Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing

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Do tourists’ personality traits moderate the

relationship between social media content sharing
and destination involvement?

Bekir Bora Dedeoğlu, Fevzi Okumus, Xiaoli Yi & Wenmin Jin

To cite this article: Bekir Bora Dedeoğlu, Fevzi Okumus, Xiaoli Yi & Wenmin Jin (2019) Do
tourists’ personality traits moderate the relationship between social media content sharing
and destination involvement?, Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 36:5, 612-626, DOI:
10.1080/10548408.2019.1604294

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2019.1604294

Published online: 06 May 2019.

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JOURNAL OF TRAVEL & TOURISM MARKETING
2019, VOL. 36, NO. 5, 612–626
https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2019.1604294

ARTICLE

Do tourists’ personality traits moderate the relationship between social media

content sharing and destination involvement?
a b,c
Bekir Bora Dedeoglu , Fevzi Okumus , Xiaoli Yid and Wenmin Jind
a
Tourism Faculty, Nevsehir HBV University, Nevsehir, Turkey; bRosen College of Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida,
Orlando, FL, USA; cVisiting Chair Professor, School of Hospitality Management, National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Tourism,
Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; dShenzhen Tourism College, Jinan University, Guangdong, China

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

This study investigates how the importance attached to consumer-generated content on social Received 19 October 2018
media affects the destination involvement. This study also examines the moderating role of Revised 9 February 2019
personality traits between social media content and destination involvement. Data was collected Accepted 1 April 2019
from 586 respondents. Study results suggest that the importance attached to participant sharing KEYWORDS
and the importance attached to non-participant sharing affect destination involvement in Social media sharing;
a positive and significant way. In addition, the impact of the importance attached to participant customer-generated
sharing on involvement is more determinant for individuals where agreeableness, extraversion, content; destination
openness, and conscientiousness traits are high. involvement; personality
traits; big-five

Introduction The study described in this current study contri-

butes to the emerging body of research on social
Social media has permeated many areas of social life
media and tourism by examining an important aspect
(Zeng & Gerritsen, 2014). One area where social media is
of tourism consumption that has not been previously
playing an increasingly important role is the tourism
investigated. This topic is involvement, which refers to
industry by changing information search and decision-
“the degree to which consumers engage in different
making (Litvin, Goldsmith, & Pan, 2018). Consequently,
aspects of the consumption process” (Gursoy & Gavcar,
several studies on the application of social media in tour-
2003, p. 907), and can be explained as an individual’s
ism have emerged in recent years (e.g., Moro & Rita, 2018;
perceived relevance of an object based on basic
Perez-Vega, Taheri, Farrington, & O’Gorman, 2018; Shao,
needs, values and interests. In brief, involvement refers
Li, Morrison, & Wu, 2016; Su, Reynolds, & Sun, 2015; Tom
to being interested in or giving importance to the
Dieck, Jung, Kim, & Moon, 2017; Zhang, Abound Omran, &
product to be purchased (Antil, 1984; Troilo, Cito, &
Cobanoglu, 2017). Major topics that have been investi-
Soscia, 2014).
gated the relationship between social media and tourism
The power of involvement to explain and predict
include: 1) the influence of social media content on the
changes in the behavior and attitudes of consumers is
intention and decision-making of tourists regarding des-
recognized (Campos, Mendes, do Valle, & Scott, 2017;
tination (Chung, Lee, Lee, & Koo, 2015; Cox, Burgess,
Hwang, Lee, & Chen, 2005). Potential or available con-
Sellitto, & Buultjens, 2009; Mariani, Ek Styven, & Ayeh,
sumers with high levels of involvement, for example,
2019; Xiang & Gretzel, 2010, p. 2) the influence of internet
might have intention to prefer the product and have
communication on destination image and brand (Aydın,
positive remarks and loyalty about the product (Kim,
2016; Choi, Lehto, & Morrison, 2007; Lin, Yang, Ma, &
2008; Lai & Chen, 2011). Applying the concept to
Huang, 2018; Perez-Vega et al., 2018, p. 3) user/traveler
tourism and considering destination as a special pro-
trust and source credibility of social media (Ayeh, 2015;
duct, positive involvement is likely to increase the
Fan, Shen, Wu, Mattila, & Bilgihan, 2018; Lo & Yao, 2019;
likelihood of visiting that destination. Although, as
Munar & Jacobsen, 2013; Nusair, Bilgihan, Okumus, &
noted, studies have been conducted about the influ-
Cobanoglu, 2013, p. 4) motivation, intention and behavior
ence of social media on tourists’ intention to visit
of travel-related experience sharing on social media (Ho,
a destination, few studies have concerned the impact
Lin, & Chen, 2012, p. 5) factors influencing travelers’ use of
of social media on tourists’ involvement related to
social media (Jung, Tom Dieck, & Chung, 2018; Leung &
a destination.
Bai, 2013; Munar & Jacobsen, 2013).

