Planning the unplannable—How blind box tourism boosts purchase intentions

Abstract

For the first time in China, blind box concept has been applied to tourism marketing, and it has attracted tremendous attention. Guided by cognitive appraisal theory and information gap theory, this study investigates the behavioral psychology of tourists in embracing or avoiding this form of tourism product. By integrating stimuli, emotional arousal (novelty, mystery, curiosity, and risk perception), and behavioral intention in the testing model, a survey with 343 valid answers leads to important findings of the paradoxical role of information gap (raising perceived novelty, perceived mystery, and curiosity but increasing risk perception simultaneously). In addition, there is a moderating role for curiosity in the application of the blind box concept to tourism products. Implications are discussed.