Description
As there is still only limited research about expectation formation in destination marketing,
the aim of this paper is to enhance this body of knowledge by providing theoretical and empirical
evidence about the role of different factors which generate tourist expectations. In particular, since
expectations may significantly condition not only the tourist choice process but also the perceptions of
experiences, the objective of this paper is to examine the factors contributing to the expectations of a
tourist destination. Based on service expectations literature, a theoretical framework postulates the main
factors generating tourist expectations.
International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research
A framework for tourist expectations
Ignacio Rodríguez del Bosque Héctor San Martín J esús Collado María del Mar García de los Salmones
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Ignacio Rodríguez del Bosque Héctor San Martín J esús Collado María del Mar García de los Salmones, (2009),"A framework for tourist
expectations", International J ournal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research, Vol. 3 Iss 2 pp. 139 - 147
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Chieh-Wen Sheng, Ming-Chia Chen, (2013),"Tourist experience expectations: questionnaire development and text narrative analysis",
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Klaus Weiermair, (2000),"Tourists’ perceptions towards and satisfaction with service quality in the cross-cultural service encounter:
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A framework for tourist expectations
Ignacio Rodr? ´guez del Bosque, He´ ctor San Mart? ´n, Jesu´ s Collado and
Mar? ´a del Mar Garc? ´a de los Salmones
Abstract
Purpose – As there is still only limited research about expectation formation in destination marketing,
the aim of this paper is to enhance this body of knowledge by providing theoretical and empirical
evidence about the role of different factors which generate tourist expectations. In particular, since
expectations may signi?cantly condition not only the tourist choice process but also the perceptions of
experiences, the objective of this paper is to examine the factors contributing to the expectations of a
tourist destination. Based on service expectations literature, a theoretical framework postulates the main
factors generating tourist expectations.
Design/methodology/approach – Empirical research tests the research hypotheses. More
speci?cally, several in-depth interviews and focus groups (qualitative research) and a survey
conducted in a holiday destination (quantitative research) led to data collection.
Findings – Tourist expectations are a second-order factor based on inter-correlations among several
?rst-order factors (i.e. past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth communication and
destination image). In addition, image can be considered as the main factor generating expectations of
a destination.
Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of this study is the geographic area (tourist
site) of the research process. The tourist destination under investigation signi?cantly in?uences the
characteristics of the sample, of which national tourists are the main constituent.
Originality/value – Managing the destination image and the quality of experience is critical to induce
favorable expectations of the destination in the tourist’s mind. In addition, the coherence and reliability of
destination communication need to be controlled in expectations management.
Keywords Tourism, Consumer behaviour, Marketing, Brand image
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Managing the tourist’s expectations is extremely important, since expectations can
signi?cantly in?uence tourist choice processes as well as perceptions of experiences
(Gnoth, 1997). Firstly, the individual’s favorable beliefs (or expectations) about a destination
would help the tourist site to occupy a privileged position among the places evoked during
the choice process. Secondly, expectations may affect perceptions of destination
experiences, or more speci?cally, the tourist satisfaction process. In this sense, the
function of expectations in tourist satisfaction can be potentially guided by two phenomena:
1. assimilation; and
2. contrast (Oliver, 1997).
According to the assimilation theory (Sherif and Hovland, 1961), tourists would tend to adjust
the destination perception to their expectations in order to justify their beliefs or predictions,
thus removing their psychological con?icts. In line with the contrast theory (Hovland et al.,
DOI 10.1108/17506180910962140 VOL. 3 NO. 2 2009, pp. 139-147, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1750-6182
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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH
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PAGE 139
Ignacio Rodr? ´guez del
Bosque, He´ ctor San Mart? ´n,
Jesu´ s Collado, and Mar? ´a
del Mar Garc? ´a de los
Salmones are all based at
the University of Cantabria,
Santander, Spain.
Received: April 2008
Revised: June 2008
Accepted: July 2008
The authors acknowledge the
assistance of Joanne L. Bills in
editing this article.
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1957), tourists would magnify their evaluative responses in the direction of the discrepancy
between perception and expectations. In either of these two circumstances, expectations
will in?uence tourists’ satisfaction and value-creation. As a result, expectations management
is a key element to the destination’s success.
In this context, the objective of this study is to thoroughly explore the factors generating
expectations of a tourist destination. In particular, the basis of this research is a theoretical
framework based on predictive expectations. Predictive expectations, de?ned generally as
the individual’s beliefs about how a product or service is likely to perform at some moment in
the future (Oliver, 1987; Prakash and Lounsbury, 1984), are the most used type of
expectations in past research (Park and Choi, 1998; Santos and Boote, 2003). In addition,
past research on service expectations helps to identify the factors generating tourist
expectations. Past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth communication and
image may be considered the main factors in expectation formation.
Theoretical framework and research hypotheses
Since service experiences integrate the reality of a tourist destination uncovering the
determinants of service expectations allows us to establish the theoretical framework of this
study (Zeithaml et al., 1993). Firstly, past experience can in?uence expectations (Fache´ ,
2000; Hoffman and Bateson, 1997). In particular, individual beliefs about a future encounter
depend on the previous levels of satisfaction (Clow et al., 1997; Kalamas et al., 2002).