CONTACT Wenmin Jin jin_wm@sz.jnu.edu.cn Overseas Chines Town, Nanshan, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China, 518053.
© 2019 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

Personality
Importance Traits
attached to
Participant H3a-7a
sharing
H3b-7b
Importance
attached to
Non-participant
sharing
Figure 1. Research model.
The theoretical framework for this investigation of
destination involvement utilizes theory on personality
traits and customer-generated content (CGC) on social
media sites. First, significant relationships have been
found between consumers’ involvement in social
media activities and their personality traits (Ross et al.,
2009; Yoo & Gretzel, 2011). Specifically, in regard to the
influence of personality traits on internet uses, the Big-
Five model has been applied (Correa, Hinsley, & de
Zuniga, 2010). The Big-Five model contains five factors
representing personality traits as: extraversion, neuroti-
cism, openness to experiences, agreeableness, and con-
scientiousness (John & Srivastava, 1999). Investigation
of the intersection of users’ personality and social
media by Correa et al. (2010) found that while extraver-
sion and openness to experiences were positively
related to social media use, emotional stability was
a negative predictor.
The second element drawn into the conceptual fra-
mework for the study is customer-generated content
(CGC). The huge volume of user-generated reviews has
had a significant impact on online sales in tourism (Ayeh,
Au, & Law, 2013; Ye, Law, Gu, & Chen, 2011). Therefore, it
is reasonable to expect that personality traits have
a moderating effect in the relationship between custo-
mer-generated content and destination involvement.
Although CGC is expected to have an influence on con-
sumers’ involvement levels, the moderating role of tour-
ists’ personality traits on this influence is not clear. In this
regard, the present study has two main purposes. The
first objective is to examine the effect of CGC on destina-
tion involvement, and the second is to observe the
moderating effect of personality traits on CGC’s effect
on that involvement.
JOURNAL OF TRAVEL & TOURISM MARKETING 613
Agreeableness
Extraversion
Openness
Neuroticism
Conscientiousness
H 1+
Involvement
H2+
Literature review
Involvement
Involvement is a prominent construct in the field of market-
ing and has gained considerable attention and application
in behavioral research, such as social psychology and the
advertising domain (Campos et al., 2017; Chua, Lee, & Han,
2017; Huang, Chou, & Lin, 2010; Hwang et al., 2005).
Knowledge about consumers’ involvement levels can pro-
vide beneficial information to marketers in terms of under-
standing consumer behavior (Varki & Wong, 2003). Wills,
Samli, and Jacobs (1991), for example, emphasize that
individuals’ interest in the product plays a key role in their
purchasing behaviors. Low or high consumer involvement
level is of vital importance for market segmentation strate-
gies of brands (Havitz & Dimanche, 1990; Kapferer &
Laurent, 1985). Highly involved individuals generally exhi-
bit different behavioral profiles compared with less
involved people (Hu & Yu, 2007). On the other hand,
products and services with high involvement of consumers
could yield more for organizations than those with lower
involvement (Cummings & Ostrom, 1982; Herrmann,
Huber, Sivakumar, & Wricke, 2004; Lichtenstein, Bloch, &
Black, 1988). Moreover, businesses can increase both con-
sumers’ satisfaction (Kim, 2008) and loyalty (Lai & Chen,
2011) levels thanks to high involvement. Consequently,
organizations can benefit by developing strategies that
target increased consumer involvement in their products
and services. Thus, factors comprising and increasing invol-
vement should be identified.
Destinations where tourists will experience are also
considered as an amalgam product (Buhalis, 2000; Van
Raaij, 1986). At this point, similar to the formation pro-
cess of consumer’s involvement related to products,
614 B. B. DEDEOGLU ET AL.
tourists’ destination involvement can be generated
through the individual interest of the tourists (Kim,
Han, Holland, & Byon, 2009). According to this, the
destination involvement refers to the degree of interest
or importance of tourists to the destination (Arora,
1982; Day, 1970). Scholars have developed and applied
the concept of involvement in the leisure and tourism
fields (Atadil, Sirakaya-Turk, Meng, & Decrop, 2018;
Gross & Brown, 2006, 2008; Gursoy & Gavcar, 2003). As
one example, the study of Taiwan’s national parks by
Hwang et al. (2005) found that tourists’ involvement
had a positive significant effect on perceived interpre-
tation service quality and place attachment. In another
study, Hu and Yu (2007) showed three distinctive
groups of craft shopping involvement: enthusiasts,
