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The role of travel experience in the structural relationships among tourists'

perceived image, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions

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DOI: 10.1177/1467358415610371

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DOI: 10.1177/1467358415610371

tourists’ perceived image, satisfaction, thr.sagepub.com

and behavioral intentions

Xiaoming Liu
Faculty of Business Administration, University of Macau, Macau, China

Jun (Justin) Li
Dedman School of Hospitality, College of Business, Florida State University, USA

Woo Gon Kim

International Center for Hospitality Research, Dedman School of Hospitality, College of
Business, Florida State University, USA

Abstract
The theoretical relationships among tourists’ perceived destination image, satisfaction, and future behavioral
intentions are very important for the tourism industry and have been studied by many scholars. This paper
examines how these relationships differ for tourists with different travel experiences by studying 514
Mainland Chinese outbound travelers to Macau. The conceptual model incorporates the exogenous formative
concept of perceived image and the endogenous reflective concept of visitor satisfaction as well as the
visitors’ behavioral intentions. This study not only verifies the conceptual schema in three assumed relation-
ships but also confirms that the importance of perceived image for satisfaction is higher for first-time visitors
than it is for returning visitors. The confirmative measure model reveals that the dimension of ‘leisure
activities’ contributes the most to the overall destination image. Finally, suggestions for tourism development
organizations are provided based on the findings of this study.

Keywords
Moderator effect, destination image, satisfaction, behavioral intention, measurement invariance test, travel
experience

It is well noted that image perception is an import-

Introduction
Tourist destinations rely on loyal travelers to be com-
petitive. Thus, a growing body of tourism research
aims to determine why people desire to revisit and
are willing to recommend a destination (Chen and
Tsai, 2007; Chi and Qu, 2008; Li and Yang, 2014).
Several factors have been identified, including destin-
ation image, a high-quality service or trip, perceived
value, and satisfaction (Gallarza et al., 2002). Because
tourism is developing rapidly and market competition
is becoming fierce, destination image has drawn great
attention both in academia and in the industry.
ant influencing factor in the success of tourism devel-
opment, as well as a vital aspect in formulating
strategies for destination marketing (Chen and Tsai,
2007). Tourists will become more satisfied and loyal as
a result of an attractive image perception (Chi and Qu,
Corresponding author:
Jun (Justin) Li, Dedman School of Hospitality, College of
Business, Florida State University, 288 Champions Way, B2200
University Center, P.O. Box 3062541, Tallahassee, FL 32306-
2541, USA.
Email: jli13@fsu.edu

