Giacomo Del Chiappa

Understanding the Relationships between Tourists' Emotional Experiences, Perceived Overall Image, Satisfaction, and Intention to Recommend

The purpose of this study is to empirically test an integrative model linking tourists’ emotional experiences, perceived overall image, satisfaction, and intention to recommend. The model was tested using data collected from domestic tourists visiting Sardinia, Italy. Results show that tourists’ emotional experiences act as antecedents of perceived overall image and satisfaction evaluations. In addition, overall image has a positive influence on tourist satisfaction and intention to recommend. The study expands current theorizations by examining the merits of emotions in tourist behavior models. From a practical perspective, the study offers important implications for destination marketers.

Internet versus travel agencies: the perception of different groups of Italian online buyers.

Internet and User-Generated Content has reshaped the way people plan for, buy and consume tourist products, thus putting into question the very role of traditional travel agencies. Using a sample of 1448 Italian tourists, this research finds that significant differences do exist between occasional, moderate and frequent online buyers, based on gender, age, education level and income, their online purchase experience, and their likelihood to be influenced by User-Generated Content in their final choices. Results also highlight that the Internet is used most frequently when people make hotel reservations for both short-haul and short-term leisure travels. From a theoretical perspective, this research provides further insight into the scientific debate on disintermediation for booking hotel rooms, showing that differences based on cultural background do exist and should be investigated via cross-cultural comparison, also considering the relative power in influencing the tourist’s choices that User-Generated Content has with respect to information delivered by travel agencies. Further, managerial implications, limitations and future directions are also discussed.

Seniors’ Travel Constraints and Their Coping Strategies:

This article utilized content analysis of seniors’ narratives on the Internet to uncover the central themes related to their perceptions of travel constraints and the ways through which seniors negotiate such barriers. The study results suggest that aging is associated with alterations in the order of salient constraints proposed by the hierarchy of leisure constraints theory, which in turn affect seniors’ preferences for “safe” options such as packaged tours. Using gerontology and decision-making theories, the article provides conceptual and methodological contributions to the literature. It also offers practical recommendations for businesses responding to the tourism needs and expectations of the fastest-growing tourism market segment worldwide: the senior population.

The use of Network Analysis to Assess Relationships Among Stakeholders Within a Tourism Destination: an Empirical Investigation on Costa Smeralda-gallura, Italy

Previous destination marketing and management literature has focused on the importance of establishing effective relationships between the various tourism organizations (both private and public) involved in a tourism offer, in order to improve the competitiveness of a destination. However, very few works examine tourism destinations from a network perspective. Networks can be analyzed from either a relationship or a structural perspective. The aim of the present article is to adopt both of these perspectives to assess the different relationships that exist between tourism stakeholders (both private and public) within a specific Italian 3S tourism destination: Costa Smeralda-Gallura in the North-East of the island of Sardinia. Data were gathered from destination management organization (DMO) internal documents, local press, and through a questionnaire completed by a number of tourism organizations chosen from a list provided by the DMO, which at the time was the public body instructed to keep the official register. Our findings describe the Gallura-based destination as a network specifically defined by a relatively low level of density, collaboration, and integration in the relationships between local stakeholders. The study suggests that destination marketers and policy makers should run internal marketing and branding operations in order to enhance their collaboration, and therefore reach a strategic consensus among stakeholders.

Trustworthiness of Travel 2.0 applications and their influence on tourist behaviour: an empirical investigation in Italy

Travel 2.0 applications are becoming increasingly important. Accordingly to recent research, they exert great influence in generating the idea of travelling, on the actual planning process, and during the post-travel phase. Online applications can also sometimes induce tourists to alter their decisions after obtaining further information. Recently researchers have started to analyse the credibility and trustworthiness that tourists confer upon different Travel 2.0 applications, contributing, in this way, to clarify the extent to which they affect tourists’ attitudes and purchasing decisions. Even so, little is still known on this topic. In order to fill this gap, an online survey was conducted on a sample of Italian tourists to investigate the level of trustworthiness they feel towards different types of Travel 2.0 applications, as well as whether these applications exert different influences over the way tourists respond to company images and make their choices.