lovers and indifferent shoppers. Huang et al. (2010)
found that high-involvement travel bloggers are more
likely to form favorable impressions with regard to ads
in travel blogs. The investigation by Campos et al.
(2017) revealed that co-creation of animal-based tourist
experiences significantly influenced attention and invol-
vement and that higher levels of attention and involve-
ment that were generated were associated with
memorability. Finally, Zatori, Smith, and Puczko (2018)
investigated how service providers can enhance mem-
orable and authentic tourist experiences in on-site con-
ditions and confirmed that interaction is the main factor
influencing experience-involvement. These studies
point to the importance of furthering our understand-
ing of involvement in tourism research.
Consumer-generated content and involvement
Social media content is generated by users, which can be
divided into two groups – firms and consumers. Since firm-
generated content (FGC) is generated by firms themselves,
it might be perceived as less sincere and reliable than
consumer-generated content (CGC) (Herrero, San Martín,
& Hernández, 2015). Moreover, because CGC is seen as
more sincere and reliable than FGC, it is reasonable to
expect that its efficiency to affect users’ attitudes and
behaviors towards the brand would be more determinant.
In tourism studies, scholars are more concerned about the
impact of social media on tourists, which means the CGC is
used to explain the behaviors of tourists. Jin and Phua
(2016), for example, revealed that consumer-written and
system-aggregated user-generated content (UGC) in travel
booking websites impacts consumers’ behavioral inten-
tions. Ho et al. (2012) revealed that web users’ behavioral
patterns of tourism information search included the follow-
ing: to narrow down destination choices, to search for
holiday ideas, to share photos and experiences with friends
and/or other tourists, to provide onsite experiences reviews
and comments, to record inspiration for the next holiday as
a regular visitor of travel social media, and so on. A study by
Chen, Shang, and Li (2014) found that novelty, understand-
ability, and interest in blogs’ content affect behavioral
intention through blog usage enjoyment. From this per-
spective, therefore, it can be expected that the content
generated in these mediums could function to increase
individuals’ involvement levels.
Involvement is a concept frequently mentioned in
studies on advertisement (e.g., Vakratsas & Ambler,
1999). One of the important reasons for this is the
ability to attract the attention of available and potential
customers through imposing information and generat-
ing emotions about the product and the brand. Today,
social media functions as an important advertisement
tool because it is more cost-effective than conventional
advertisement tools (Zimmerman & Sahlin, 2010), it
reaches larger audiences in a very short time (Barnes,
2010), it enables consumers more interactive commu-
nication (Mangold & Faulds, 2009), and because it has
a remarkably democratic structure (Drury, 2008).
In addition to this, considering the theories of social
influence (e.g. social comparison and social contagion),
individuals may want to adopt similar experiences when
they see the experiences of the actors who have had
experience to achieve their desired outcomes (eg.
obtaining status, acceptance in society, desire to be like
etc.). This situation can increase the level of involvement
of individuals towards that experience (Tussyadiah,
2012). Indeed, social influence is the result of the adapta-
tion of the behavior, attitudes and beliefs of other indi-
viduals (actors) in a social system. According to social
influence theories, individuals can adapt similar beliefs,
attitudes and behaviors through communication (is
direct contacts between people and their influencers)
and comparison (is triggered if actors are in competition
with one another) (Leenders, 2002). As emphasized in
these theories, the individual can adapt the attitudes and
behaviors of the people or groups (actors) as a role
model. At this point, the experiences in the CGC on social
media can be desired by the individuals who see the
content. In this way, the individual can increase the level
of involvement for the object to adapt the same experi-
ence. Accordingly, it can be expected that the CGC will
be a significant predictor for the interests of destination,
both as an advertising function and as a result of the
desire to experience the same experience.
In the present study, two types of consumer content-
generation were conceptualized as participant sharing and
non-participant sharing. The notion of participant sharing is
based on the term “customer participation,” which is
a process whereby consumers provide feedback to the
organization on product improvement and development

