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An increasing number of immersive technologies have been adopted in museum tourism in response to shifting consumer habits in the digital era. In contrast, the authenticity experience of museum tourists relies on genuine relics, the environment and activities, which are ancient or traditional. This raises the question of whether tourists can perceive authenticity in immersive technology-based museum tourism. To address this question, this study aims to explore the impact of virtual reality (VR) attributes on tourists’ presence, tourism authenticity and subsequent behavioral intentions in virtual museums.

Data were collected via scenario-based surveys of participants who had taken virtual museum tours based on VR. A total of 174 effective questionnaires were collected for exploratory factor analysis via SPSS 25. Afterward, 597 questionnaires were obtained for confirmatory factor analysis and path analysis via Mplus 7.4.

A conceptual model of how VR attributes influence presence, authenticity and visit intention was developed. There is a chain intermediary between presence and visit intentions, from original authenticity to interactive authenticity and then to emotional authenticity. Technology readiness and museum familiarity moderate some relationships between VR attributes and presence.

The findings can guide museums in improving the use of VR. For example, managers can improve the quality of virtual systems and adopt various interactive forms to enhance tourists’ participation experiences.

These research findings contribute to the research area of immersive technology adoption, enhance the understanding of tourism authenticity in the new context of technology application and extend the presence-emotion-intention theory.

This study intend to investigate a theoretical model looking at how particular tourist emotions, such as “joy,” “love,” and “positive surprise,” might predict their behavior by looking at how satisfied they are with their whole experience when visiting spas, and to examine the relationship of emotional experience, destination image, satisfaction and intention to revisit for spa tourism.

A sample of 345 individuals who traveled to Alleppey as domestic tourists participated in the research study. A non-probability (purposive) sampling method in this study. The structural model was analyzed using Structural Equation modeling (SEM), and the path coefficients were examined to test the hypotheses.

The results supported the hypotheses, indicating that specific emotions, image of the destination, and satisfaction significantly impacted tourists' intentions to revisit Alleppey as a spa tourism destination. This study demonstrated that “emotions of joy, love, and positive surprise” have a considerable influence on the image of the destination and satisfaction. The findings reveal a substantial correlation between satisfaction and behavioral intention (“Intention to revisit”). The research suggests that a higher degree of satisfaction would encourage visitors to revisit the location.

The research suggests that a higher degree of satisfaction would encourage visitors to revisit the location. This research offers vital information for developing, planning, and putting into practice tourism policies in the spa tourism sector. This article focuses on domestic travelers who travel to Alleppey, so the conclusions may not be relevant to research utilizing foreign tourists.

According to the literature study, and to the authors` knowledge, only limited number of studies that look at spa tourism from a wellness perspective. Additionally, Alleppey is used in the study as the study’s setting, providing insight into the visitor experiences of this expanding spa tourism business. This study gives understanding about how emotional experience predicts behavioral intentions.

This study investigates to what extent the values perceived by tourists throughout cultural tours impact their overall satisfaction levels and behavioral intentions related to the destination. This study further examines the moderating role of tour guide competency in the relationship patterns concerned.

Empirical data were collected via a survey from 420 foreign tourists who visited Cappadocia and participated in guided cultural tours. Partial least squares-structural equation modeling was used for data analysis.

Study results reveal that the effects of quality, emotional, monetary and social value perceptions of tourists gained through cultural tour experiences on their overall satisfaction levels and the effects of overall satisfaction on recommendation and revisit intention are positive and significant. Furthermore, the moderating role of tour guide competency is significant and positive in the relationships between quality value and satisfaction and between satisfaction and revisit intention.

This study offers a critical analysis of discoveries concerning the pivotal role of tour guide competency within the cultural tour experience.

This study aims to examine how travellers’ non-immersive virtual heritage authenticity, sense of presence and virtual tour satisfaction stimulate their behavioural intentions (continuance and travel intention) within the stimulus–organism–response model.

A questionnaire was designed to survey Turkish travellers (n = 275) participating in a virtual tour. A structural equation modelling method was used to estimate the model and test the research hypotheses.

