Examining the structural relationships of electronic word of mouth, destination image, tourist attitude toward destination and travel intention: An integrated approach

The purpose of this paper is to study the interrelationships among electronic word of mouth (eWOM), destination image, tourist attitude, and travel intention in the tourism industry. In addition, the paper examines the effect of sociodemographic characteristics on the research variables. A 10 min pen and paper questionnaire was distributed to international tourists in Isfahan through a nonprobability, convenience-sampling approach. Reliability and validity of the measurement scale were established through average variance extracted (AVE), Cronbach's alpha analyses, and intercorrelation analyses. A structural equation model (SEM) test with maximum likelihood estimation was performed to test the relationship among the research variables using 264 participants. In addition, the possible influence of sociodemographic characteristics on the research variables was analyzed using an ANOVA. The empirical results from the structural model suggest that: (1) eWOM positively influences the destination image, tourist attitude and travel intention; (2) destination image and tourist attitude have a significant relationship with intention to travel; (3) destination image positively affects tourist attitude, and (4) the socio-demographic characteristics influence using eWOM, destination image, tourist attitude, and travel intention. Implications and future research issues were discussed. Crown Copyright (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.