Rodr? ´guez del Bosque et al. (2006) ?nd empirical evidence of this phenomenon in tourism
research. They demonstrate that experience is a factor generating expectations of a future
service encounter with a travel agency. In addition, Johnson and Mathews (1997) establish
that repeated encounters enhance the individual expectations of a future service
experience. Under these circumstances, the more positive the past experience with a
destination, the higher the tourist expectations.
H1. Past experience of a tourist destination is a factor generating expectations of a
future destination experience.
Intangibility is one of the most important characteristics of services. This feature may
seriously complicate the formation of expectations (Bebko, 2000). As a result, individuals
perceive service intangibility as an element of uncertainty. Individuals seek information from
several sources to relieve this adverse situation (Murray, 1991), and consequently, to clearly
form their expectations of a future service encounter. Thus, external communication and
word-of-mouth communication in?uence service expectations (Clow et al., 1997; Dion et al.,
1998; Fache´ , 2000; Hoffman and Bateson, 1997; Kalamas et al., 2002). Intangibility is a
distinctive characteristic of destination experience (Bowen and Clarke, 2002). Under these
circumstances, individuals use communication from the destination marketer (e.g.
advertisements or brochures) to reduce the uncertainty associated with the destination,
and therefore to form their expectations in a more reliable way. Since external
communication is an explicit experience promise, the more favorable the communication
from a destination, the higher the tourist expectations.
H2. External communication from a tourist destination is a factor generating
expectations of a future destination experience.
Because of the experiential nature of services (Clow et al., 1997), word-of-mouth
communications are more reliable than external communications to generate expectations
of a future service encounter. In addition, word-of-mouth communication is extremely
important in situations with high levels of involvement and perceived risk by consumers (File
et al., 1994). Since these situations are usual in a tourism context, individuals use
communication from relatives and/or friends to better predict a future destination
experience. Thus, the more favorable the word-of-mouth communication about a
destination, the higher the tourist expectations will be.
H3. Word-of-mouth communication about a tourist destination is a factor generating
expectations of a future destination experience.
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Image is a real service expectations communicator (Gro¨ nroos, 1990). In a context with high
levels of uncertainty, individuals consider their preconceived images as a signal of the true
capabilities of the provider (Weigelt and Camerer, 1988). Previous studies (Clow et al., 1997;
Devlin et al., 2002; Rodr? ´guez del Bosque et al., 2006) establish a positive relationship
between image and expectations in several service industries (e.g. catering, ?nancial
services or travel agencies). In tourism, destination image is a mental representation of the
place that helps individuals to anticipate their destination experiences (Jenkins, 1999).
Therefore, image moulds the expectations that individuals have of a tourist destination
before the visit (Bigne´ et al., 2001). The more favorable the preconceived image of a
destination, the higher the tourist expectations.
H4. Preconceived image of a tourist destination is a factor generating expectations of a
future destination experience.
Method
A combination of qualitative and quantitative research makes it possible to thoroughly
explore the factors contributing to expectations of a tourist destination. The qualitative phase
consists of four in-depth interviews with experts fromthe public institutions for promotion and
destination management, travel agencies and hotels. Additionally, this phase contains two
focus groups, one with travel agents and another with tourists of different age, gender and
occupation. Qualitative research helps to de?ne the quantitative phase (i.e. survey design
and data collection) in a more reliable way.
With regard to quantitative research, the destination under investigation is Cantabria (in
the North of Spain). This tourist destination has a great diversity in terms of culture,
landscape and gastronomy, as well as having world-famous attractions such as the
Altamira Caves. The target population consists of tourists who are over 15 years old. By
combining the convenience and quota methods, it is possible to select the sample,
distinguishing between national tourists and international tourists. Individuals had to
respond to a questionnaire during their stay at the tourist destination (April 2004). There
were two types of questionnaire – one for Spanish tourists (Spanish version) and another
for international tourists (English version). Several individuals who spoke different
languages were the pollsters for the group of international tourists. Finally, the empirical
research consisted of 298 valid responses, representing a sampling error in the case of
an in?nite population (the size of the population is not available) of 5.7 percent for a
con?dence level of 95.5 percent (p ¼ q ¼ 0:5). Table I illustrates the socio-demographic
pro?le of respondents.
Table II contains the measurement of the variables of the model (the literature review and
the opinions of tourists and experts helped to de?ne the scales). The scale measuring
past experience includes three items adapted from Clow et al. (1997). This measure
captures the levels of satisfaction in previous stays at the tourist destination (1 ¼ strongly
disagree; 7 ¼ strongly agree). The measurement of external communication includes
commercial and non-commercial information of the tourist destination (Baloglu and
McCleary, 1999; So¨ nmez and Sirakaya, 2002). The items measure the overall assessment
(1 ¼ very negative; 7 ¼ very positive), reliability and coherence of the external
communication (1 ¼ strongly disagree; 7 ¼ strongly agree). According to Nyer (1996),
reliability and coherence capture the level of ambiguity of information. The scale
measuring word-of-mouth communication evaluates the opinions and recommendations
to individuals from other people such as relatives and friends. In line with Clow et al.
