Commitment theory: do behaviors enhance the perceived attractiveness of tourism destinations?

Abstract

Purpose A general point of commitment theory is that the more individuals behave in a certain way toward an entity, the more attractive they feel toward that entity. The main purpose of this study is to investigate whether an individual’s perceived attractiveness toward a tourist destination is enhanced by the number of actual visits to each different attraction within the destination, being controlled by satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach In doing so, data were collected from 613 individuals at major tourist attractions and traffic centers in Daejeon Metropolitan City, South Korea. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to examine the findings, and the conclusions drawn indicate that there is a statistically significant relationship between the number of visits to different attractions and the perceived attractiveness of the destination, as well as the interaction effect between the number of visits to different attractions and satisfaction. Findings The results are supported by literature in the area of commitment theory, in which various authors state that attitudes are evoked by behaviors. Further examination of the findings and conclusions drawn are described in this paper. Practical implications This mechanism should strategically be applied to practical implications to provide more accessible routes to a destination and a networking system. When visitors engage in a community in various ways, they are more likely to continue to engage in a community because they do not prefer to have intangible or tangible costs associated with disengagement. Originality/value This paper is the first application of the concept of commitment traced from its original psychological theory to the field of tourism. The effort justification paradigm of commitment theory postulates that if individuals work or study hard toward a specific goal, they gradually perceive the goal as attractive. This study found that the aforementioned paradigm shift is expanded to various types of behaviors, including that involving travel. This paper contributes to an in-depth understanding of the original commitment theory and its application to tourism.

Organizational commitment and work-related implementation of enterprise social networks (ESNs): the mediating roles of employees' organizational concern and prosocial values

“…The concept of commitment originates from cognitive dissonance theory in which a committed person tries to reduce the dissonant or conflicting states that appear when people approach two or more inconsistent thoughts and motivations related to a special object (Chang and Stansbie, 2018). For example, the work-related and non-work-related use of an ESN can be considered to be two inconsistent motivations that the employees are dealing with regarding the organization where they work.…”

Developing a customer loyalty model for guest houses in China: a congruity-based perspective

“…In particular, if many guest houses are located in a tourist area, customers may want to experience a different one on their next visit. The attractiveness of alternates, which generally refers to “customer perceptions regarding the extent to which viable competing alternates are available in the marketplace” (Jones et al , 2000, p. 262), is a central element of customer satisfaction and loyalty (Chang and Stansbie, 2018). As suggested by regret theory, customer satisfaction and loyalty rely on the subjective evaluation of alternates and the attractiveness of alternates is a predictor of regret, which influences satisfaction and repurchase intention (Liao et al , 2017).…”

Penilaian Daya Tarik Obyek Wisata Studi Kasus: 20 Obyek Wisata di Ponorogo, Indonesia

“…Semakin tinggi daya tarik obyek wisata, maka semakin unggul pula obyek wisata tersebut dalam berkompetisi [3]. Juga, semakin tinggi daya tarik sebuah obyek wisata, semakin banyak pula jumlah turis yang mendatangi obyek wisata tersebut [10][11][12][13], sehingga berdampak pada bergeraknya roda ekonomi sebuah wilayah.…”

“…Seperti yang dijelaskan oleh beberapa peneliti bahwa adanya daya tarik wisata merupakan salah satu modal dasar pendorong munculnya kegiatan wisata [8,14,15]. Bahkan banyak peneliti berpendapat bahwa daya tarik wisata memiliki peran dalam mempengaruhi keputusan para turis untuk mengunjungi obyek wisata [11][12][13]16]. Artinya, menilai daya tarik wisata dapat memberikan pemahaman sejauh mana obyek wisata tersebut dapat menarik wisatawan untuk datang.…”