Perceived impacts of COVID-19 on risk perceptions, emotions, and travel intentions: evidence from Macau higher educational institutions

ABSTRACT

This study examines the relationship between perceived impacts of COVID-19, risk perceptions, emotions, and travel intentions within selected higher education institutions of the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR). The paper argues that hospitality and tourism recovery strategies should focus on specific internal market segments by understanding their cognitive appraisal of the current situation, their emotional state, and possible responses to future travel. Through an online survey, data were gathered using convenience sampling of 412 respondents comprising students and workers of three Macau Higher Educational Institutions – which form a segment of Macau’s domestic tourism market. The results indicate that a high perceived risk of travelling during COVID-19 has increased negative emotions and reduced intentions to travel. Nonetheless, most students and workers of these institutions in Macau do not feel vulnerable to the virus due to the stringent health and policy measures in place. As government strict measures ‘protect’ internal customers within the city but ‘paralyse’ travel outside the city, promoting domestic travel becomes a practical way to reset tourism but would require understanding the perceptions and risk concerns of specific market segments.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• perceived impacts
• risk
• emotions
• travel intentions
• Macau higher education

Disclosure statement

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

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Elizabeth Agyeiwaah

Elizabeth Agyeiwaah is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Macau University of Science and Technology, Avenida Wai Long, Taipa, Macau. She received her PhD at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Her research interests include sustainable tourism development, small and medium tourism enterprises, and tourist studies.

Issahaku Adam

Issahaku Adam is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management of the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He doubles as a Senior Research Associate at the School of Tourism and Hospitality, University of Johannesburg in South Africa. Dr Adam's research interests include tourist behaviour, accessible tourism, inclusive leisure, travel risk, backpacker vulnerabilities, gendered entrepreneurial pathways in tourism, and gender mainstreaming in tourism.

Frederick Dayour

Frederick Dayour is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Community Development, University for Development Studies, Ghana and a Research Associate at the School of Tourism and Hospitality, University of Johannesburg, South Africa. His research interests comprise ICTs in tourism, tourist behaviours, consumer risk perception, backpacking, and tourism and terrorism.

Frank Badu Baiden

Frank Badu Baiden is a PhD candidate in the School of Hotel and Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. His research interests include tourist psychology and destination management.