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2 Tourism and Hospitality Research 0(0)
2008; Mohan, 2010). Therefore, in an effort to
enhance the image perceptions of tourist destinations,
it is essential for these destinations to upgrade their
functional component of cognitive image, which con-
sists of more concrete or quantifiable perceptions
including scenery, accommodation, and prices
(Alcaniz et al., 2009). However, it is equally important
for these destinations to offer the psychological com-
ponent of cognitive image, which consists of premium
quality service and hospitality (Alcaniz et al., 2009).
With the impact of increasingly personal dispos-
able incomes and the simplified visa application pro-
cedure, Mainland Chinese visitors make up one of
the most important outbound tourism markets (Liu
et al., 2015). The number of Mainland Chinese out-
bound tourists reached 107 million in 2014, an
increase of 19.49% over 2013 (China National
Tourism Administration [CNTA], 2014). It is there-
fore crucial for tourism destinations to understand
the concerns, preferences, and behaviors of different
types of Chinese outbound travelers to attract them
effectively (Liu et al., 2015). Macau is one of the two
special administrative regions (SAR) of the People’s
Republic of China and is situated to the west of the
Pearl River Delta in the southeast region of the
nation. Macau has been a tourism-dominated region
throughout history, and the gaming, tourism and hos-
pitality industry contributes a substantial portion to
Macau’s gross domestic product. The gaming, tour-
ism, and hospitality sectors provide over 50% of
Macau’s gross domestic product, over 75% of all
employment opportunities, and approximately 70%
of Macau government income (Macau Yearbook,
2014). Macau’s economy depends mainly on its tour-
ism industry, and its tourism industry relies on
mainly Mainland Chinese travelers, who accounted
for 67.8% of tourists to Macau in the first quarter
of 2015 (DSEC, 2015). Hence, it is very important
for Macau’s government to remain attractive to
Mainland Chinese outbound tourists, especially
given the recent China-wide attack on corruption
that resulted in a massive decrease in gaming-related
profits. In addition, several other policies have nega-
tively affected Macau’s gambling-related tourism
industry. These policies include strict visa policies
for Chinese tourists to Macau, the prohibition of
smoking in casinos and better supervision of
UnionPay cards, which are widely used by many trav-
elers to withdraw money in Macau. Given this situ-
ation, Macau’s destination management organizations
(DMOs) are struggling to attract tourists from
Mainland China for the continuing growth and devel-
opment of Macau’s nongaming tourism market.
Strategically organized and managed destination
images might be an effective solution because of its
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impact on tourist loyalty. Hence, in this study, we
focus on Mainland Chinese outbound tourists to
Macau and hope to find some suggestions for
Macau DMOs and other countries/regions who
would like to effectively attract more Mainland
Chinese outbound tourists.
Travelers supposedly select destinations that trigger
positive emotions and avoid negative emotions when
they purchase travel products. A favorable image of a
tourism destination may lead to favorable comments
on it and attract more potential revisits (Chen and
Tsai, 2007). It is essential for Macau administrators
and marketers to formulate a suitable action plan to
improve the image of this gambling city. For instance,
projects to develop or enhance Macau’s image may
help attract new tourists and, as a result, contribute
to the destination’s success and tourism growth.
Satisfaction is usually considered as a traveler’s post-
purchase evaluation of the location (Oliver, 1980).
Former research indicates that the image of a location
is an important aspect affecting tourists’ satisfaction.
However, the majority of studies on destination images
have focused on holiday destinations, which are very
different from Macau, where commercial gambling is
the main tourism attraction. Therefore, it is important
to determine the influence of the tourism destination
image on vacationers’ satisfaction and behavioral
intentions in Macau. Thus, it is beneficial to conduct
a complete study of the tourism destination image,
along with its interaction with tourist satisfaction and
behavioral intentions from the gambling city perspec-
tive. The first objective of this study is to explore and
verify how tourists’ level of satisfaction and behavioral
intentions are affected by their perceived image by
Chinese outbound travelers to Macau using structure
equation modeling (SEM).
Our second objective relates to measurement issues.
SEM has attracted considerable attention and has
been the major statistical method of many studies
(Markus, 2012). One of its advantages is that it can
be used to assess the relationships between latent con-
structs (those concepts that cannot be measured dir-
ectly). Latent constructs can be estimated through
measuring a set of observable indicators (Markus,
2012), even with measurement errors. There are
both reflective and formative measurement models
for estimating latent constructs (Diamantopoulos,
2008). Generally speaking, reflective measurement
has been applied in most studies on tourism and hos-
pitality in the past. The formative measurement model
is regarded more appropriate theoretically in cases
when observable variables (indicators) affect the
latent construct. Formative indicators have been
implemented for tourism-related constructs, such as
perceived value, service experience, and perceived
Liu et al.
quality (Žabkar et al., 2010). Diamantopoulos (2008)
has made great contributions in his attempt to offer
references to the progress of formative measures.
Jarvis et al. (2003) suggest various means to distin-
guish formative from reflective constructs. In particu-
lar, reflective measurement is established on the
precondition that measured variables are expressions
of the potential concept. Formative measurement,
however, should be applied if a construct is believed
to be formed by a combination of its measurement
indicators. Variation in the indicators will lead to
changes in the construct. According to this criterion,
a destination image concept is more appropriate to be
conceptualized as a formative concept instead of a
reflective concept. To be specific, a variation in each
indicator (such as the cognitive cultural experience,
infrastructure, and environment of a destination)
impacts the overall destination image—but not vice
versa. Moreover, the indicators that collectively
affect a visitor’s image perception may not share a
consistent conceptual field, and it is unreasonable to
anticipate that they are associated. In addition, for-
mative measurement allows us to identify the impact
of image dimensions on overall perceived destination
image. Hence, the second objective of this study is to
conceptualize the perceived destination image as a
formative construct rather than a reflective construct.
Destination marketers are able to judge which image
traits are the most effective in shaping tourists’ atti-
tudes and behavioral intentions toward the
destination.
Research on moderator effects has been the focus of
an increasing number of recent studies on tourism and
hospitality (Li and Yang, 2014; Liu et al., 2015)
because of its application to the tourism industry. A
moderator is an independent variable that affects the
strength and/or direction of the relationship between
an independent variable and a dependent variable
(Yavas et al., 2011). The correlation intensity and/or
direction of the correlation between an independent
variable and a dependent variable are affected by a
moderator. In other words, the independent variable’s
association with the outcome variable is stronger or
weaker at different levels of the moderator variable.
Although travel experience has been shown to affect
tourism destination images, satisfaction level and
behavioral intentions (Beerli and Martin, 2004;
Faullant et al., 2008; Giraldi and Cesareo, 2014;
Kim et al., 2012; McCartney, 2005; Wong and
Li, 2015), a limited number of studies have examined
the moderating effect of travel experience on the
impact of destination image on loyalty (Faullant
et al., 2008; Kim et al., 2012) and the impact of
satisfaction level on loyalty behavior intention
(Faullant et al., 2008). To the best of our knowledge,
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3
few studies have been conducted on the moderating
effect of travel experience on the impact of destination
image on satisfaction level. No moderating effect of
travel experience has been studied for Mainland
Chinese outbound tourists, whose importance for the
outbound tourism market has been increasing rapidly.
To bring in travelers more effectively, it is also import-
ant to study the moderating effect of travel experience
on the relationships between perceived image, satisfac-
tion and behavioral intentions. Therefore, the third
objective of this study is to examine the moderating
effect of travel experience on the relationships among
the perceived image and tourists’ satisfaction, as well
as behavioral intentions for Mainland Chinese out-
bound tourists to Macau.
Theoretical background and hypothesis
development
Relationships among destination image,
satisfaction, and behavioral intentions
Destination image refers to the personal psychological
manifestation of knowledge, feelings, and overall cog-
nition of a certain destination (Camprubi, 2012;
Crompton, 1979; Gallarza et al., 2002). Beerli and
Martin (2004) examined factors that affect the forma-
tion of post-visit destination image. These factors were
categorized into nine perspectives: natural resources;
travel infrastructure; public infrastructure; culture,
history, and art; political and economic factors; travel-
ing leisure and entertainment; natural environment;
social environment; and atmosphere. The attractions
of a place, the orientation of a tourism destination, and
the goals of the perceived image evaluation will deter-