(1997), this research uses a three-item Likert scale (1 ¼ strongly disagree; 7 ¼ strongly
agree).
On the other hand, cognitive and affective evaluations of the tourist destination make it
possible to capture the image that individuals have of the tourist site before the visit (Baloglu
and McCleary, 1999; Beerli and Mart? ´n, 2004; Kim and Richardson, 2003). Based on past
research (Echtner and Ritchie, 1991; Gallarza et al., 2002; Kim and Richardson, 2003), this
research uses a 22-item scale to measure destination image. Subsequently, an exploratory
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factor analysis helps to identify destination image dimensions. More speci?cally, this
analysis identi?es ?ve image factors:
1. infrastructures and socio-economic environment (IMA1);
2. atmosphere (IMA2);
3. natural environment (IMA3);
4. affective image (IMA4); and
5. cultural environment (IMA5).
Finally, these dimensions provide a global measurement of the preconceived image of the
tourist destination.
A con?rmatory factorial analysis (CFA) with EQS 6.1 validates the multi-item scales of the
model (see the results in Table III). Firstly, Cronbach’s a and the composite reliability
coef?cient are higher than the recommended value of 0.7 (Bagozzi and Yi, 1988), thus
con?rming the reliability of scales. Secondly, all indicators are signi?cant and their
standardized l coef?cients exceed 0.5, justifying the convergent validity of scales
(Steenkamp and Van Trijp, 1991). The con?dence intervals for the correlation coef?cient
between pairs of latent variables make it possible to check the discriminant validity
(Anderson and Gerbing, 1988). None of the intervals include unity, thus con?rming the
discriminant validity of measurement scales. Finally, the values of BBNFI, BBNNFI, GFI and
AGFI exceed the recommended value of 0.9, while the RMSEA statistic remains below its
recommended value of 0.08. These results show an appropriate ?t of the proposed factorial
structure for past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth communication and
destination image.
Table I Pro?le of respondents
Variable Percentage
Gender
Male 48.0
Female 52.0
Age
16-24 years 20.9
25-44 years 47.3
45-64 years 26.4
65 years and older 5.4
Education level
Without studies 4.1
Primary 16.0
Secondary 26.9
University 53.0
Occupation
Employed 64.9
Student 16.6
Housewife 8.1
Unemployed 4.1
Retired 6.3
Monthly income
e0-e1,200 14.8
e1,201-e2,400 32.2
e2,400 or more 24.1
Don’t know/no answer 28.9
Place of origin
National 89.6
International 10.4
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Findings
In the analysis, tourist expectations are a higher-order factor comprising past experience,
external communication, word-of-mouth communication and preconceived image of the
destination. Figure 1 shows the ?nal estimates of the second-order factor model. The
Table II Measures
Past experience I have always had excellent experiences when I’ve come to Cantabria
I have greatly enjoyed myself during my previous stays
In general, I am satis?ed with my previous stays
External communication The information I had about Cantabria was reliable
The information I had about Cantabria was coherent
Overall, how would you assess the information that you had from several sources?
Word-of-mouth My relatives and/or friends spoke very highly of Cantabria to me
My relatives and/or friends recommended that I visit Cantabria
Most people I know have a good opinion of Cantabria
Destination image Cognitive image attributes
Cantabria has a great variety of fauna and ?ora
Cantabria has beautiful landscapes
Cantabria has beautiful natural parks and areas
The weather is pleasant
The beaches are attractive
The people are friendly and hospitable
Cantabria offers many opportunities for the adventurous
Cantabria is a peaceful place
Cantabria is a highly appropriate place for resting
Cantabria has a lot of cultural attractions to visit
Cantabria offers interesting cultural activities
It’s nice to learn about the local customs
The gastronomy is rich and varied
Access to Cantabria from others countries is easy
Cantabria offers many shopping facilities
The accommodation is of good quality
In general, Cantabria offers good value for money
Cantabria is a safe place to visit
Affective image attributes
Cantabria is a tourist destination: boring/fun; distressing/relaxing; gloomy/exciting; unpleasant/pleasant
Table III CFA results for factors generating tourist expectations
Latent variable
Measurement
variable
Standard
coef?cient R
2
Cronbach’s
a
Composite
reliability
coef?cient Goodness of ?t
Past experience (EXP) EXP1 0.85 0.72 0.85 0.86 SBx
2
ð71Þ ¼ 1; 18:51 (p ¼ 0:00)
EXP2 0.75 0.56 BBNFI ¼ 0:92
EXP3 0.84 0.70 BBNNFI ¼ 0:95
External communication (COM) COM1 0.56 0.32 0.75 0.76 GFI ¼ 0:93
COM2 0.80 0.64 AGFI ¼ 0:90
COM3 0.77 0.60 RMSEA ¼ 0:06
Word of mouth (WOM) WOM1 0.85 0.72 0.85 0.86
WOM2 0.85 0.73
WOM3 0.74 0.55
Destination image (IMA) IMA1 0.65 0.42 0.70 0.70
IMA2 0.53 0.28
IMA3 0.54 0.30
IMA4 0.53 0.29
IMA5 0.56 0.31
Exp-Com Exp-Wom Exp-Ima Com-Wom Com-Ima Wom-Ima
Correlation 0.61 0.66 0.74 0.74 0.75 0.79
Con?dence interval 0.72-0.50 0.75-0.56 0.83-0.65 0.83-0.65 0.84-0.65 0.88-0.71
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goodness-of-?t values are acceptable, supporting an adequate ?t for the model. The
estimated coef?cients for each component of expectations are positive and signi?cant. In
view of these results, past experience (0.77; p , 0:01), external communication (0.82;
p , 0:01), word-of-mouth communication (0.87; p , 0:01), and preconceived image of the
tourist site (0.92; p , 0:01) compose a second-order factor. These results support H1, H2,
H3 and H4, thus establishing a positive relationship between the different components
making up the concept of tourist expectations.
