Journal of Tourism and Development

Journal of Tourism and Development

Investigating the effect of tourism with virtual reality technology on tourists' satisfaction through the mediation of behavioral intentions and moderating of Corona conditions

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Davood Feiz 1
Fahime Mahavarpoor 2
1 Prof., Department of Business Management, Faculty of Economics, Management and Administrative Sciences, Semnan University, Semnan, Iran.
2 Ph.D. Student of Business Management, Faculty of Economic, Management and Administrative Sciences, Semnan University, Semnan, Iran
10.22034/jtd.2022.313683.2498
Abstract
COVID-19 epidemic disease has become a major health concern worldwide that can affect social responsibility as well as quality of life. During the COVID-19 epidemic disease, researchers are using innovative technologies to end this threat. In tourism, virtual reality (VR) is one such technology. Virtual reality technology provides the user with a virtual environment so that he can do what he/she cannot do in a real environment or does not have the necessary conditions to do in this virtual environment by simulating realities.
However, despite broad, studies, little research has been observed in this field in Iran, especially in tourism.Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effect of tourism with virtual reality technology on tourists' satisfaction through the mediation of behavioral intentions and moderating of Corona conditions. The statistical sample of this research includes 368 visitors from three different tourist attractions using virtual reality technology. In order to research data collection, an online questionnaire and convenience sampling method were used. The reliability and validity of the research structures were confirmed using Cronbach's alpha and the average variance extracted (AVE). The research hypotheses were tested using Smart PLS3 software. The results showed that the interest in virtual reality tourism has a positive relationship with behavioral intentions in tourism. The interest in virtual reality tourism affects tourists' satisfaction through behavioral intentions. It should also be noted that social responsibility in the corona period does not moderate the relationship between behavioral intentions and tourist satisfaction
Keywords
Tourism interest in virtual reality
Behavioral intentions in tourism
Tourist satisfaction
Social responsibility in Corona period
بوشهری سنگی‌زاد و بحرینی‌زاد (1398). ارائة مدل بومی وفاداری به مقصد گردشگری با رویکرد کیفی مبتنی بر داده بنیاد: بندر بوشهر مقصد گردشگری. مطالعات مدیریت گردشگری، 14(45), 193-220
داوری، علی و رضازاده، آرش ( 1392). مدل‌سازی معادالت ساختاری با نرم‌افزار نمونه‌سازی معادلات ساختاری نرم‌افزار. تهران: انتشارات جهاد دانشگاهی.
طباطبایی‌نسب، محمد و ماه‌آورپور، فهیمه (1396). «مدل‌سازی ساختاری عوامل مؤثر بر شهرت مقصد گردشگری و تأثیر آن بر ارزش ویژه برند مقصد ( مطالعه موردی: شهر اصفهان)». فصل‌نامة علمی – پژوهشی گردشگری شهری، ۴(1)، ص 71-86.
هادیان‌‌فر، نیلوفر و دزیان عزیزی، عبدالهادی (1400). «تکنولوژی واقعیت مجازی در بازاریابی مقاصد گردشگری». فصل‌نامة علمی – پژوهشی مدیریت بازرگانی، ۱۳(3)، 7437۲۱-7217۴۳
Bengtsson, M., Alfredsson, E., Cohen, M., Lorek, S., & Schroeder, P. (2018). Transforming systems of consumption and production for achieving the sustainable development goals: moving beyond efficiency. Sustainability science, 13, 1533-1547.‏
Beck, J., Rainoldi, M., & Egger, R. (2019). Virtual reality in tourism: A state-of-the-art review. Tourism Review.
Berg, L. P., & Vance, J. M. (2017). Industry use of virtual reality in product design and manufacturing: a survey. Virtual reality, 21, 1-17.‏
Bu, Y., Parkinson, J., & Thaichon, P. (2021). Digital content marketing as a catalyst for e-WOM in food tourism. Australasian Marketing Journal, 29(2), 142-154.
Cai, G., Xu, L., & Gao, W. (2021). The green B&B promotion strategies for tourist loyalty: surveying the restart of Chinese national holiday travel after COVID-19. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 94, 102704.
