How can tourism be made engaging and meaningful? A measurement scale for ritual interaction

Abstract

Interaction ritual (IR) theory has been widely used to analyze ritual interaction (RI) in the tourism sector. Although the literature on this topic is quickly expanding and appealing, it lacks valid conceptualization and a psychometrically sound measurement scale. This study presents the conceptualization of RI and constructs an RI framework based on the literature and focus groups, a combined qualitative and quantitative design, and multisource samples to generate and refine items through five phases. It consists of a four-dimensional 17-item measurement scale with good reliability and validity; the items include contextual elements, ritual symbols, scripted processes, and shared emotions. The study complements the tourism literature by presenting a scale to identify the kinds of RIs that tourists seek and use to evaluate destinations.