Conclusions and managerial implications
Consumer psychology is one of the most important ?elds in tourism research. In this area of
knowledge, exploring tourist expectations is extremely important, since they may have a
signi?cant in?uence on decision-making processes and tourist behavior. Under these
circumstances, this study attempts to provide an in-depth examination of the formation of
tourist expectations. Past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth
communication and destination image are factors generating expectations of a future
destination experience. A combination of qualitative and quantitative research helps to test
the hypotheses proposed in this study. The results offer strong support for the research
hypotheses, thus demonstrating that tourist expectations are a second-order factor based
on inter-correlations among several ?rst-order factors (past experience, external
communication, word-of-mouth communication and preconceived image of the tourist
site). These ?ndings represent a signi?cant advancement in the study of consumer behavior
in tourism since past research on this topic has focused largely on destination perceptions
with little signi?cance attached to the expectations.
In this framework, preconceived image of a tourist destination is the most important factor
generating tourist expectations. In other studies, image is also the main factor in service
expectation formation (Clow et al., 1997; Devlin et al., 2002; Rodr? ´guez del Bosque et al.,
2006). Actually, image represents the true capabilities of a tourist destination, at least in the
eyes of tourists. As a result, individuals have a great deal of con?dence in this psychological
Figure 1 Second-order CFA of tourist expectations
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factor to form their expectations of a future destination experience. On the other hand, the
intangible nature of tourist services explains the signi?cant role of word-of-mouth
communication, external communication and past experience in expectation formation. In
particular, tourists use information from internal sources (past experience) and external
sources (e.g. advertisements, brochures or word-of-mouth) in order to reduce the uncertainty,
and therefore to clearly formtheir expectations of a future destination experience. In the airline
industry, Kalamas et al. (2002) also ?nd an in?uence of these factors on service expectations.
This study suggests additional directions for further research. On the one hand, researchers
should explore expectation formation for different groups of tourists according to their
nationality, involvement or familiarity with the destination. This is because the role of the
factors in the expectation formation may vary from one tourist to another. On the other hand,
future works should emphasize the role of motivations in the expectation formation process.
In this sense, Gnoth (1997) suggests that expectations are closely related to attitudes and
motivations (motivation !attitudes !expectations). The present study assumes that
motivations in?uence destination image, which can be interpreted as an attitude towards
the tourist site. In this line, Moutinho (1987) establishes that motivations play an important
role in destination image formation in a conscious or unconscious way. In addition, several
studies ?nd a signi?cant and positive relationship between motivations and destination
image and, more concretely, a link between motivations and affective image (Baloglu and
McCleary, 1999; Beerli and Mart? ´n, 2004; San Mart? ´n and Rodr? ´guez del Bosque, 2008).
According to San Mart? ´n and Rodr? ´guez del Bosque (2008), tourists will be more motivated
when the attributes of the destination are capable of ful?lling their bene?ts sought, and
subsequently their personal values. Therefore, before taking the decision to travel,
individuals will have a more positive image of the tourist site when the emotions evoked by
the destination coincide with their bene?ts sought. Nevertheless, further research in tourism
should explore in depth the role of motivations in expectation formation.
With regard to managerial implications, expectations management should be crucial for
managers since expectations may affect not only the tourist choice process, but also the
destination experiences. Managers should actively participate in the expectations formation
process by controlling the signals that tourists use to reduce the uncertainty associated with
a future destination experience. In this context, managing the destination image and the
quality of the tourist experience is extremely important for managers. Firstly, promotion is a
key element for the destination success. In terms of content and media, marketers should
appropriately communicate the tourist destination in order to transmit a favorable image in
the target markets. This action would improve the tourists’ expectations, and consequently,
the destination’s position in the decision-making processes. Secondly, the stimulation of
services and tourist resources with high added value for visitors is necessary to ensure an
experience of quality and delight at the tourist destination. This action would guarantee a
high level of tourist satisfaction, as well as a positive word-of-mouth communication towards
potential visitors. Finally, the destination marketers have to manage the coherence and
reliability of the communication (e.g. advertisements or brochures) to project favorable
expectations of the tourist destination in the individual’s mind.