Real and virtual relationships in tourism digital ecosystems.

Tourism has been experiencing very relevant changes since when information and communication technologies, in all their forms, have started to pervade the industry and the market. In the last decade, a new concept gained the attention of both researchers and practitioners, that of digital business ecosystem. It can be considered as a technological infrastructure aimed at creating a digital environment to support and enhance networking between enterprises and stakeholders operating within a sector. Aim of this paper is to assess the extent to which the technological connection has affected the structural configuration of the tourism system and, specifically, of tourism destinations. The present study argues that two components can be considered when assessing the relationships among stakeholders within a tourism destination: a real and a virtual one. Further it shows how these two components are structurally strongly coupled and co-evolve forming a single system.

Emotions and visitors satisfaction at a museum

Purpose – This research aims to investigate whether emotions can be considered as a suitable variable to segment visitors at a museum. Furthermore, it seeks to analyse whether emotions influence visitor satisfaction and whether this depends on objective variables (such as age, gender and level of education) or not. Design/methodology/approach – A structured questionnaire was developed and data were collected at the National Museum of Archaeology “G.A. Sanna” in Sardinia (Italy) via 410 face-to-face interviews. Hierarchical and non-hierarchical cluster analyses and a series of chi-squared tests were run for the purpose of the study. Findings – Two segments were identified. The cluster with the higher positive emotions reported perceiving a higher level of attractiveness and uniqueness at the museum, and of being more satisfied than the other group. Furthermore, no significant differences were reported between the two segments based on socio-demographic characteristics. Research limitations/implications – T...

Coordinating Relationships among destination stakeholders: evidence from Edinburgh (UK)

Tourism destination governance is a topic that has been attracting the interest of scholars in the tourism field due to the difficulties associated with the management of destinations that are characterized by high fragmentation. Nevertheless, there is a lack of studies addressing the topic of the stakeholder coordination that is needed so that all stakeholders work towards the development and promotion of the destination in a comprehensive and unique way. The present research aims to explore this somewhat neglected area of tourism research by studying how stakeholders working within a destination are coordinated. In order to achieve this aim, a case study approach on the city of Edinburgh in Scotland was applied. Two partnerships were studied: one was responsible for promoting the city as a place to live, invest, work, and study, and the other was responsible for the citys tourism development. Secondary data such as documents and reports from the two partnerships were analyzed and primary data were collected through 12 semistructured interviews with people involved in one or both partnerships. The results show that coordination needs to be carried out by adopting several mechanisms that can be used in conjunction in order to complement each other.

Internet and User-Generated Content Versus High Street Travel Agencies: A Latent Gold Segmentation in the Context of Italy

This study aims at profiling Italian consumers based on their views for and against disintermediation along with the extent to which user-generated content (UGC), rather than information provided by high street travel agencies, influences their choices. A web-based survey was carried out and a convenience sample of 1,699 complete questionnaires was obtained. Latent gold segmentation was applied to three factors identified by running exploratory factor analysis on a list of 12 statements used to investigate the respondents’ views toward the topic of disintermediation and UGC. Three clusters were identified: “lookers,” “moderate bookers,” and “bookers.” A chi-square test shows that significant differences exist between the three clusters based on age, education, income, and the extent to which they change accommodation suggested by a travel agent after having read UGC. Contributions to the body of knowledge and managerial implications are discussed and suggestions for further research are given.

Adoption of social networking sites by Italian

Social networking sites (SNS) have becoming a mass phenomenon, positioning as one of the most popular online means of communication. So, they have appeared as new communication tools between people and organizations. Due to the growing importance of SNS and the many advantages offered to companies, the main objective of this research is to study the adoption and use of SNS by Italian users, on the basis of a technology acceptance model by adding the trust and perceived risk variables, as they are essential when uncertainty is present. Results support the positive relationships and influences between variables from an extended technology acceptance model. Some practical implications are exposed to explain the importance of the adoption of SNS by users for business sector.