Research findings revealed that four out of six hypotheses were supported. Based on the study outputs, authenticity and sense of presence impact overall travellers’ satisfaction. Furthermore, satisfaction influences continuance intention and travel intention.

The study presents a pioneering effort to investigate tourists’ non-immersive virtual heritage tour experiences in a developing destination context through a theoretical framework.

This study aims to examine the underlying emotional process that explains how context-specific stimuli involved in virtual reality (VR) destinations translate into presence perceptions and behavioral intentions.

In total, 403 potential tourists participated in a self-administered online survey after they watched a randomly assigned VR tour. The Lavaan package in R software was used to conduct structural equation analysis and examine the proposed theoretical framework.

The results reveal that media content consisting of informativeness, aesthetics and novelty was positively related to users’ sense of presence in a VR tour. The effect of media content on presence was partially mediated by emotional arousal.

Managers and VR designers can create an emotive virtual tour that contributes to the user’s sense of presence to promote attraction to the target destination. The VR content needs to be informative, aesthetic and novel, which can excite users during the VR tour, portray virtual destinations clearly and eventually influence potential tourists’ visit intentions.

Research on the emotional mechanism to generate presence is still in its infancy. This study integrates presence theory into a conceptual framework to explore how media content influences presence and decision-making through the emotional mechanism.

This paper aims to evaluate the impact of various preview modes on tourist attitudes and intentions to visit a destination based on consumers’ level of involvement in travel decision-making.

The study was conducted as a between-subjects one-factor [preview mode: static images vs 360-degree tour vs virtual reality (VR) mode] in a laboratory experiment setup to examine how consumers with different levels of involvement in travel decision-making respond to destination marketing toward three different preview modes.

The findings indicated that VR preview mode highly influences tourist attitudes and visit intentions toward a destination compared to static images and 360-degree tours. This effect is more significant among participants with higher levels of customer involvement. Finally, the results from the study offer empirical evidence of the effectiveness of VR in shaping user behavior compared to traditional preview modes.

The limitations are using a non-probability sampling method, a small sample size and affordable mobile-compatible VR headsets.

This study offers empirical evidence on the effectiveness of VR in shaping tourist behavior compared to traditional preview modes. It helps destination marketers develop appropriate strategies for promoting tourist destinations.

The novelty of this paper lies in understanding the effectiveness of VR in shaping tourist behavior with different levels of customer involvement in travel decision-making.

This study aims to apply the service robot acceptance model (sRAM) to examine how attitude toward human–robot interaction (HRI) and engagement influence consumer acceptance of service robots in a frontline setting.

Data was collected from 255 visitors who interacted with a robotic tour guide at a city museum. The data was analyzed using smart PLS 4.0.

The findings show the positive effects of subjective norms, appearance, perceived trust and positive emotion on both attitude toward HRI and engagement. In addition, social capability impacted attitude toward HRI, whereas perceived usefulness affected engagement.

To deliver engaging museum experiences that bring about positive word-of-mouth and intention to visit, managers need to incorporate the sRAM dimensions in the design and deployment of service robots.

This research uses field data to empirically validate the sRAM in the context of service robot acceptance. It introduces engagement as a novel mediating variable, enriching current understanding of human-like qualities in HRIs.

Based on the mentoring literature, this study aims to explore the mentoring functions developed by the travel industry and develop a multiple mentoring function scale (MMFS) for tour leaders.

Study One of this research involved in-depth interviews with 23 tour leaders for establishing the initial question bank and pilot test scale. In Study Two, the initial scale was pilot tested by 225 tour leaders for identifying the factor structure through exploratory factor analysis. In Study Three, the model was verified through confirmatory factor analyses of 251 calibration samples. In Study Four, cross-validation was verified by 227 validation samples.

In Study One, through the content analyses, an initial question bank of 51 questions was established. The question bank was reviewed by 15 experts, resulting in the development of a pilot test scale of 36 questions. In Study Two, 16 questions were retained after the initial scale was pilot tested, and four dimensions were identified, including career competency, reverse mentoring, career development and psychosocial functions. In Study Three, the model was verified through confirmatory factor analyses and confirmed to have good reliability and construct validity. Finally, a first-order, four-factor scale that consisted of 16 questions was established. In Study Four, cross-validation was verified.