mine not only the selection of diversified characteris-
tics when designing a tool to weigh tourists’ perceived
image but also whether particular or more common
characteristics are chosen. Wan and Chan (2011)
investigated the elements that have an effect on cus-
tomer satisfaction and their loyalty in food festivals in
Macau. According to the results, customer satisfaction
and loyalty toward festivals are affected by some envir-
onmental factors that can be controlled, including
location and accessibility, food, venue equipment,
time, and festival size. Siu et al. (2012) studied how
the service atmosphere affects customers’ perception,
satisfaction, and behavioral intentions in Macau.
According to the results, a better service atmosphere
is likely to increase customers’ satisfaction and impres-
sions of the service and cause tourists to remain for a
longer time.
The image of a destination can affect behavioral
intentions in two ways. On the one hand, it can
affect the tourists’ choice of travel destinations.
4 Tourism and Hospitality Research 0(0)
On the other hand, it can affect tourists’ activity after
they have made a decision, including their participa-
tion (personal experience), assessment (satisfaction),
and prospective behavioral intentions (plans to revisit
and willingness to suggest this destination to others). A
tourist will probably feel pleased with a place if he has
positive emotions when he is there.
The influences of image on tourist satisfaction have
been studied by a number of scholars. As a premise for
satisfaction, destination image affects tourist satisfac-
tion; in other words, when an individual’s observed
images of a destination are positive, it is quite likely
that his satisfaction with the destination will be high
(Castro et al., 2007; Chen and Tsai, 2007). We expect
the same relationship for Mainland Chinese tourists to
Macau in this study.
Hypothesis 1. Tourists with a more favorable destin-
ation image will have a higher level of satisfaction.
A tourist’s desire to revisit and willingness to par-
ticipate in word-of-mouth (WOM) communications
can reflect travelers’ behavioral intentions. A favorable
WOM not only shows a tourist’s willingness to main-
tain a good relationship with the destination but can
also attract potential travelers. Breakthroughs in infor-
mation technology along with the arrival of new types
of interactions have resulted in an increasingly strong
influence on travelers’ behavioral intentions. For
instance, electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), fre-
quently known as online testimonials, online referrals,
or online reviews, has been increasingly convenient
and influential with the introduction of new technol-
ogy tools. Therefore, the success of a tourist destin-
ation can be affected by tourists’ behavioral intentions
(Chi and Qu, 2008). Various studies verify that des-
tination image is one of the essential elements influen-
cing behavioral intentions. Chen and Tsai (2007)
suggested that destination image and tourist satisfac-
tion exert a direct influence on tourist behavioral
intentions. Castro et al. (2007) further found that
the destination image plays an important role in tourist
satisfaction and revisit rate. Tourists’ initial intention
to revisit and WOM can be promoted by a positive
image of the tourist destination. The image of the
tourist destination can affect travelers’ willingness to
revisit and recommend both directly and indirectly
(Castro et al., 2007). Hence, it can be concluded
that destination image can affect future tourist behav-
iors directly and indirectly. High levels of tourist satis-
faction and a favorable image of the tourist destination
are likely to attract more travelers to revisit it. Tourist
satisfaction affects future tourist behaviors directly
(Oliver, 1980). A tourist is likely to travel to the des-
tination again or recommend it to his friends and
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relatives when he is satisfied with his tourism experi-
ence (Chi and Qu, 2008; Coghlan and Pearce, 2010;
Quadri-Felitti and Fiore, 2013; Yang et al., 2015).
From what has been discussed previously, we
expect the same relationships in our study for
Mainland Chinese tourists to Macau.
Hypothesis 2. More favorable destination image leads
to more positive future behavioral intentions.
Hypothesis 3. A higher level of overall satisfaction
leads to more positive future behavioral intentions.
Hypothesis 4. Overall satisfaction mediates the impact
of destination image on behavioral intentions.
Travel experience
Because of the link between information accumulated
in previous experiences and the subjective explan-
ation of a relaxing journey, current situations
are viewed in contrast with previous experiences
(Faullant et al., 2008). Visitors prefer to attach
more importance to their previous experience than
to information obtained from other sources of travel
information; therefore, previous experience seems
more significant than information acquired from
other sources. It is self-evident that information
acquired from other resources will be less compelling
when compared with a tourist’s previous experiences.
Therefore, it has been concluded that a previous tour-
ist experience might also affect the perceived image of
subsequent travel to the destination (Giraldi and
Cesareo, 2014; Kim et al., 2012; McCartney, 2005;
Wong and Li, 2015). It was believed that tourists’
perceived image after they visit a destination (the
image they formed after their visit) is more real and
specific and different from the previous image (Beerli
and Martin, 2004). The image will be quite different
from their previous image, which was created via
indirect sources of information, including ads, paper
materials, and online information. Because of the
relationships between destination image, satisfaction
and behavioral intentions, an updated image would
obviously affect tourists’ satisfaction and behavioral
intentions. Tourist experience is a significant covariant
to influence visitors’ satisfaction and behaviors.
Hence, travel experiences significantly affect tourists’
satisfaction and behavioral intentions (Beerli and
Martin, 2004; Faullant et al., 2008; Kim et al.,
2012). In addition, while others’ past experiences
will influence their acquaintance with the destination,
possibly affecting their decision on destination selec-
tion: visitors often tend to regard that destination as
safer to revisit if they have actually experienced it per-
sonally. In other words, previous experiences can
lower the fear of suffering an unpleasant experience.
Liu et al.
Although past travel experience has been proven to
have impacts on the perception of image, satisfaction
and future behavioral intentions, as discussed in the
section above, to the best of our knowledge, only two
studies investigate the impact of travel experience on
the relationships between destination image, satisfac-
tion and loyalty. Specifically, Faullant et al. (2008)
found that image is more influential on loyalty for
first-time tourists in ski destinations and that the sig-
nificance of impact of satisfaction on loyalty was the
same for first-time visitors and returning visitors. Kim
et al. (2012) found that travel experience affects the
impact of some factors of destination image on loyalty,
but not all, in a study on students visiting South
Korea. However, neither study examined the moder-
ating effect of destination image on satisfaction, nor
Mainland Chinese outbound tourists, nor Macau.
Hence, it is interesting to verify the moderating effect
of travel experience on the impact of destination image
on satisfaction and loyalty and the impact of satisfac-
tion on future behavioral intentions for mainland
Chinese outbound tourists to Macau. Hence,
Hypothesis 5-1. Travel experience has a moderating
effect on the impact of destination image on
satisfaction.
Hypothesis 5-2. Travel experience has a moderating
effect on the impact of destination image on tourists’
future behavioral intentions.
Hypothesis 5-3. Travel experience has a moderating
effect on the impact of tourist satisfaction on tourists’
future behavioral intentions.
In summary, we would like to demonstrate the fol-
lowing proposed conceptual model, with a focus on
the moderating effects of travel experience (Figure 1).
H5-2
Travel experience
H5-1
Destination
image
H2
Behavioral
intentions
Figure 1. The conceptual model.
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5
Research method
Operationalization of the constructs
To achieve the goals that we set out to achieve and
to check the proposed hypotheses, a questionnaire
was developed to collect data on respondents’ per-
ceived destination image, travel experience, satisfac-
tion, behavioral intentions, and sociodemographic
information. To generate a complete list of items
for measuring Macau’s destination image, we
applied a content analysis of local reports, bro-
chures, academic literature, and Macau tourism
development organization websites, as well as
focus group sessions and unstructured personal
interviews. The initially generated list of items was
finally screened and confirmed by two groups of
tourism experts, one from academia and the other
from the tourism industry. The attribute of ‘gam-
bling opportunities’ was added to reflect Macau’s
economy, which is based largely on the gambling
industry. Finally, 16 items were chosen for destin-
ation image. Respondents were asked to indicate
their level of agreement with a statement about
each of the 16 image items with a 7-point Likert-
type scale, from ‘‘strongly disagree ( ¼ 1)’’ to
‘‘strongly agree (¼7)’’. Because satisfaction and
behavioral intentions are widely studied, we adopted
the measurement scales directly from the literature.
For instance, the participants were required to rate
their overall satisfaction with three items (Chen and
Tsai, 2007; Lee et al., 2005; Yang et al., 2014),
using a 7-point Likert scale. Repeat purchase inten-
tions and WOM recommendations were used often
to infer travelers’ behavioral intentions and were
discovered to be the appropriate measure (Castro
et al., 2007; Chi and Qu, 2008). Three indicators
H5-3
H1
Overall
satisfaction
H3
6 Tourism and Hospitality Research 0(0)