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Corresponding author
Ignacio Rodr? ´guez del Bosque is the corresponding author and can be contacted at:
[email protected]
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doc_389341672.pdf
As there is still only limited research about expectation formation in destination marketing,
the aim of this paper is to enhance this body of knowledge by providing theoretical and empirical
evidence about the role of different factors which generate tourist expectations. In particular, since
expectations may significantly condition not only the tourist choice process but also the perceptions of
experiences, the objective of this paper is to examine the factors contributing to the expectations of a
tourist destination. Based on service expectations literature, a theoretical framework postulates the main
factors generating tourist expectations.
International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research
A framework for tourist expectations
Ignacio Rodríguez del Bosque Héctor San Martín J esús Collado María del Mar García de los Salmones
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expectations", International J ournal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research, Vol. 3 Iss 2 pp. 139 - 147
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A framework for tourist expectations
Ignacio Rodr? ´guez del Bosque, He´ ctor San Mart? ´n, Jesu´ s Collado and
Mar? ´a del Mar Garc? ´a de los Salmones
Abstract
Purpose – As there is still only limited research about expectation formation in destination marketing,
the aim of this paper is to enhance this body of knowledge by providing theoretical and empirical
evidence about the role of different factors which generate tourist expectations. In particular, since
expectations may signi?cantly condition not only the tourist choice process but also the perceptions of
experiences, the objective of this paper is to examine the factors contributing to the expectations of a
tourist destination. Based on service expectations literature, a theoretical framework postulates the main
factors generating tourist expectations.
Design/methodology/approach – Empirical research tests the research hypotheses. More
speci?cally, several in-depth interviews and focus groups (qualitative research) and a survey
conducted in a holiday destination (quantitative research) led to data collection.
Findings – Tourist expectations are a second-order factor based on inter-correlations among several
?rst-order factors (i.e. past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth communication and
destination image). In addition, image can be considered as the main factor generating expectations of
a destination.
Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of this study is the geographic area (tourist
site) of the research process. The tourist destination under investigation signi?cantly in?uences the
characteristics of the sample, of which national tourists are the main constituent.
Originality/value – Managing the destination image and the quality of experience is critical to induce
favorable expectations of the destination in the tourist’s mind. In addition, the coherence and reliability of
destination communication need to be controlled in expectations management.
Keywords Tourism, Consumer behaviour, Marketing, Brand image
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Managing the tourist’s expectations is extremely important, since expectations can
signi?cantly in?uence tourist choice processes as well as perceptions of experiences
(Gnoth, 1997). Firstly, the individual’s favorable beliefs (or expectations) about a destination
would help the tourist site to occupy a privileged position among the places evoked during
the choice process. Secondly, expectations may affect perceptions of destination
experiences, or more speci?cally, the tourist satisfaction process. In this sense, the
function of expectations in tourist satisfaction can be potentially guided by two phenomena:
1. assimilation; and
2. contrast (Oliver, 1997).
According to the assimilation theory (Sherif and Hovland, 1961), tourists would tend to adjust
the destination perception to their expectations in order to justify their beliefs or predictions,
thus removing their psychological con?icts. In line with the contrast theory (Hovland et al.,
DOI 10.1108/17506180910962140 VOL. 3 NO. 2 2009, pp. 139-147, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1750-6182
j
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CULTURE, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY RESEARCH
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PAGE 139
Ignacio Rodr? ´guez del
Bosque, He´ ctor San Mart? ´n,
Jesu´ s Collado, and Mar? ´a
del Mar Garc? ´a de los
Salmones are all based at
the University of Cantabria,
Santander, Spain.
Received: April 2008
Revised: June 2008
Accepted: July 2008
The authors acknowledge the
assistance of Joanne L. Bills in
editing this article.
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1957), tourists would magnify their evaluative responses in the direction of the discrepancy
between perception and expectations. In either of these two circumstances, expectations
will in?uence tourists’ satisfaction and value-creation. As a result, expectations management
is a key element to the destination’s success.
In this context, the objective of this study is to thoroughly explore the factors generating
expectations of a tourist destination. In particular, the basis of this research is a theoretical
framework based on predictive expectations. Predictive expectations, de?ned generally as
the individual’s beliefs about how a product or service is likely to perform at some moment in
the future (Oliver, 1987; Prakash and Lounsbury, 1984), are the most used type of
expectations in past research (Park and Choi, 1998; Santos and Boote, 2003). In addition,
past research on service expectations helps to identify the factors generating tourist
expectations. Past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth communication and
image may be considered the main factors in expectation formation.
Theoretical framework and research hypotheses
Since service experiences integrate the reality of a tourist destination uncovering the
determinants of service expectations allows us to establish the theoretical framework of this
study (Zeithaml et al., 1993). Firstly, past experience can in?uence expectations (Fache´ ,
2000; Hoffman and Bateson, 1997). In particular, individual beliefs about a future encounter
depend on the previous levels of satisfaction (Clow et al., 1997; Kalamas et al., 2002).
