Tourists’ approach or avoidance reaction to crowding in wellness tourism

ABSTRACT

This study explores how perceived crowding stimulates tourists’ emotional reactions and affects their experience quality as well as satisfaction. Based on Stimulus-Organism-Response theory, it examined and verified relationship between perceived crowding and tourist satisfaction with mixed-methods approach. The qualitative study was conducted to establish research model, and multigroup analysis was conducted with data collected from hot springs and coastal destinations. The results indicated that human crowding is no longer a positive signal in both sites. Experience quality mediates relationship between emotional reactions aroused by perceived crowding and tourist satisfaction. The findings deepen understanding of crowding and provide effective management strategies.

KEYWORDS:

• Wellness tourism
• perceived crowding
• approach reactions
• avoidance reactions
• experience quality
• tourist satisfaction
• S-O-R theory
• destination management
• sustainable development
• mixed-methods approach

Acknowledgments

This study is supported by Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation (project ZR2023MG010) and Shandong University Multidisciplinary Research and Innovation Team of Young Scholars (grant number 2020QNQT019).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province [ZR2023MG010]; Shandong University Multidisciplinary Research and Innovation Team of Young Scholars [2020QNQT019].