with a 7-point Likert scale were used to assess The final questionnaire was composed of four parts:
behavioral intentions: one indicator was concerned (1) perception of destination image; (2) satisfaction with
with revisit intention, while the other two indicators travel; (3) behavioral intentions, and (4) travel and demo-
were associated with recommendation to friends graphic information (see details in Table 1). Considering
and relatives (Liu et al., 2015). The sources of that the study was executed from a Chinese-speaking per-
measurement items for constructs are summarized spective, the questionnaire was converted from English
in Table 1. to Chinese, making use of the common translation-
back-translation technique suggested by Brislin (1980).
A pilot study was conducted with 25 respondents to
ensure the clarity, reliability, and comprehensiveness of
Table 1. Measurement Scales and Literature Sources. the questionnaire.
Destination image a. Variety of interesting events
(16 items) Adapted and festivals Sampling method and data collection
from
Baloglu and McCleary b. Unique European culture This study targeted tourists who have traveled to
(1999); Beerli and Macau were 21 years of age or older at the time of
Martin (2004); travel and were originally from Mainland China. To
Castro (2007); c. Appealing local food and sample the respondents, this study applied the field
Chen (2000) beverage intercept method. Four types of public
Crompton (1979); d. A lot of cultural attractions places—departure areas (Barrier Gate, ferry terminal,
Lee (2005); Qu (2011); to visit international airport, inner harbor ferry terminal,
plus interviews with e. Good place to have meeting etc.), historical attractions (Senado Square, Ruins of
tourism experts. and exhibition St. Paul, Mount Fortress, Lotus Square, etc.), shop-
f. Convenient transportation ping malls (retail shops with luxury brands at the
g. Availability of tourist Wynn Esplanade, The Grand Canal Shops, MGM
information Grand Macau – Central Plaza, Fisherman’s Wharf,
h. Good quality of tourism etc.), and conference centers (Macau Tower
infrastructure Convention & Entertainment Centre, Venetian, Star
i. Ease access to tourist spots hotel, Mandarin Oriental, etc.)—were selected for
j. Relaxed atmosphere this study. The information was geographically strati-
k. Fashionable location fied to regulate for potential variations in Chinese
tourists’ qualities (e.g. greater number of business
l. Unpolluted and unspoiled
environment people in the convention center and a greater
number of older, retired people in the historic
m. Exotic destination
center). A sample of 514 valid responses was received.
n. Great nightlife
This sample size is sufficient for SEM analysis.
o. Gambling opportunities
p. Diversified products for
shopping
Findings and discussion
Overall satisfaction a. I really enjoyed this trip.
(3 items) Adapted Measurement model estimation
from
In this research, the second-order latent variable
Bigne et al. (2005); b. My choice to visit Macau
models that cover formative–reflective relations were
Bosque and was a wise one.
examined. First, to identify the diverse dimensions of
Martin (2008); Lee et al. c. This tourism experience in
destination image, an exploratory factor analysis
(2005); Wang (2010) Macau was exactly what I
(EFA) was implemented. Components with 0.4 or
expected.
higher factor loadings were retained, while factors
Behavioral intentions a. I plan to revisit Macau in
with 1.0 or higher eigenvalues were selected.
(3 items) Adapted the next two years.
from Afterward, the three extracted factors were taken as
formative indicators: ‘‘culture experience’’, ‘‘infra-
Boulding et al. (1993); b. I will recommend Macau to
Castro et al. (2007) my friends or family. structure’’, and ‘‘leisure activities’’. As shown in
Table 2, the formative measurement model with
c. I would say positive things
about Macau to other three dimensions (factors) of destination image is
people. appropriate. In particular, there is a significant positive
correlation between each image perception indicator