Chattu, V. K., & Yaya, S. (2020). Emerging infectious diseases and outbreaks: implications for women’s reproductive health and rights in resource-poor settings. Reproductive health, 17(1), 1-5.
Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS quarterly, 319-340.
Gössling, S., Scott, D., & Hall, C. M. (2020). Pandemics, tourism and global change: a rapid assessment of COVID-19. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 29(1), 1-20.
Guttentag, D. A. (2010). Virtual reality: Applications and implications for tourism. Tourism management, 31(5), 637-651.
Han, D. I., tom Dieck, M. C., & Jung, T. (2018). User experience model for augmented reality applications in urban heritage tourism. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 13(1), 46-61.‏
Hens, L., & De Wit, J. (2003). The development of indicators and core indicators for sustainable development: a state of the art review. International Journal of Sustainable Development, 6(4), 436-459.
Huang, Y. C., Backman, S. J., Backman, K. F., & Moore, D. (2013). Exploring user acceptance of 3D virtual worlds in travel and tourism marketing. Tourism Management, 36, 490-501.
Hunt, H. K. (1977). CS/D-overview and future research directions. Conceptualization and measurement of consumer satisfaction and dissatisfaction, 158.
‏Huang, Z., Peng, A., Yang, T., Deng, S., & He, Y. (2020). A design-based learning approach for fostering sustainability competency in engineering education. Sustainability, 12(7), 2958.
Kanwel, S., Lingqiang, Z., Asif, M., Hwang, J., Hussain, A., & Jameel, A. (2019). The influence of destination image on tourist loyalty and intention to visit: Testing a multiple mediation approach. Sustainability, 11(22), 6401.
Kaplanidou, K., & Vogt, C. (2006). A structural analysis of destination travel intentions as a function of web site features. Journal of Travel research, 45(2), 204-216.
Kelley, M., Ferrand, R. A., Muraya, K., Chigudu, S., Molyneux, S., Pai, M., & Barasa, E. (2020). An appeal for practical social justice in the COVID-19 global response in low-income and middle-income countries. The Lancet Global Health, 8(7), e888-e889.
Kim, D. Y., Park, J., & Morrison, A. M. (2008). A model of traveller acceptance of mobile technology. International Journal of Tourism Research, 10(5), 393-407.
Kim, H., So, K. K. F., Mihalik, B. J., & Lopes, A. P. (2021). Millennials’ virtual reality experiences pre-and post-COVID-19. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 48, 200-209.
Kim, M. J., Lee, C. K., & Jung, T. (2020a). Exploring consumer behavior in virtual reality tourism using an extended stimulus-organism-response model. Journal of Travel Research, 59(1), 69-89.
Kim, M. J., Lee, C. K., & Preis, M. W. (2020b). The impact of innovation and gratification on authentic experience, subjective well-being, and behavioral intention in tourism virtual reality: The moderating role of technology readiness. Telematics and Informatics, 49, 101349.
Lin, C. A. (2004). Webcasting adoption: technology fluidity,-user'innovativeness, and media substitution. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 48(3), 157-178.
Litvin, S. W., Goldsmith, R. E., & Pan, B. (2008). Electronic word-of-mouth in hospitality and tourism management. Tourism management, 29(3), 458-468.
Lock, S. (2020). Coronavirus: impact on the tourism industry worldwide-statistics & facts. Statista.
Loureiro, S. M. C., Guerreiro, J., & Ali, F. (2020). 20 years of research on virtual reality and augmented reality in tourism context: A text-mining approach. Tourism Management, 77, 104028.
Nam, M., Kim, I., & Hwang, J. (2016). Can local people help enhance tourists’ destination loyalty? A relational perspective. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 33(5), 702-716.
Mellinas, J. P., & Reino, S. (2019). eWOM: the importance of reviews and ratings in tourism marketing. In Strategic perspectives in destination marketing (pp. 143-173). IGI Global.
Mura, P., Tavakoli, R., & Sharif, S. P. (2017). ‘Authentic but not too much’: exploring perceptions of authenticity of virtual tourism. Information Technology & Tourism, 17(2), 145-159.
Nagy, M. S. (2002). Using a single‐item approach to measure facet job satisfaction. Journal of occupational and organizational psychology, 75(1), 77-86.
