A Study on the Effect of Authenticity on Heritage Tourists’ Mindful Tourism Experience: The Case of the Forbidden City

Thomas Eck, Yiwen Zhang and Soyoung An ()
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Thomas Eck: Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Sejong University, 209 Neungdong-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul 05006, Republic of Korea
Yiwen Zhang: Department of Archaeology, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LN, UK
Soyoung An: Department of Sport Industry Studies, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 10, 1-18

Abstract: While heritage tourism has been explored widely in the tourism literature, there remains a need to further understand the antecedent variables that influence tourist experiences in such a context. This study applied mindfulness theory, investigating the effect of authenticity and mindfulness on the tourist experience and how the tourist experience influenced satisfaction and loyalty. A structural model was used with eight proposed hypotheses based on data collected in the spring of 2021 from 363 Chinese visitors to the Forbidden City. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were employed, enabling variable relations to be tested. Results revealed that authenticity significantly influenced mindfulness, and mindfulness significantly influenced tourists’ experience. Furthermore, two dimensions of tourists’ experience influenced satisfaction and satisfaction influenced loyalty.

Keywords: heritage tourism; authenticity; mindfulness; tourist experience; resilience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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