Rodr? ´guez del Bosque et al. (2006) ?nd empirical evidence of this phenomenon in tourism
research. They demonstrate that experience is a factor generating expectations of a future
service encounter with a travel agency. In addition, Johnson and Mathews (1997) establish
that repeated encounters enhance the individual expectations of a future service
experience. Under these circumstances, the more positive the past experience with a
destination, the higher the tourist expectations.
H1. Past experience of a tourist destination is a factor generating expectations of a
future destination experience.
Intangibility is one of the most important characteristics of services. This feature may
seriously complicate the formation of expectations (Bebko, 2000). As a result, individuals
perceive service intangibility as an element of uncertainty. Individuals seek information from
several sources to relieve this adverse situation (Murray, 1991), and consequently, to clearly
form their expectations of a future service encounter. Thus, external communication and
word-of-mouth communication in?uence service expectations (Clow et al., 1997; Dion et al.,
1998; Fache´ , 2000; Hoffman and Bateson, 1997; Kalamas et al., 2002). Intangibility is a
distinctive characteristic of destination experience (Bowen and Clarke, 2002). Under these
circumstances, individuals use communication from the destination marketer (e.g.
advertisements or brochures) to reduce the uncertainty associated with the destination,
and therefore to form their expectations in a more reliable way. Since external
communication is an explicit experience promise, the more favorable the communication
from a destination, the higher the tourist expectations.
H2. External communication from a tourist destination is a factor generating
expectations of a future destination experience.
Because of the experiential nature of services (Clow et al., 1997), word-of-mouth
communications are more reliable than external communications to generate expectations
of a future service encounter. In addition, word-of-mouth communication is extremely
important in situations with high levels of involvement and perceived risk by consumers (File
et al., 1994). Since these situations are usual in a tourism context, individuals use
communication from relatives and/or friends to better predict a future destination
experience. Thus, the more favorable the word-of-mouth communication about a
destination, the higher the tourist expectations will be.
H3. Word-of-mouth communication about a tourist destination is a factor generating
expectations of a future destination experience.
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Image is a real service expectations communicator (Gro¨ nroos, 1990). In a context with high
levels of uncertainty, individuals consider their preconceived images as a signal of the true
capabilities of the provider (Weigelt and Camerer, 1988). Previous studies (Clow et al., 1997;
Devlin et al., 2002; Rodr? ´guez del Bosque et al., 2006) establish a positive relationship
between image and expectations in several service industries (e.g. catering, ?nancial
services or travel agencies). In tourism, destination image is a mental representation of the
place that helps individuals to anticipate their destination experiences (Jenkins, 1999).
Therefore, image moulds the expectations that individuals have of a tourist destination
before the visit (Bigne´ et al., 2001). The more favorable the preconceived image of a
destination, the higher the tourist expectations.
H4. Preconceived image of a tourist destination is a factor generating expectations of a
future destination experience.
Method
A combination of qualitative and quantitative research makes it possible to thoroughly
explore the factors contributing to expectations of a tourist destination. The qualitative phase
consists of four in-depth interviews with experts fromthe public institutions for promotion and
destination management, travel agencies and hotels. Additionally, this phase contains two
focus groups, one with travel agents and another with tourists of different age, gender and
occupation. Qualitative research helps to de?ne the quantitative phase (i.e. survey design
and data collection) in a more reliable way.
With regard to quantitative research, the destination under investigation is Cantabria (in
the North of Spain). This tourist destination has a great diversity in terms of culture,
landscape and gastronomy, as well as having world-famous attractions such as the
Altamira Caves. The target population consists of tourists who are over 15 years old. By
combining the convenience and quota methods, it is possible to select the sample,
distinguishing between national tourists and international tourists. Individuals had to
respond to a questionnaire during their stay at the tourist destination (April 2004). There
were two types of questionnaire – one for Spanish tourists (Spanish version) and another
for international tourists (English version). Several individuals who spoke different
languages were the pollsters for the group of international tourists. Finally, the empirical
research consisted of 298 valid responses, representing a sampling error in the case of
an in?nite population (the size of the population is not available) of 5.7 percent for a
con?dence level of 95.5 percent (p ¼ q ¼ 0:5). Table I illustrates the socio-demographic
pro?le of respondents.
Table II contains the measurement of the variables of the model (the literature review and
the opinions of tourists and experts helped to de?ne the scales). The scale measuring
past experience includes three items adapted from Clow et al. (1997). This measure
captures the levels of satisfaction in previous stays at the tourist destination (1 ¼ strongly
disagree; 7 ¼ strongly agree). The measurement of external communication includes
commercial and non-commercial information of the tourist destination (Baloglu and
McCleary, 1999; So¨ nmez and Sirakaya, 2002). The items measure the overall assessment
(1 ¼ very negative; 7 ¼ very positive), reliability and coherence of the external
communication (1 ¼ strongly disagree; 7 ¼ strongly agree). According to Nyer (1996),
reliability and coherence capture the level of ambiguity of information. The scale
measuring word-of-mouth communication evaluates the opinions and recommendations
to individuals from other people such as relatives and friends. In line with Clow et al.