MMFS establishment underwent a rigorous development process, and the scale’s reliability and validity are supported. It is suggested that future research should develop and construct a multifunctional model for tour-leading professionals based on the MMFS to evaluate the long-term impact of the MMFS.

Previous studies have mainly focused on typical mentoring functions. Multiple mentoring functions derived from the characteristics of tour leaders and guides have rarely been discussed. This research can fill the gap in the application of mentoring system to human resource management research in the tourism industry. As a result, this four-dimensional multiple mentoring functions scale provides a progressive perspective and be regarded as the first version of the scale development in the tourism industry.

基于师徒文献, 本研究探讨了旅游业的师徒功能, 并为旅游领队发展多元师徒功能量表（MMFS）。

研究一, 涉及与 23 位领队的深度访谈, 以建立初始题库和预试量表。研究二, 初始量表由225名领队进行试测, 通过探索性因素分析确定因素结构。研究三, 通过验证性因素分析251个校准样本以验证模型。研究四, 由 227 个验证样本进行复合效化。

研究一, 经过内容分析, 建立了51道题的初始题库。初始题库由 15 位专家审阅, 最终形成36 个问题的预试量表。研究二, 预试量表进行预试后, 保留了16个问题, 确定了四个构面, 包括职业能力、反向师徒、职业发展和社会心理功能。研究三, 通过验证性因素分析对模型进行验证, 证实具有良好的信度和建构效度。建立了一个由 16 个题项所组成的一阶四因素量表。研究四, 复合效化获得验证。

过往的研究主要集中在典型的师徒功能上。很少有人讨论基于领队和导游的特点而衍生出的多元师徒功能。本研究填补了师徒制在旅游行业人力资源管理研究中的应用空白。因此, 这四个构面的多元师徒功能量表提供了一个渐进的视角, 被视为量表发展的旅游业第一版。

MMFS的建立经历了严格的开发过程, 量表的信度和效度得到支持。建议未来的研究应基于 MMFS开发和建构旅游领队专业人士的多元功能模型, 以评估MMFS 的后续影响。

Basándose en la bibliografía sobre la mentoría, este estudio exploró las funciones de mentoría desarrolladas por el sector de los viajes y elaboró una escala de funciones de mentoría múltiple (MMFS) para guías y jefes de grupo turísticos.

En el Estudio Uno de esta investigación se realizaron entrevistas en profundidad a 23 guías turísticos para establecer el banco de preguntas inicial y la escala de prueba piloto. Estudio Dos, la escala inicial fue sometida a una prueba piloto por 225 guías de tours para identificar la estructura factorial mediante un análisis factorial exploratorio. Estudio Tres, el modelo se verificó mediante análisis factoriales confirmatorios 251 muestras de calibración. En el Estudio Cuatro, la validación cruzada se verificó mediante 227 muestras de validación.

Estudio Uno: a través de los análisis de contenido, se estableció un banco de preguntas inicial de 51 preguntas. El banco de preguntas fue revisado por 15 expertos, lo que dio lugar a la elaboración de una escala de prueba piloto de 36 preguntas. Estudio Dos, se retuvieron 16 preguntas, tras la prueba piloto de la escala inicial, y se identificaron cuatro dimensiones, que incluían la competencia profesional, la mentoría inversa, el desarrollo profesional y las funciones psicosociales. Estudio Tres, el modelo se verificó mediante análisis factoriales confirmatorios y se confirmó que tenía una buena fiabilidad y validez de constructo. Por último, se estableció una escala de primer orden y cuatro factores que constaba de 16 preguntas. En el Estudio Cuatro, se verificó la validación cruzada.

