceptual insights for understanding mega-event attendees’ perceptions and provide practical implications for the event organizers and planners.

Since the 2008 global financial crisis and resulting recession, many countries have been following unconventional monetary policies. Little information is known on how these policies may influence tourism demand. This study starts to fill this gap by investigating the impact of the Japanese economic policy known as Abenomics on South Koreans’ travel to Japan, the largest inbound market for Japan. Per capita gross domestic product, relative prices, and exchange rates are significant determinants of Japanese inbound tourism. As these variables have been influenced by Abenomics, one can infer that Abenomics is associated with a significant increase in tourist arrivals from South Korea. Findings highlight the importance of government economic policy in stimulating international tourism demand through its impact on the economy.

This study examines the structural relationships among film quality, value, and satisfaction on the perspective of moviegoers. The experience economy concept is employed as the theoretical framework, where moviegoers’ cognitive and affective evaluations are projected in fulfilling their perceived value. Moviegoers’ perceived movie attributes and experiences are assessed to evaluate the moviegoers’ satisfactions through functional and emotional values. In particular, this article investigates how four dimensions of experience mediate the effect of movie attributes on perceived value and satisfaction. A total of 565 samples were analyzed with structural equation modeling to investigate the relationship of ‘quality—value—satisfaction.’ The findings show that two movie attributes (core and peripheral) affect three dimensions of experience (entertainment, educational, and escapist), which in turn influence functional and emotional values, and moviegoers’ satisfaction. The results also confirm that emot...

This study extends the leisure constraint-effects-mitigation model to the perceived behavioural control (PBC)- constraint-negotiation model by adding PBC. Three competing models were tested to determine which model best fits the data. Results suggested that PBC mediates the relationship between motivation and negotiation, and there is a direct path from motivation to participation. Findings contribute to deepening and broadening the theory of leisure constraint negotiation because the new variable was successfully added to the original model and the model was extended to new settings (i.e. solo travel and non-Western).

Elaboration likelihood model is employed to understand mobile tourism shoppers.Argument quality significantly influences perceived usefulness (central route).Source credibility has a significant impact on attachment (peripheral route).Site attachment has mediating effects between antecedents and continued usage.Social network involvement has a moderating effect on central and peripheral route. The purpose of this study is to develop and test a communication model for persuasive processes for mobile tourism shopping (MTS). Applying the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), we adopted a confirmatory approach using partial least squares as the analytical method. Respondents (n=357) who had recently purchased a tourism product using mobile devices (smartphones or tablets) were analyzed. Argument quality significantly influences perceived usefulness (central route); source credibility has positive effects on perceived usefulness and site attachment (peripheral route); perceived usefulness significantly influences site attachment and continued usage; and site attachment has a positive effect on continued usage. Social network involvement has a moderating effect on central and peripheral routes. This study reflects increased awareness and interest in understanding persuasive processes at work in MTS. Empirical results demonstrate the value of using the ELM to understand dual-route communication processes at work among mobile shoppers for tourism products. As markets become increasingly competitive, it becomes ever more important for tourism managers to better understand the persuasive processes at work among different segments of MTS. As this study demonstrates, applying the ELM holds promise in achieving such understanding.

The main purpose of the study is to examine an impact of festival quality on behavioral intentions and investigate the role of place attachment (PA) as a moderator between festival quality and behavioral intentions. Data were collected from the visitors of the 2013 Seoul Lantern Festival in South Korea. Results show that festival quality has a significant direct impact on behavioral intentions to revisit, spread word of mouth (WOM), and engage in pro-environmental behavior. The study also reveals that PA moderates the effect of festival quality on behavioral intentions, suggesting the differential impact of festival quality based on the level of PA. The study suggests that festival organizers may want to focus on program and esthetics to promote visitors’ return and positive WOM. Festival organizers may also want to customize quality management strategies based on visitors’ level of PA.

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships among social capital, altruism, common bond and identity, and revisit intention using social capital, altruism, and attachment theories. A total of 452 responses were generated from consumers 50 years of age and older (seniors), qualified as having used a social network site (SNS) for tourism-related products and services within the past 12 months. Results show that social capital has significant effects on common bond and identity while social capital has a slightly greater effect on common identity than common bond. Altruism has significant effects on common bond and identity whereas altruism has a greater effect on common bond than common identity. Common bond and identity both have significant effects on revisit intention. Noticeably, revisit intention is highly influenced by common identity. Therefore, this study provides new knowledge and recommendations to SNS administrators addressing why seniors use SNSs for tourism-related purposes.