(Fang, Palmatier, & Evans, 2008). Therefore, participant shar-
ing refers to the sharing generated in social media through
using the platforms related to the organization or with the
purpose of achieving a specific purpose related to the
organization (e.g., providing information, making an assess-
ment) (Dedeoğlu, 2019). On the other hand, the term non-
participant sharing indicates the sharings posted by an
individual because of his or her own motives (e.g., a desire
to be liked and approved by society, socialization, self-
expression) related to personal or others’ social media
channels (e.g., blogs and social networks) without partici-
pating in any activity of the organization (e.g., organiza-
tion’s own website, forum, Facebook account, or
assessment websites) or seeking any goal associated with
the organization (Dedeoğlu, 2019).
Since it is highly possible that participant sharings are
generated in platforms where the organization is directly or
indirectly involved, and customers could get information or
ideas from this source, they are very important for organi-
zations to direct their customers. On the other hand, indi-
viduals’ non-participant sharing behaviors, compared to
participant-sharing behavior, could be more directed by
the individual’s desires and motives and, in addition, they
have minimal cost to the business. Moreover, since non-
participant sharing is not generated by the individual with
the purpose of directly providing information about the
brand and is a process where the brand (i.e., the producer)
is not involved, it could be perceived more sincere and
appealing by consumers, and thus, could become a more
effective factor. These sharings, furthermore, may be gen-
erated by individuals to gain prestige and status or to be
recognized by the society. Based on social learning and
social identity theories, these sharings could encourage
others who encounter them to behave in the same way.
For this reason, this type of sharing could be considered
a stimulant creating involvement of the consumer who
encounters CGC (e.g., scrolling down a Facebook profile)
or sees/reads/watches content to achieve a specific pur-
pose (e.g., getting information) (Mitchell, 1979).
Based on these observations, in order to better under-
stand the effect of CGC on involvement the current
research examined CGC through a two-dimensional struc-
ture composed of participant and non-participant beha-
viors. Tourism studies have shown that the application of
social media plays an important role on people’s intention
or decision-making about a destination (Sotiriadis, 2017;
Zeng & Gerritsen, 2014). Kane, Chiru, and Ciuchete (2012)
indicated that social media, e.g., Facebook, potentially
influences attitudes and values that could change travel
behaviors in the longer term (e.g., pro-environmental pur-
chase behaviors in general) rather than leading to a direct
change in travel behaviors. Xiang and Gretzel (2010)
showed that social media constitute a substantial part of
JOURNAL OF TRAVEL & TOURISM MARKETING 615
search results, indicating that search engines likely direct
travelers to social media sites. Many researchers have
assumed involvement as an antecedent of behavior.
Involvement influences individuals’ knowledge, satisfac-
tion, and place attachment about a destination and quality
(Gross & Brown, 2008; Gursoy & Gavcar, 2003; Hwang et al.,
2005). Thus, from the relationship of social media contents
to behavior and considering involvement as an antecedent
of behavior, the following hypotheses were developed:
H1: The importance attached to participant sharing (IPS)
in social media influences destination involvement in
a positive and significant way.
H2: The importance attached to non-participant sharing
(INPS) in social media influences destination involve-
ment in a positive and significant way.
Personality traits as moderator
Schiffman and Kanuk (2004, p. 120) define personality as
“those inner psychological characteristics that both deter-
mine and reflect how a person responds to his or her
environments.” Personality traits show the differences
among individuals (Ashton, 2013), which affects both
individuals’ product preferences and responses to market-
ing strategies (Adjei & Clark, 2010). Besides providing
important information to firms to direct their customers’
behaviors (Orth, Limon, & Rose, 2010), the Five-Factor
Model (also called as the Big Five Model) of personality
is one of the most commonly used models in the typology
of personality traits (Goldberg, 1993; Tang & Lam, 2017;
Yoo & Gretzel, 2010). For example, research by Orth et al.
(2010) based on the Five-Factor Model demonstrates that
research on personality has again assumed importance in
marketing studies. Furthermore, Barrick, Mount, and
Judge (2001) indicate that the Five-Factor Model provides
the most useful classification for the research on person-
ality. Hence, the Big Five Model of personality was pre-
ferred in the present study.
In the Big Five Model, personality traits are classified
as extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroti-
cism and openness (McCrae, Costa, & Busch, 1986).
Extroversion concerns differences in preference for social
interaction and lively activity, whereas Agreeableness is
seen in selfless concern for others and in trusting and