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Liu et al. 7

and the cognitive formative concept. The three
extracted factors can explain 68% of the overall des-
tination variation. The three variance inflation factors
(VIF) of these three factors are in the 1.309–2.837
range, which is far below the proposed critical value
of 5 to 10 (Diamantopoulos, 2008). Hence, these
three factors do not have serious multicollinearity
problems. The coefficients for ‘‘culture experience’’
(0.126), ‘‘infrastructure’’ (0.102), and ‘‘leisure activ-
ities’’ (0.257) have t-values greater than 4, which sug-
gests that these three factors are all significant in
tourists’ evaluation of the destination image. In con-
clusion, these results indicate that the three compo-
nent elements make noteworthy contributions to the
recommended concept of cognitive destination image.
In particular, ‘‘leisure activities’’ tend to be the most
influential factor affecting the overall destination
image (t-value ¼ 8).
The construct-to-item loadings of reflective con-
structs (satisfaction and future behavioral intentions)
are also presented in Table 2. Every standardized load-
ing fell within the range of 0.794–0.872. It was found
that all measure items are trustworthy and internally
consistent: Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability
set for all measures either achieved or surpassed the
recommended standard of 0.7. The square root of the
average variance extracted (AVE) for every reflective
component above 0.6 offers satisfying evidence of dis-
criminant validity because they are larger than all
bivariate correlation coefficients among the compo-
nents. Hence, the measurement model for satisfaction
and behavioral intentions is suitable.
Structural equation modeling
with the complete sample data
To test hypotheses 1 to 3, the corresponding SEM
model depicted in Figure 1 is implemented in AMOS.
There are three constructs in the structural model, the
exogenous formative construct of the destination image
and the endogenous reflective constructs of visitor sat-
isfaction and behavioral intentions. The results are
summarized in Table 3, which suggests a good fit of
the model to the data.
The results support hypotheses 1, 2, and 3. It was
shown that the path coefficient for the impact of des-
tination image on satisfaction is significantly greater
than 0 (g11 ¼ 0.64; t ¼ 12.23; p < 0.01). Likewise, the
influence of travel satisfaction on behavioral intentions
is confirmed (21 ¼ 0.52; t ¼ 9.42; p < 0.01). The direct
impact of destination image on behavioral intentions is
the least significant among the three relationships, but it

Table 2. CBSEM: Measurement model.