OECD, )2020(. An inclusive, green recovery is possible: The time to act is now
Oğuz, B., Gordon, G., & Cruz, H. H. (2020). Global tourism and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Orcutt, M., Patel, P., Burns, R., Hiam, L., Aldridge, R., Devakumar, D., ... & Abubakar, I. (2020). Global call to action for inclusion of migrants and refugees in the COVID-19 response. The Lancet, 395(10235), 1482-1483.
Pereira, H. G., de Fátima Salgueiro, M., & Rita, P. (2016). Online purchase determinants of loyalty: The mediating effect of satisfaction in tourism. Journal of Retailing and consumer Services, 30, 279-291.
Rauniar, R., Rawski, G., Yang, J., & Johnson, B. (2014). Technology acceptance model (TAM) and social media usage: an empirical study on Facebook. Journal of enterprise information management, 27(1), 6-30.‏
Ryu, K., & Han, H. (2011). New or repeat customers: How does physical environment influence their restaurant experience?. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 30(3), 599-611
Saeed, N., Yang, Y., & Sinnappan, S. (2009). Emerging web technologies in higher education: A case of incorporating blogs, podcasts and social bookmarks in a web programming course based on students' learning styles and technology preferences. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 12(4), 98-109.
Sarkis, J., Cohen, M. J., Dewick, P., & Schröder, P. (2020). A brave new world: Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for transitioning to sustainable supply and production. Resources, Conservation, and Recycling, 159, 104894.
Schiopu, A. F., Hornoiu, R. I., Padurean, M. A., & Nica, A. M. (2021). Virus tinged? Exploring the facets of virtual reality use in tourism as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Telematics and Informatics, 60, 101575.
Severo, E. A., De Guimarães, J. C. F., & Dellarmelin, M. L. (2021). Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on environmental awareness, sustainable consumption and social responsibility: Evidence from generations in Brazil and Portugal. Journal of Cleaner Production, 286, 124947.
Signori, G. G., Guimarães, J. C. F. D., Severo, E. A., & Rotta, C. (2018). Gamification as an innovative method in the processes of learning in higher education institutions. International Journal of Innovation and Learning, 24(2), 115-137..
Simpson, P. M., & Siguaw, J. A. (2008). Destination word of mouth: The role of traveler type, residents, and identity salience. Journal of Travel Research, 47(2), 167-182.
Sanchez-Cabrero, R., Costa-Roman, O., Pericacho-Gómez, F. J., Novillo-Lopez, M. A., Arigita-García, A., & Barrientos-Fernandez, A. (2019). Early virtual reality adopters in Spain: sociodemographic profile and interest in the use of virtual reality as a learning tool. Heliyon, 5(3), e01338
Sanchez-Franco, M. J., & Rondan-Cataluña, F. J. (2010). Virtual travel communities and customer loyalty: Customer purchase involvement and web site design. Electronic commerce research and applications, 9(2), 171-182.
Thompson, R., Compeau, D., & Higgins, C. (2006). Intentions to use information technologies: An integrative model. Journal of Organizational and End User Computing (JOEUC), 18(3), 25-46.‏
Tisdell, C. A. (2020). Economic, social and political issues raised by the COVID-19 pandemic. Economic analysis and policy, 68, 17-28.
UNWTO )2020(. The future is now! UNWTO recognizes world’s best innovators facing up to COVID-19. Retrieved from
Vishwakarma, P., Mukherjee, S., & Datta, B. (2020). Travelers’ intention to adopt virtual reality: A consumer value perspective. Journal of Destination Marketing & Management, 17, 100456.‏
Wassler, P., & Fan, D. X. (2021). A tale of four futures: Tourism academia and COVID-19. Tourism Management Perspectives, 38, 100818.
Yung, R., & Khoo-Lattimore, C. (2019). New realities: a systematic literature review on virtual reality and augmented reality in tourism research. Current issues in tourism, 22(17), 2056-2081.
Yazdanpanah, A. A., & Bayat, E. (2013). Explaining and Evaluating the Competitive Indexes for Virtual Universities. Journal of Strategic Management Studies, 3(12), 101-122.
Rosenbloom, B. (2013). Functions and institutions: The roots and the future of marketing channels. Journal of Marketing Channels, 20(3-4), 191-203.