(1997), this research uses a three-item Likert scale (1 ¼ strongly disagree; 7 ¼ strongly
agree).
On the other hand, cognitive and affective evaluations of the tourist destination make it
possible to capture the image that individuals have of the tourist site before the visit (Baloglu
and McCleary, 1999; Beerli and Mart? ´n, 2004; Kim and Richardson, 2003). Based on past
research (Echtner and Ritchie, 1991; Gallarza et al., 2002; Kim and Richardson, 2003), this
research uses a 22-item scale to measure destination image. Subsequently, an exploratory
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factor analysis helps to identify destination image dimensions. More speci?cally, this
analysis identi?es ?ve image factors:
1. infrastructures and socio-economic environment (IMA1);
2. atmosphere (IMA2);
3. natural environment (IMA3);
4. affective image (IMA4); and
5. cultural environment (IMA5).
Finally, these dimensions provide a global measurement of the preconceived image of the
tourist destination.
A con?rmatory factorial analysis (CFA) with EQS 6.1 validates the multi-item scales of the
model (see the results in Table III). Firstly, Cronbach’s a and the composite reliability
coef?cient are higher than the recommended value of 0.7 (Bagozzi and Yi, 1988), thus
con?rming the reliability of scales. Secondly, all indicators are signi?cant and their
standardized l coef?cients exceed 0.5, justifying the convergent validity of scales
(Steenkamp and Van Trijp, 1991). The con?dence intervals for the correlation coef?cient
between pairs of latent variables make it possible to check the discriminant validity
(Anderson and Gerbing, 1988). None of the intervals include unity, thus con?rming the
discriminant validity of measurement scales. Finally, the values of BBNFI, BBNNFI, GFI and
AGFI exceed the recommended value of 0.9, while the RMSEA statistic remains below its
recommended value of 0.08. These results show an appropriate ?t of the proposed factorial
structure for past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth communication and
destination image.
Table I Pro?le of respondents
Variable Percentage
Gender
Male 48.0
Female 52.0
Age
16-24 years 20.9
25-44 years 47.3
45-64 years 26.4
65 years and older 5.4
Education level
Without studies 4.1
Primary 16.0
Secondary 26.9
University 53.0
Occupation
Employed 64.9
Student 16.6
Housewife 8.1
Unemployed 4.1
Retired 6.3
Monthly income
e0-e1,200 14.8
e1,201-e2,400 32.2
e2,400 or more 24.1
Don’t know/no answer 28.9
Place of origin
National 89.6
International 10.4
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Findings
In the analysis, tourist expectations are a higher-order factor comprising past experience,
external communication, word-of-mouth communication and preconceived image of the
destination. Figure 1 shows the ?nal estimates of the second-order factor model. The
Table II Measures
Past experience I have always had excellent experiences when I’ve come to Cantabria
I have greatly enjoyed myself during my previous stays
In general, I am satis?ed with my previous stays
External communication The information I had about Cantabria was reliable
The information I had about Cantabria was coherent
Overall, how would you assess the information that you had from several sources?
Word-of-mouth My relatives and/or friends spoke very highly of Cantabria to me
My relatives and/or friends recommended that I visit Cantabria
Most people I know have a good opinion of Cantabria
Destination image Cognitive image attributes
Cantabria has a great variety of fauna and ?ora
Cantabria has beautiful landscapes
Cantabria has beautiful natural parks and areas
The weather is pleasant
The beaches are attractive
The people are friendly and hospitable
Cantabria offers many opportunities for the adventurous
Cantabria is a peaceful place
Cantabria is a highly appropriate place for resting
Cantabria has a lot of cultural attractions to visit
Cantabria offers interesting cultural activities
It’s nice to learn about the local customs
The gastronomy is rich and varied
Access to Cantabria from others countries is easy
Cantabria offers many shopping facilities
The accommodation is of good quality
In general, Cantabria offers good value for money
Cantabria is a safe place to visit
Affective image attributes
Cantabria is a tourist destination: boring/fun; distressing/relaxing; gloomy/exciting; unpleasant/pleasant
Table III CFA results for factors generating tourist expectations
Latent variable
Measurement
variable
Standard
coef?cient R
2
Cronbach’s
a
Composite
reliability
coef?cient Goodness of ?t
Past experience (EXP) EXP1 0.85 0.72 0.85 0.86 SBx
2
ð71Þ ¼ 1; 18:51 (p ¼ 0:00)
EXP2 0.75 0.56 BBNFI ¼ 0:92
EXP3 0.84 0.70 BBNNFI ¼ 0:95
External communication (COM) COM1 0.56 0.32 0.75 0.76 GFI ¼ 0:93
COM2 0.80 0.64 AGFI ¼ 0:90
COM3 0.77 0.60 RMSEA ¼ 0:06
Word of mouth (WOM) WOM1 0.85 0.72 0.85 0.86
WOM2 0.85 0.73
WOM3 0.74 0.55
Destination image (IMA) IMA1 0.65 0.42 0.70 0.70
IMA2 0.53 0.28
IMA3 0.54 0.30
IMA4 0.53 0.29
IMA5 0.56 0.31
Exp-Com Exp-Wom Exp-Ima Com-Wom Com-Ima Wom-Ima
Correlation 0.61 0.66 0.74 0.74 0.75 0.79
Con?dence interval 0.72-0.50 0.75-0.56 0.83-0.65 0.83-0.65 0.84-0.65 0.88-0.71
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goodness-of-?t values are acceptable, supporting an adequate ?t for the model. The
estimated coef?cients for each component of expectations are positive and signi?cant. In
view of these results, past experience (0.77; p , 0:01), external communication (0.82;
p , 0:01), word-of-mouth communication (0.87; p , 0:01), and preconceived image of the
tourist site (0.92; p , 0:01) compose a second-order factor. These results support H1, H2,
H3 and H4, thus establishing a positive relationship between the different components
making up the concept of tourist expectations.