Weights/Loadings Mean scores (SD);

Paths Scales (t-value) Reliabilitya skewness; kurtosis R2

Destination imageb Formative VIF 0.68

Image 1 ! Destination image 0.126***(5.363) 1.309 5.31(0.93); 0.23; 0.12 
Image 2 ! Destination image 0.102***(4.063) 2.224 5.19 (1.45); 1.14; 1.01 
Image 3 ! Destination image 0.257***(8.012) 2.837 5.09(0.69); 0.26; 0.72 
Overall perceived image Reflective 
Overall image 0.829*** n.a. 5.54(0.75); 0.23; 0.11 0.68
Overall satisfaction Reflective CR ¼ 0.86, AVE ¼ 0.67
Overall satisfaction ! SAT1 0.822*** 5.33(0.96); 0.42; 0.01 0.68
Overall satisfaction ! SAT2 0.845***(21.599) 5.46(1.11); 0.14; 0.87 0.71
Overall satisfaction ! SAT3 0.794***(19.794) 5.62(0.94); 0.41; 0.16 0.63
Behavioral intentions Reflective CR ¼ 0.89, AVE ¼ 0.73
Intention 1! BI1 0.872 5.75(1.08); 0.63; 0.03 0.76
Intention 2 ! BI2 0.829***(24.346) 5.61(1.17); 0.45; 0.62 0.69
Intention 3 ! BI3 0.864***(23.174) 5.97(1.03); 0.91; 0.72 0.75
Fit indices of the reflective measurement model
2(d.f.) ¼ 43.257 (13), p < 0.001 (2/d.f. ¼ 3.327);
CFI ¼ 0.990; GFI ¼ 0.974; NFI ¼ 0.978; RMSEA ¼ 0.058; SRMR ¼ 0.021
*p < 0.10; **p < 0.05; ***p < 0.01.
n.a.: not applicable.
a
The variance inflation factor (VIF) appears in the formative scales to evidence the inexistence of multicollinearity. The average variance
extracted (AVE) and the composite reliability (CR) appear in the reflective scales to evidence reliability.
b
Image 1–Image 3: culture experience, infrastructure, and leisure activities.

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8 Tourism and Hospitality Research 0(0)
Table 3. Standardized maximum-likelihood parameter estimates (N ¼ 514).
Paths
Destination image ! Overall satisfaction
Destination image ! Behavioral intentions
Overall satisfaction ! Behavioral intentions
Goodness-of-fit statistics
2 (d.f.) ¼ 104.078 (46), p < 0.001 (2/d.f. ¼ 2.263);
CFI ¼ 0.96; GFI ¼ 0.92; AGFI ¼ 0.93; NFI ¼ 0.95; RMSEA ¼ 0.05; SRMR ¼ 0.02
*p < 0.10; **p < 0.05; ***p < 0.01.
is still significant enough to conclude that as the per-
ceived destination image rises, behavioral intentions
become more positive ( 21 ¼ 0.20; t ¼ 4.03; p < 0.01).
The mediating effect of satisfaction
The mediating effects of satisfaction level are tested
according to Baron and Kenny’s (1986) indirect/
direct path coefficients and Sobel’s (1982) bias-
corrected bootstrapping approach. The results in the
previous section confirm that the first three conditions
(Baron and Kenny, 1986) hold: the mediator (cus-
tomer satisfaction) is influenced by the independent
variable (destination image); the outcome variable
(behavioral intentions) is affected by the mediator
(customer satisfaction); the independent variable (des-
tination image) has an effect on the outcome variable
(behavioral intentions). To test the fourth condition,
the conceptual model was re-estimated by constraining
the direct effect of satisfaction on behavioral intentions
(21 ¼ 0). The fourth condition was then confirmed
since the parameter estimate between destination
image and behavioral intention in the mediating
model became less significant ( 21 ¼ 0.20; t ¼ 4.03;
p < 0.01) than the parameter estimate in the con-
strained model ( 21 ¼ 0.57; t ¼ 10.07; p < 0.01). The
difference in 2 value between the constrained model
(
2 (46) ¼ 101.045) and the mediating model (
2
(45) ¼ 97.043) was statistically significant (
2
(1) ¼ 4.002, p ¼ 0.045). Therefore, the mediating
model is an advanced model of the constrained
model (Table 4). As a result, the destination
image has a positive effect on future behavioral inten-
tions through the mediating effects of customer
satisfaction (H4).
In addition, to produce 95% confidence intervals to
test the mediating effects of satisfaction, Sobel testing
with bias-corrected bootstrapping was performed. The
Sobel test of mediation was significant (z ¼ 3.13,
p ¼ 0.001), indicating that travelers’ overall satisfaction
significantly mediates the pathway between destination
image and behavioral intentions. A test of the effect
size (2) for the mediation indicates a small to
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Coefficients t-Values Hypotheses
0.64*** 12.23 H1: supported
0.20*** 4.03 H2: supported
0.52*** 9.42 H3: supported
Table 4. The fourth condition of mediating effect of
satisfaction.
Constrained Mediating
model (b21 ¼ 0) model
g21 ¼ 0.57***, g21 ¼ 0.20***;
t ¼ 10.07, t ¼ 4.03,

2 (46) ¼ 101.045
2 (45) ¼ 97.043
(
2 (1) ¼ 4.002, p ¼ 0.045
*p < 0.10; **p < 0.05; ***p < 0.01.
medium effect of travelers’ overall satisfaction as a
mediator in the pathway between destination image
and behavioral intentions.
Moderating influence of travel experience
Adapting the approaches in the literature, travel
experience in this study refers to the number of visits
a traveler had made to a destination, and respondents
were separated into two groups: first-time and return-
ing/repeating visitors (Lau and McKercher, 2004; Li
et al., 2008). If this was the first time the traveler vis-
ited this destination, this traveler is called a first-time
visitor (travel experience ¼ 1). This traveler is called a
returning or a repeating traveler (travel experience > 1)
if he/she had visited this destination at least once
before. In this study, 264 repeaters and 250 first-
time visitors successfully participated in the survey.
To verify the moderating effect of travel experience
as stated in H5, a multi-group analysis was conducted
in AMOS. As a prerequisite of the moderating effect
of traveling experience,, the measurement invariance
was tested for the two groups using a chi-square test
of the difference of CFA chi-square statistics for
the ‘‘nonrestricted measurement model (all item to
construct loadings can be freely estimated)’’ and
the ‘‘full-metric invariance measurement model (the
corresponding loadings of item to construct are
restricted to be equal in the two groups)’’. The results
in Table 5 confirm the measurement invariance for the
two groups (
2 (9) ¼ 11.7, p ¼ 0.231). Hence, it is
Liu et al. 9

Table 5. Assessment of measurement invariance across first-timers and repeaters samples.

