THE INFLUENCE OF INSTAGRAM IN DESTINATION CHOICE FOR GENERATION Z: MEDIATING ROLES OF SOCIAL ESCAPISM MOTIVATION AND PLEASURE

Purpose – Instagram is a social media platform that focuses heavily on visual communication, where photos and videos are shared. The purpose of this paper is to show the possible influences of Instagram on the choice of a travel destination among Generation Z. The aim of this paper is to investigate the determinants of Instagram influence for destination selection for Generation Z according to the attitude, usage of social media, and information reliability, where social escapism motivation and pleasure have a mediatic effect. Methodology – To understand better the influence of Instagram in destination selection, a theoretical systematization and analysis of previous literature is presented. Primary research was conducted based on an online questionnaire developed from previous research and adapted for the objectives of this paper. The collected data were empirically tested and validated through partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). Findings – The results suggest that the effect of Information reliability and Attitude are mediated by Pleasure and Social escapism motivation, while Usage of social media it is not. Attitude and Information reliability have a significant positive effect both on Pleasure and on Social escapism motivation, while Social media usage has not an significant positive effect on Pleasure and Social escapism motivation. Contribution – This research contributes to both theory and practice. It identifies the factors that contribute to importance of Instagram in destination selection for Generation Z. The antecedents as attitude, usage of social media, and information reliability in regards to the Instagram influence prove a scientific contribution of the study while contributes to knowledge of Social escapism motivation and Pleasure playing a mediating role. The practical contribution of the paper is that it presents a better understanding of behavioral intentions of Generation Z that can help destination marketing organizations to develop effective digital marketing strategies.