Predicting the determinants of academic conference participation decision-making in the post-pandemic situation: the case of Indonesia

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to determine offline academic conference participation decision-making factors in the post-pandemic situation incorporating the safety measure as one of the factors.Design/methodology/approachThis study provides a new model for examining the factors influencing academic conference participation using a quantitative approach. The responses of 110 academicians were collected and statistically evaluated using partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).FindingsThe results show that safety measures implemented by the conference organiser lead to trust and result in the decision to participate in the offline conference. Besides, conference factors also play a crucial role in determining the participation of academic conferences.Research limitations/implicationsThe information was gathered from 110 replies, and to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the factors that influence academic conference participation, a bigger sample size would be required.Practical implicationsThe study's findings shed light on the components that affect academicians' decision to attend an offline conference which is critical for conference organisers, hotels and the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) business.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that seeks to predict factors influencing academicians to participate in an offline academic conference in a post-pandemic setting by incorporating variables such as safety measures and trust.

Consumer Behavior in the Post-COVID-19 Era: The Impact of Perceived Interactivity on Behavioral Intention in the Context of Virtual Conferences

“…Finally, this study contributes to the emerging trend in hospitality and tourism research of examining the determinants of the decision to participate in academic conferences, particularly in the context of the post-COVID-19 pandemic [18,32,172]. The findings of this study may assist in improving and restructuring virtual conferences to align with participants' values and increase future attendance [5,6,14,173]. Overall, this study provides insights into the factors that influence attendees' future intentions of attending virtual conferences, which can guide future research in this field.…”

“…There has been a particular scarcity of empirical research on attending online academic conferences following the outbreak of COVID-19 [6]. Previous studies focused on factors affecting attendance and perceived quality, such as Sustainability 2023, 15, 8600 2 of 23 facility services, site attraction, and accessibility [7]; professional education, knowledge sharing, and site environment [8]; commitment, trust, and satisfaction [9]; attendance motivation and barriers [10,11]; conference attitudes and word-of-mouth publicity [12]; service quality and destination image [13]; and travel ability, health situation, safety, and well-being [14]. Moreover, quality and social and psychological factors were investigated during the COVID-19 pandemic [6,15,16].…”

Shifting Trend on Management Event during the Pandemic

“…A recent study carried out by (Kusumawardani et al, 2022) stated that now that most of the world's citizens have received a vaccine that is considered quite effective in dealing with the impact of Covid-19, the possibility that will trend in the future is MICE in the old format or original event which was temporarily abandoned for the main reason of health risks.…”