Researchers have criticized the traditional contingent valuation method (CVM) due to its potential response bias. To address this bias, several studies have employed improved CVM survey designs. When respondents disguise the truth, non-sampling errors are created that cannot be corrected by these elaborate survey modifications. To reduce this type of non-sampling error, Park and MacLachlan (2008) suggested the exaggeration bias-corrected (EBC) CVM, which assumes a functional mechanism between real and spurious willingness to pay (WTP). The authors verify the effectiveness of the EBC-CVM in non-sampling error reduction, which in turn derives more error-corrected economic value. Few studies have employed the EBC-CVM in a tourism context. The main goals of this study are to introduce EBC-CVM and to test its validity in a tourism study. The results indicate that EBC-CVM contributes to the reduction of non-sampling errors. The implications of the findings are discussed.

Despite the increasing amount of attention paid to virtual reality (VR) tourism and the rising importance of VR tourism, a theoretically integrated model of behavior has not been developed. To fill this void, we build and test a framework based on both innovation diffusion and uses and gratifications theories to explain why people participate in VR tourism. The moderating role of VR tourists’ technology readiness (optimism and innovativeness) between subjective well-being and behavioral intention is also examined. Results demonstrate that authentic experience and subjective well-being are affected by simplicity, benefit, compatibility (attributes of innovation diffusion), informativeness, social interactivity, and playfulness (uses and gratifications attributes). Behavioral intention is more positively influenced by subjective well-being than by authentic experience. The moderating role of technology readiness between subjective well-being and behavioral intention is stronger in individuals with high optimism and innovativeness than their counterparts with low optimism and innovativeness.

The purpose of this study was to compare the influence of two survey modes – telephone random digit dialling (RDD) and stratified sampling of an online panel – on Canadian Problem Gambling Index (CPGI) scores and co-morbidities. An identical gambling survey was administered to 4000 South Koreans selected via random dialling of cell phone numbers and to 4330 South Korean members of an online panel. The online panelists were found to have significantly higher levels of tobacco use, drug or alcohol problems and mental health problems, higher employment status and lower happiness levels. However, even when controlling for these variables, CPGI scores for the online panel were significantly higher than those for the telephone interview. This appears to be due to higher levels of pathology among online panelists combined with potentially more valid self-reports due to enhanced anonymity.

Although online group-buying is increasing rapidly, little theoretically based research has been conducted on behaviors of online group-buyers of tourism products. Thus, the purpose of this study is to develop and test a theoretical model examining the relationships among value, trust, site attachment, altruism, and loyalty in the context of online group-buying of tourism products. The results indicate that the six hypothesized relationships among value, trust, site attachment, altruism, and loyalty are significant and thus validate the theoretical model. The findings of this study provide theoretical and practical implications for academics and managers of online group-buying sites.

This case study assesses the asymmetric relationship between the relative importance of service quality attributes and overall customer satisfaction in Korean casino settings, using impact-range performance analysis (IRPA) and impact asymmetry analysis (IAA). Results validated the rigor of IRPA and IAA over importance–performance analysis (IPA) in identifying key determining attributes of customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction among various casino service quality attributes based on three-factor theory. The theoretical and practical implications of this study’s findings are included to enrich both academicians’ and casino industry professionals’ understanding of customers’ perceptions of and attitudes towards casinos, and the development of a marketing strategy.

Temple stays are emerging global cultural attractions that provide tourists with unique experiences and influence perceptions of value and satisfaction. This study examines the influence of escape, entertainment, esthetic, and educational experiences on perceptions of functional and emotional values as well as tourist satisfaction with temple stays. The results of the study show that escape and entertainment experiences are important predictors of both functional and emotional values. Esthetic experience influences emotional value, whereas educational experience affects functional value. Both functional and emotional values influence tourist satisfaction. Theoretical and practical implications of the study results are discussed.