Full-metric
Groups Models 2 d.f.
2 RMSEA NFI CFI invariance

Travel experience Nonrestricted 111.7 14 – 0.047 0.897 0.919 Supported;

groups model
d.f. ¼ 9,
Full-metric 123.4 23 11.7 0.049 0.886 0.926 p ¼ 0.231 > 0.01
invariance (insignificant)

Table 6. Invariance tests of the structural models for travel experience groups.

Travel experience

First-time visitors Repeat visitors

Baseline model Nested model

Paths Coefficients t-Values Coefficients t-values (freely estimated) (constrained to be equal)

ODI ! SAT 0.624 14.205 0.576 8.838 2(34) ¼ 80.3 2 (35) ¼ 84.4a
ODI ! BI 0.210 2.215 0.207 2.011 2 (34) ¼ 80.3 2 (35) ¼ 82.7b
SAT ! BI 0.373 3.175 0.368 3.082 2 (34) ¼ 80.3 2 (35) ¼ 83.5c
ODI: overall destination image; SAT: overall satisfaction; BI: behavioral intentions.
Other goodness of fit indices of the baseline model: CFI ¼ 0.980; GFI ¼ 0.964; RMSEA ¼ 0.051; NFI ¼ 0.972.
a

2 (1) ¼ 4.1, p ¼ 0.043 (significant).
b

2 (1) ¼ 2.4, p ¼ 0.121 (insignificant).
c

2 (1) ¼ 3.2, p ¼ 0.074 (insignificant).

suitable to apply the multi-group analysis method to
study the different path coefficients for first timers and
repeaters.
The nested SEM baseline model, which allows for
free estimation of all path coefficients for the two
groups, is implemented in AMOS. The fit indices for
the baseline presented in Table 6 suggest that the
nested baseline model fits the data well. A chi-square
difference test was conducted to compare the chi-
square statistics of the baseline model with those of a
constraint-nested model (with one additional equality
constraint: the particular path coefficients are the same
for the two groups) and to test if path coefficients are
significantly different for first timers and repeaters.
This test was conducted for the three path coefficients
in series, and the results are presented in Table 6
and depicted in Figure 2. Particularly, while perceived
destination image has a significant impact on satisfac-
tion level for both groups of visitors, this impact is
significantly higher for first-time visitors than for
repeaters (
2 (1) ¼ 4.1, p ¼ 0.043). However, there
is no significant difference between the two groups in
terms of the significance of the impact of perceived
destination image on behavioral intentions (
2
(1) ¼ 2.4, p ¼ 0.121) or the significance of the impact
of satisfaction on behavioral intentions (
2 (1) ¼ 3.2,
p ¼ 0.074).
Discussion and implications
Summary and managerial implications
The hypotheses on the relationships between perceived
image, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions were con-
firmed for Mainland Chinese visitors to Macau. It was
found that in addition to impacting tourist satisfaction,
destination image can also influence tourist behavioral
intentions directly and indirectly through the mediating
variable, satisfaction. When tourists perceive a high des-
tination image, they are satisfied and more likely to
behave positively, and the destination can benefit from
positive tourist behaviors (e.g. they would like to revisit
the destination and introduce it to others). Hence, it is
very important to maintain a competitive destination
image. Because all three factors are significant in shap-
ing the overall destination image, none can be ignored.
According to simple descriptive statistics in our study of
Macau, a few image items were evaluated quite low (for
example, the mean for ‘‘a lot of cultural attraction to
visit’’ and ‘‘great nightlife’’ are 4.72 and 4.67,

