| Author: | Wichupankul, Surarak |
| Title: | Island destination competitiveness : subjective well-being perspective |
| Advisors: | Davari, Dori (SHTM) |
| Degree: | DHTM |
| Year: | 2024 |
| Subject: | Well-being Tourists -- Psychology Tourism -- Psychological aspects Islands Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | School of Hotel and Tourism Management |
| Pages: | ix, 158 pages : color illustrations |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | Tourist subjective well-being (SWB) serves as a potential tourist motivation, encouraging individuals to engage in tourism activities at tourist destinations, including island destinations. In this study, unlike previous studies within the destination marketing context, in which the emphasis has primarily been on destination loyalty, SWB of tourists is at the core. Tourist SWB is defined as the overall life satisfaction experienced by tourists as a result of their travel experiences (Diener, 1994). An island destination plays a vital role in providing tourists with perceptions of relaxation, pleasure, and unique attributes (Moon & Han, 2019). Tourists can uphold their SWB by reaching a certain level of involvement in leisure activities (Zhang et al., 2023). Destination loyalty, in terms of frequency of visits (Oppermann, 2000) and intensity of involvement (Beckman & Crompton, 1991), is a means to achieve tourist SWB. Rivalry among destinations to build destination loyalty can affect perceived destination competitiveness, in terms of subjective assessment of destination characteristics based on individuals’ experiences (Abreu-Novais et al., 2018). This study addressed the gap in the understanding of relationships among key constructs of island destinations—tourist SWB, island destination attributes, perceived island destination competitiveness, and destination loyalty. A purposive sampling strategy and structural equation modeling (SEM) were employed to examine structural relations among the constructs. Their relationships were hypothesized based on four socio-psychological theories—attention restoration theory, theory of nostalgia, bottom-up spillover theory, and theory of push and pull motivation. The sample comprised international tourists who had revisited either the same single island destination or multiple island destinations at least three times between 2014 and 2023. The study revealed that island destination attributes did not exhibit a direct influence on tourist SWB. Tourist SWB may temporarily increase during vacation, but the impact declined in subsequent months. Meanwhile, the indirect relationship between island destination attributes and tourist SWB was confirmed through destination loyalty. Therefore, tourist SWB can be achieved when individuals foster high levels of involvement and reach a certain degree of familiarity with routine vacation patterns. However, perceived destination competitiveness was found to have an insignificant relationship to tourist SWB. The recalling of holidays may trigger feelings of absence and potentially influence the assessment of their overall life satisfaction or SWB in a negative manner. This study proved that rather than prioritizing the cultivation of destination loyalty from the destination’s standpoint, emphasizing the tourist SWB emerges as a more advantageous and appealing destination marketing strategy from the tourist’s perspective. In a nutshell, based on an aggregated theoretical foundation, it revealed the strategic role of SWB in sustainable tourism development of island destinations. The results of the study suggest that tourism practitioners of island destinations—and beyond—prioritize tourist SWB as their strategic marketing approach. In short, if well-being is achieved in the long run, loyalty is already ensured. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | restricted access |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7874.pdf | For All Users (off-campus access for PolyU Staff & Students only) | 2.78 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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