generous sentiments. Conscientiousness can be defined
as “a dimension of individual differences in organization
and achievement” while Neuroticism can be indicated as
“a dimension of personality on which people vary only in
degree.” On the other hand, Openness can be defined “a
receptiveness to new ideas, approaches, and experi-
ences” (McCrae & Costa, 2006, p. 35).
616 B. B. DEDEOGLU ET AL.
If individuals use social media more, they may have
more interaction with other people’s content (Tussyadiah,
2012). As individuals spend more time on the Internet and
social media, they are more likely to increase their interest
in content when they attached importance to content. At
this point, it is necessary to pay attention to the personality
traits of individuals. As a matter of fact, in previous research,
significant relationships have been found between person-
ality traits and Internet use (Amichai-Hamburger, 2002;
Hamburger & Ben-Artzi, 2000) and the use of various social
media (Amichai-Hamburger & Vinitzky, 2010; Moore &
McElroy, 2012; Ryan & Xenos, 2011). Ryan and Xenos
(2011) showed that Facebook users tend to be more extra-
verted and narcissistic, but less conscientious and socially
lonely, than nonusers. People who are more open to
experiences tend to be drawn to social networking sites
than those with high levels of neuroticism. Individuals high
in neuroticism, as well as people who are extraverted, also
seem to have greater use of instant messaging (Ehrenberg,
Juckes, White, & Walsh, 2008). Correa et al. (2010) found
that extraversion and openness to experiences were posi-
tively related to social media use, but emotional stability
was a negative predictor. On the other hand, Hughes,
Rowe, Batey, and Lee (2012) found a negative relationship
between extraversion and use of social media (Twitter).
Seidman (2013) and Kim, Sin, and Tsai (2014) found that
the use of social media was negatively affected by con-
scientiousness, while McElroy, Hendrickson, Townsend,
and DeMarie (2007) found that social media use was posi-
tively affected by conscientiousness. Moore and McElroy
(2012) argue that there may be a negative relationship
between agreeableness and social media use, de Zuniga,
Diehl, Huber, and Liu (2017) found a positive relationship
between agreeableness and social media usage. In addi-
tion, Wehrli (2008), Seidman (2013) and Moore and McElroy
(2012) found that social media use was positively influ-
enced by neuroticism. As seen in previous studies, each
trait of the five-factor personality model affects the internet
and social media usage levels of individuals differently.
Therefore, each personality trait in the five-factor person-
ality model can be expected to have a moderating role in
the relationship between the importance attached to CGC
and the destination involvement of tourists.
Considering that the use of the internet and social
media by individuals is affected by their personality
traits, it is highly possible for those traits to give impor-
tance to CGC, as well. As individuals spend time in social
media in accordance with their personality traits they
would be likely be exposed to the content generated
by others. Therefore, it can be expected that personality
traits would have a moderating effect in the relationship
between the importance attached to the sharing-
content generated by other consumers in social media
and destination involvement (See Fig. 1). Based on these
observations, the following hypotheses were developed:
H3a: There is a moderating effect of the agreeableness
personality trait in the relationship between IPS and the
levels of tourists’ involvement.
H3b: There is a moderating effect of the agreeableness
personality trait in the relationship between INPS and
the levels of tourists’ involvement.
H4a: There is a moderating effect of the extraversion
personality trait in the relationship between IPS and the
levels of tourists’ involvement.
H4b: There is a moderating effect of the extraversion
personality trait in the relationship between INPS and
the levels of tourists’ involvement.
H5a: There is a moderating effect of the openness
personality trait in the relationship between IPS and
the levels of tourists’ involvement.
H5b: There is a moderating effect of the openness
personality trait in the relationship between INPS and
the levels of tourists’ involvement.
H6a: There is a moderating effect of the neuroticism
personality trait in the relationship between IPS and the
levels of tourists’ involvement.
H6b: There is a moderating effect of the neuroticism
personality trait in the relationship between INPS and
the levels of tourists’ involvement.
H7a: There is a moderating effect of the conscientious-
ness personality trait in the relationship between IPS
and the levels of tourists’ involvement.
H7b: There is a moderating effect of the conscientious-
ness personality trait in the relationship between INPS
and the levels of tourists’ involvement.
Methodology
Instrument
The study used a questionnaire to collect data. The ques-
tionnaire was composed of two parts. In the first part, the
scales of the importance attached to social media sharings
(ISMS), involvement, and Five-Factor personality traits were
included, while demographic statements such as age, gen-
der, education, and income were included in the second