Conclusions and managerial implications
Consumer psychology is one of the most important ?elds in tourism research. In this area of
knowledge, exploring tourist expectations is extremely important, since they may have a
signi?cant in?uence on decision-making processes and tourist behavior. Under these
circumstances, this study attempts to provide an in-depth examination of the formation of
tourist expectations. Past experience, external communication, word-of-mouth
communication and destination image are factors generating expectations of a future
destination experience. A combination of qualitative and quantitative research helps to test
the hypotheses proposed in this study. The results offer strong support for the research
hypotheses, thus demonstrating that tourist expectations are a second-order factor based
on inter-correlations among several ?rst-order factors (past experience, external
communication, word-of-mouth communication and preconceived image of the tourist
site). These ?ndings represent a signi?cant advancement in the study of consumer behavior
in tourism since past research on this topic has focused largely on destination perceptions
with little signi?cance attached to the expectations.
In this framework, preconceived image of a tourist destination is the most important factor
generating tourist expectations. In other studies, image is also the main factor in service
expectation formation (Clow et al., 1997; Devlin et al., 2002; Rodr? ´guez del Bosque et al.,
2006). Actually, image represents the true capabilities of a tourist destination, at least in the
eyes of tourists. As a result, individuals have a great deal of con?dence in this psychological
Figure 1 Second-order CFA of tourist expectations
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factor to form their expectations of a future destination experience. On the other hand, the
intangible nature of tourist services explains the signi?cant role of word-of-mouth
communication, external communication and past experience in expectation formation. In
particular, tourists use information from internal sources (past experience) and external
sources (e.g. advertisements, brochures or word-of-mouth) in order to reduce the uncertainty,
and therefore to clearly formtheir expectations of a future destination experience. In the airline
industry, Kalamas et al. (2002) also ?nd an in?uence of these factors on service expectations.
This study suggests additional directions for further research. On the one hand, researchers
should explore expectation formation for different groups of tourists according to their
nationality, involvement or familiarity with the destination. This is because the role of the
factors in the expectation formation may vary from one tourist to another. On the other hand,
future works should emphasize the role of motivations in the expectation formation process.
In this sense, Gnoth (1997) suggests that expectations are closely related to attitudes and
motivations (motivation !attitudes !expectations). The present study assumes that
motivations in?uence destination image, which can be interpreted as an attitude towards
the tourist site. In this line, Moutinho (1987) establishes that motivations play an important
role in destination image formation in a conscious or unconscious way. In addition, several
studies ?nd a signi?cant and positive relationship between motivations and destination
image and, more concretely, a link between motivations and affective image (Baloglu and
McCleary, 1999; Beerli and Mart? ´n, 2004; San Mart? ´n and Rodr? ´guez del Bosque, 2008).
According to San Mart? ´n and Rodr? ´guez del Bosque (2008), tourists will be more motivated
when the attributes of the destination are capable of ful?lling their bene?ts sought, and
subsequently their personal values. Therefore, before taking the decision to travel,
individuals will have a more positive image of the tourist site when the emotions evoked by
the destination coincide with their bene?ts sought. Nevertheless, further research in tourism
should explore in depth the role of motivations in expectation formation.
With regard to managerial implications, expectations management should be crucial for
managers since expectations may affect not only the tourist choice process, but also the
destination experiences. Managers should actively participate in the expectations formation
process by controlling the signals that tourists use to reduce the uncertainty associated with
a future destination experience. In this context, managing the destination image and the
quality of the tourist experience is extremely important for managers. Firstly, promotion is a
key element for the destination success. In terms of content and media, marketers should
appropriately communicate the tourist destination in order to transmit a favorable image in
the target markets. This action would improve the tourists’ expectations, and consequently,
the destination’s position in the decision-making processes. Secondly, the stimulation of
services and tourist resources with high added value for visitors is necessary to ensure an
experience of quality and delight at the tourist destination. This action would guarantee a
high level of tourist satisfaction, as well as a positive word-of-mouth communication towards
potential visitors. Finally, the destination marketers have to manage the coherence and
reliability of the communication (e.g. advertisements or brochures) to project favorable
expectations of the tourist destination in the individual’s mind.
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Corresponding author
Ignacio Rodr? ´guez del Bosque is the corresponding author and can be contacted at:
[email protected]
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