Repertory Grid Analysis in Group Settings to Elicit Salient Destination Image Attributes

Abstract

Although repertory grid analysis (RGA) was originally developed in clinical psychology, the technique has been adapted for use in a diverse range of fields. However, the technique is rarely addressed in marketing research texts and has not been fully utilised in the tourism literature. Also, RGA applications have predominantly been reported in the form of personal interviews. The paper reports the first trial of RGA to elicit salient destination image attributes using group settings. This is a replication study, which is compared to a previous application of the technique that involved personal interviews. A key disadvantage of the group settings was the inability to probe participants. Nevertheless, it is suggested the approach provides researchers both an efficient and effective exploratory means for understanding how travellers differentiate a competitive set of destinations. This technique is particularly useful in the development of a structured questionnaire to operationalise destination image.

Keywords:

• destination image
• repertory grid analysis (RGA)
• travel context
• short breaks