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10
Travel experience
Destination F: 0.624***
R: 0.576***
image
R: 0.207**
F: 0.210**
Behavioral
intentions
Figure 2. The estimated structural model.
respectively, with 7 as the highest score) and demands
for effective improvement through innovative
approaches (for example, to make use of the ‘mixed
culture’ history in Macau, introduce some shows or
events from European culture and effectively advertise
the schedule to Mainland Chinese tourists).
‘‘Convenient transportation’’ and ‘‘ease access to tourist
spots’’ were also evaluated low, especially by first-time
visitors. Macau’s government needs to find successful
ways to strengthen these features, probably through
clearer signage and guidance for tourist spots.
A new measurement methodology is adopted in this
study. The perceived image of the destination is modeled
as a formative construct. By incorporating formative
indicators, the model becomes more useful diagnostic-
ally. As a result, the destination owners become able to
tell the vital factors of perceived image. For instance,
although all cultural experience, infrastructure, and leis-
ure activities contribute to overall destination image sig-
nificantly, leisure activity image plays the most important
role in shaping destination image. Hence, DMOs might
want to find innovative strategies to improve leisure
activities. For example, Macau DMOs might be able to
effectively improve the destination image to Mainland
Chinese through the introduction of leisure activities.
One possible approach might be to include culture
shows and events in leisure activities.
The moderating effect of tourist experience on the
relationships between destination image, satisfaction,
and future behavioral intentions has systematically
been taken into consideration in this study. It is
found that destination image has a stronger positive
impact on satisfaction for first-time visitors. This dif-
ference might occur because returning visitors have
experienced Macau before and were prepared for a
good image or bad image when they returned. What
they perceive about the destination might not be as
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Tourism and Hospitality Research 0(0)
Overall
satisfaction
R: 0.368***
F: 0.373***
influential on their satisfaction level as it is for first-
time visitors who have relatively less knowledge about
the destination. In addition, the moderating effect ana-
lysis shows that satisfaction level and destination image
have the same significant impact on future behavior,
while perceived destination image is more important
for first-time visitors. Hence, the total effect of destin-
ation image on future behavioral intentions is more
significant for first-time visitors than for returning vis-
itors. Hence, it is extremely important to improve the
perceived destination image among first-time visitors
(returning visitors were first-time visitors once).
Macau’s DMO might want to do a thorough study
on how Macau is performing in the eyes of first-time
visitors and on what remains to be improved. Because
‘‘leisure activities’’ contribute most to shaping destin-
ation images, Macau’s DMO (and others) could begin
in the following two directions: improving the worst-
evaluated destination image items and incorporate
them with leisure activities, with a focus on first-time
visitors. Because of the special characteristics of Macau,
DMOs should try to improve the image in leisure activ-
ities and degrade its image as ‘‘only a gambling city’’.
Limitations and future research
There are some limitations to this research. First, the
survey was carried out in four types of places: depart-
ure areas, historical attractions, shopping malls, and
conference centers. To address the potential feature
differences among mainland Chinese tourists in differ-
ent types of places, the research data were stratified
according to district-based geography. Nevertheless,
this sampling method is not perfect because of the dis-
advantages of convenience sampling. The research
data may not be typical, despite the fact that they
were gathered in four most-visited types of places.
Liu et al.
Second, this study did not distinguish between gam-
blers and nongamblers. It remains to be seen whether
these two types of tourists perceive the same image and
have the same satisfaction and behavioral intentions. In
addition, future researchers should investigate how per-
ceived image is influenced by the outcome of gambling
in Macau. For example, to catch the perception of gam-
blers, the questionnaires would also have been imple-
mented inside a casino. Consequently, future studies
should probe the probability in the measurement of gam-
blers’ first-hand experiences and then gather feedback on
their satisfaction and intention. The difference between
shopping and nonshopping tours is also not considered
in this research. The perceived image and behavioral
intentions of tourists with shopping motivations may be
different from those of tourists who have no interest in
shopping. Therefore, it is essential to explore the differ-
ences between these two types of tourists.
Third, with regard to Chinese outbound travel des-
tinations, Macau is a special tourism destination
because gambling is an important component of its
tourism industry. The results in this study cannot be
generalized directly without testing. We suggest to
carry out a separate study on tourists from China to
Europe, the United States, Africa, and Asia.
Lastly, the existing literature has recognized some
moderating variables, such as individual features and
situational elements, among others (Agyeiwaah et al.,
2013; Boonabaana, 2014; Homburg and Giering,
2001). Based on our study, the knowledge in this
field can be expanded because our results indicate
that as a visitor’s experience increases, the impact of
image perception on the estimation of perceived satis-
faction evaluation drops. We suggest that future stu-
dies probe more profound regulators of these
relationships—for instance, the strength of these rela-
tionships may change with different tourists (e.g. leis-
ure tourists vs. business tourists, gamblers vs.
nongamblers). Hence, it can be supposed that a
detailed investigation of the moderating effects of
more variables would be of interest in future research.
The implementation of the research on those variables
would be helpful in the future exploration of know-
ledge on relationships between the destination image
perception and the satisfaction and behavioral inten-
tions of tourists.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with
respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this
article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial
support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of
Downloaded from thr.sagepub.com at FLORIDA STATE UNIV LIBRARY on October 19, 2015
11
this article: This research was supported by University of
Macau under research grant MYRG2014-00054-FBA.
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Author Biographies
Xiaoming Liu is an Associate Professor in Faculty of
Business Administration, University of Macau. Her
research interests include Hospitality Management,
Tourism Management, Casino Management and
Operations Management.
Jun (Justin) Li is a post-doctoral researcher at the
Dedman School of Hospitality, The College of
Business, Florida State University. He holds a Ph.D.
from University of Macau. His current research inter-
ests include human resource management, organiza-
tional behavior, hotel green practices, and social
media marketing. He is the author of more than 30
international refereed journal articles and international
conference papers.
Woo Gon Kim is the Robert H. Dedman Professor of
Hospitality Management and Director of International
Center for Hospitality Research and Development
(ICHRD) at the Dedman School of Hospitality, The
College of Business, Florida State University. He is
ranked as fourth most prolific author of hospitality-
related articles, according to the Journal of Culinary
Science & Technology.