Los estudios anteriores se han centrado principalmente en las funciones típicas de la mentoría. Rara vez se han tratado las funciones múltiples de mentoría derivadas de las características de los guías y jefes de grupo turísticos. Esta investigación puede llenar el vacío existente en la aplicación del sistema de mentoría a la investigación de la gestión de recursos humanos en la industria turística. Como resultado, esta escala de funciones de mentoría múltiple de cuatro dimensiones proporciona una perspectiva progresista y puede considerarse como la primera versión del desarrollo de la escala en la industria turística.

El establecimiento de la MMFS se sometió a un riguroso proceso de desarrollo, y la fiabilidad y validez de la escala están respaldadas. Se sugiere que en futuras investigaciones se desarrolle y construya un modelo multifuncional para guías profesionales de turismo basado en la MMFS para evaluar el impacto a largo plazo de la MMFS.

Through a theoretical lens of psychological ownership, this study aims to investigate how technology mindfulness may stimulate metaverse tourism users’ feelings of individual psychological ownership, aesthetic value and conversational value, which in turn fosters intention to engage in prosocial behaviors.

The study used a scenario-based survey that allowed U.S.-based participants to create their own avatars and imagine using their avatars to explore heritage sites in the metaverse. Structural equality modeling was applied for data analysis.

The results from 357 valid responses indicate that technology mindfulness arouses tourists’ individual psychological ownership, aesthetic value, conversational value and prosocial behavioral intentions. The moderating role of biospheric value orientation on willingness to donate and intention to volunteer is investigated.

The research sheds light on the significance of technology mindfulness, conversational value and psychological ownership perspectives in the metaverse, which have been previously overlooked. The authors used a scenario-based survey for mental stimulation due to current metaverse technology limitations.

The study is one of the first to explore the possibility of encouraging prosocial behaviors using metaverse-facilitated technology. The research offers guidelines to engage hospitality and tourism customers in the metaverse that can blend their virtual experiences into the real world.

This study represents one of the pioneering efforts to gain an in-depth understanding of the application of metaverse in triggering prosocial behavior toward heritage sites, explained via a technology mindfulness-driven model with a psychological ownership perspective.

Although previous studies have examined the influence of celebrity involvement in behavioural intentions, the role of celebrity dimensions such as attraction, self-expression and centrality in influencing tourists’ intention in the context of developing countries such as Tanzania remains largely unaddressed. This study, therefore, examined the relationship between celebrity involvement and domestic tourists' intentions to visit tourist attractions, attitude being the mediating variable.

A questionnaire was self-administered on a convenient sample of 279 domestic tourists in the Tanzania’s four largest regions, namely, Dar es Salaam, Mbeya, Arusha and Mwanza. Employing a quantitative research approach, structural equation modelling was performed to test the cause-and-effect relationships between celebrity involvement and tourists’ intentions before testing the mediating role of attitude in such a relationship. Confirmatory factor analysis was also performed to test the measurement models.

Attraction emerged to be the main determinant of the celebrity dimension that significantly influenced domestic tourists’ travel intentions, whereas attitude partially mediates such a relationship. Moreover, Bongo Fleva musicians, particularly Diamond Platnumz, one of the leading celebrities in this genre, were found to influence most of the respondents’ travel intentions – he posted a picture on his Instagram account of him touring the Serengeti National Park.

The study focused on domestic tourists residing in four of the Mainland Tanzania’s largest regions, hence excluding those residing on the islands of Unguja and Pemba. Due to cultural differences, including the islands not only could unleash new perspectives on celebrity involvement dimensions but also could have introduced new determinants of travel intentions.

This study offers guidance to tourism businesses on designing their marketing campaigns that they should harness celebrity’s attractive qualities effectively. The focus should be directed not only towards linking destinations with celebrities but also on stimulating positive perception of those destinations, aligning with the attitudes of their followers.

The study has set out a new perspective for researchers, practitioners and tourism businesses to refine their promotional strategies and for academicians to gain a deeper understanding of visitor behavioural intention dynamics.

This study has proposed and verified that attraction is a dominant determinant compared to self-expression and centrality in explaining tourists’ travel intentions and attitudes, which play a significant role in explaining such a relationship. Although the study employed a modified theory of planned behaviour in a celebrity involvement study, the findings have broadened the understanding and its applicability in the context of a developing country.