Navigating Health-Related Crises: Unraveling the Role of Confidence in Tourism Recovery in Shaping Sustainable Strategies for Tourists’ Intentions across Pandemic Phases

Li Sun (), Jin Chen and Xiankai Huang
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Li Sun: School of Information Technology & Management, University of International Business and Economics, No. 10, Huixin East Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, China
Jin Chen: School of Information Technology & Management, University of International Business and Economics, No. 10, Huixin East Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, China
Xiankai Huang: Business School, Beijing Technology and Business University, No. 33, Fucheng Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100048, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 19, 1-25

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted global tourism, raising the need for sustainable recovery strategies. This study examines how tourists’ confidence in tourism recovery (CTR) influences travel intentions across different pandemic phases—outbreak, stabilization, and conclusion. Positioned within the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), the research explores the mediating role of CTR in the relationships between attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and travel intention. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), multi-group analysis (MGA), and Importance–Performance Matrix Analysis (IPMA), this study assesses changes in travel behavior during each pandemic phase. Data were collected through three surveys conducted in major Chinese cities between late 2022 and early 2023. The findings reveal that CTR significantly mediates the influence of behavioral factors on travel intention, especially during the stabilization and conclusion phases. The IPMA results highlight key areas for intervention, with CTR, perceived behavioral control, and subjective norms varying in importance across phases. This research underscores the need for adaptive and sustainable strategies to strengthen traveler confidence, offering practical insights for supporting long-term resilience and growth in the tourism industry during and beyond health-related crises.

Keywords: confidence in tourism recovery (CTR); health-related crisis management; sustainable recovery; Partial Least Squares (PLS); Importance–Performance Matrix Analysis (IPMA) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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