The enduring legacy of a mega-event can be the unique opportunities it provides for visitors. Thus, focusing on the visitors’ experiences should be a priority for the tourism industry. Festivals and mega-events are typical experiential products that provide high-quality experiences in the field of tourism. This study examines Pine and Gilmore's concept of the experience economy in the context of a mega-event. Specifically, the relationships among Expo experience, quality, satisfaction, and the effect of the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea are examined. This study empirically tests whether the Expo experience and Expo quality influence visitor satisfaction. It also investigates whether visitor satisfaction influences the effect of the Expo. A self-administered survey was conducted for visitors (N = 377) of the Expo. The results of testing Pine and Gilmore's concept of the experience economy reveal that among four dimensions, esthetic experience followed by entertainment experience were the most important experiences...

The concept of quality is central to research on consumer behavior and marketing. Despite the well-recognized importance of quality in the hospitality literature, little research is designed to explore quality in the event literature, particularly in the area of quality scale development. Besides, prior research lacks a rigid psychometric test in developing and validating scales. The current study aims to develop and validate multidimensional measures for assessing the quality attributes of mega-event Expo with a rigorous method. The testing of validity, reliability, and method biases establishes the validity and reliability of the quality scales of the Expo. The resulting scales include 40 items with a 10-factor structure. Researchers can integrate the validated measures of this study into other concepts in marketing/consumer behavior to examine the unexplored aspect of event visitor behavior. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

This study analyzes visitor book entries as cultural repositories of guest-generated hospitality discourses to understand how guests articulate/narrativize hospitality. Inquiry into visitor book entries offers insight into ways in which tourists render people and place intelligible. Utilizing textual analysis, this study examines discursive entries contained within visitor books displayed at a traditional South Korean hanok guesthouse/commercial home. The findings indicate that tourists' entries could be classified into three emergent categories: Structural Esthetics, Emotions/Affective State, and Inter-personal Engagement. Guests' entries indicated that there was an appreciation for the display of traditional architecture, which facilitated sentiments of relaxation, contentment, tranquility, and homeliness. The hanok is thus regarded as a therapeutic landscape in which positive emotions are nurtured. Guests' entries also showcased evidence of genuine and personalized exchanges with hosts. This study poin...

Although there are numerous studies on volunteering in tourism, little research has been done on volunteer support for mega-events. This study develops a theoretical model investigating the relationship between volunteer motivation and support for the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea through mediating effects of satisfaction and attitudes toward volunteering and the Expo venue. An onsite survey of 489 volunteers at the Yeosu Expo was conducted. The structural equation model reveals that patriotism and intrinsic motivations significantly influence volunteer satisfaction, which in turn exerts a significant effect on attitudes toward volunteering and the Expo venue. Also, volunteer attitudes toward volunteering significantly influence volunteer attitudes toward the Expo venue, which in turn have a significant effect on support for the Expo. The study suggests that patriotism and intrinsic motivations can leverage support for mega-events through enhancing mediators of satisfaction and attitudes.

Despite the importance of Oriental medicine festivals to Oriental medical tourism, little research has been conducted to understand the behavioral intention of visitors to these festivals. Therefore, this study examines the behavioral intention of visitors to a Korean Oriental medicine festival. This study employs the extended model of goal-directed behavior (EMGB) that incorporates two constructs related to Oriental medicine festivals: the Oriental medicine image of festival site (image) and the perception of Oriental medicine (perception). An on-site survey was conducted with 423 visitors attending the Sancheong Herbal Festival in South Korea. Results reveal that attitude, subjective norm, and positive anticipated emotion influenced visitors' desire to attend the festival, which, in turn, influenced their behavioral intentions. Two constructs of image and perception formed positive and significant relationships with attitude toward attending the festival. Practical implications of the study results are discussed.

This study examines the effect of a Korean Oriental medicine festival’s quality on tourists’ satisfaction, trust, and support, and explores satisfaction’s influence through the mediating variable of trust on destination development support, which previous festival tourism research underreports. An onsite survey was conducted for tourists (N = 458) to the Oriental Medicine Expo. The structural equation model results reveal that the quality dimensions of program, facility, and convenience influenced satisfaction positively, and satisfaction exerted a positive significant effect on trust in the festival’s location developing as an Oriental medicine tourism destination. Ways that Oriental medicine tourism festivals can leverage health tourism development at regional and country levels are considered.