{"title":"Tourists’ Online Information Search Behavior: Combined User-Generated and Marketer-Generated Content in Restaurant Decision Making","authors":"S. Uthaisar, A. Eves, X. Wang","doi":"10.1177/00472875231195314","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Tourist information search behavior is one of the most important aspects of risk reduction in the travel decision-making process. Understanding tourists’ behavior when searching for online information has been heavily weighted toward user-generated content (UGC), mainly employed deductive research approaches. This study examines the influence of both UGC and marketer-generated content (MGC) on tourists’ choice of restaurant, using eye-tracking technology to measure customers’ visual behavior combined with retrospective think-aloud interviews. Data was collected from 28 participants in a laboratory-based study. Video recordings of participants’ eye movements during the task aided participant recall in follow-up interviews. This study offers insights into the integrated investigation of the influence of UGC and MGC on tourists’ information search behavior. It validates and extends understanding of the roles of pictorial information, written information, and other factors, and newly clarifies the role of both positive and negative reviews in influencing restaurant selection from international tourists’ perspectives.","PeriodicalId":48435,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Travel Research","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.0000,"publicationDate":"2023-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Travel Research","FirstCategoryId":"91","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/00472875231195314","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"HOSPITALITY, LEISURE, SPORT & TOURISM","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Tourist information search behavior is one of the most important aspects of risk reduction in the travel decision-making process. Understanding tourists’ behavior when searching for online information has been heavily weighted toward user-generated content (UGC), mainly employed deductive research approaches. This study examines the influence of both UGC and marketer-generated content (MGC) on tourists’ choice of restaurant, using eye-tracking technology to measure customers’ visual behavior combined with retrospective think-aloud interviews. Data was collected from 28 participants in a laboratory-based study. Video recordings of participants’ eye movements during the task aided participant recall in follow-up interviews. This study offers insights into the integrated investigation of the influence of UGC and MGC on tourists’ information search behavior. It validates and extends understanding of the roles of pictorial information, written information, and other factors, and newly clarifies the role of both positive and negative reviews in influencing restaurant selection from international tourists’ perspectives.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Travel Research (JTR) stands as the preeminent, peer-reviewed research journal dedicated to exploring the intricacies of the travel and tourism industry, encompassing development, management, marketing, economics, and behavior. Offering a wealth of up-to-date, meticulously curated research, JTR serves as an invaluable resource for researchers, educators, and industry professionals alike, shedding light on behavioral trends and management theories within one of the most influential and dynamic sectors. Established in 1961, JTR holds the distinction of being the longest-standing among the world’s top-ranked scholarly journals singularly focused on travel and tourism, underscoring the global significance of this multifaceted industry, both economically and socially.