part. ISMS scale was used as it was used in the study by
Dedeoğlu (2016) and ISMS was measured with 11 items in
total. Involvement was measured with five statements
prepared based on the studies of Mittal (1995), Gursoy
and Gavcar (2003) and Prayag and Ryan (2012). Five-
Factor personality traits were evaluated via a 10-item-
scale developed by Gosling, Rentfrow, and Swann (2003).
Since the questionnaires were to be completed by
tourists of different nationalities, they were prepared in
German, Russian, English and Turkish considering the
nationalities of the tourists visiting the destination (see
Alanya Economic Report, 2016). For translation of the
questionnaires, the back-to-translation method was
used (Brislin, 1976). In order to avoid any possible mis-
takes in the questionnaires finalized according to the
back-to-translation method, pre-tests were carried out
on pilot groups composed of 10 persons chosen for each
questionnaire in four languages. 10 people were consid-
ered: 2 people from a hotel, 2 people from a restaurant, 2
people from a souvenir shop, 2 people from the beach,
and 2 people from the bazaar. In order to improve the
reliability of the questionnaire assessment, each group
was ensured uniformity of gender-related context (five
females and five male). Age distribution was also
ensured. Since it was found as a result of the pre-test
that the statements were clear and understandable, the
questionnaires were used as they were prepared.
Sampling
The present research was carried out in Alanya, a tourist
destination in Turkey. Alanya comprises nearly 11.5% of
incomes from tourists (Alanya Economic Report, 2016).
Alanya might resemble to tourist profiles in such countries
in Mediterranean region as Italy, Greece, Spain and Egypt
which provide similar product and services (Dedeoğlu,
Balıkçıoğlu, & Küçükergin, 2016). Therefore, Alanya was
preferred as the research area. In this regard, the research
population was composed of all tourists visiting Alanya. For
the determination of the research sample, the convenience
sampling method was preferred. The questionnaires were
applied by authors of study and professional interviewers.
Also, the questionnaires were conducted with face to face
interview and drop-collect methods. In the context of face
to face interview questionnaires were conducted by the
professional interviewers, where they interviewed tourists
personally in areas such as beaches, souvenir shops, restau-
rants, and hotel lobbies. In the context of drop-collect
method, the questionnaires conducted by the authors of
the study were dropped off at various locations (restau-
rants and hotels) and collected after a period of 1 to
3 weeks. A total of 586 questionnaires were collected
from 800 questionnaires. Accordingly, the participation
JOURNAL OF TRAVEL & TOURISM MARKETING 617
rate was 73.2%. In order to test the research model, data
obtained from 586 questionnaires were used.
Examining the demographic variables of the respon-
dents, 48.1% of respondents were male and 52.6% were
single. 155 of the respondents graduated from high-
school, 149 graduated from associate degree programs,
and 150 graduated from undergraduate programs. 384
respondents indicated that they had visited Alanya twice
or more. 118 respondents indicated they had no children.
The number of those indicating use of German as official
language was 176, and for Russian the number was 115.
Data analysis
For the implementation of the structural model in the
research, the two-stage approach was preferred
(Anderson & Gerbing, 1988); at first, the measurement
model, and then the structural model were examined. As
the last step, the multiple group analysis was performed
in order to measure the moderating effects of personal-
ity traits (Byrne, 2010). Before testing the models, the
data screening stages were followed. In this regard, the
missing data were first fulfilled through mean substitu-
tion. Secondly, the Mahalanobis distance was examined
and no extreme value was found (Mahalanobis D (26)
82.826, p < .001). Third, a normal distribution assumption
was checked because the maximum likelihood method
was used in estimating both the measurement model
and structural model. Since the minimum and maximum
Kurtosis values were −1.179 and maximum .449 and the
minimum and maximum Skewness values were −.624
and maximum .045, respectively, the normal distribution
assumption was supported (Kline, 2011).
Findings
Structural model
First, the measurement model which is the first stage of the
structural model was examined. According to the findings
of the measurement model, the goodness-of-fit statistics
were found to be acceptable (χ2 = 541.691; χ2/df = 2.682;
RMSEA = .054, CFI = .94, TLI = .93) (Mulaik et al., 1989;
Schermelleh-Engel, Moosbrugger, & Müller, 2003). In order
to check whether construct validity was met, the compo-
site reliability was examined in addition to the convergent
and discriminant validities (Hair, Black, Babin, & Anderson,
2009). As shown in Table 1, the composite reliability of IPS,
INPS, involvement were 0.87, 0.84, and 0.89 respectively,
while the composite reliability of agreeableness, extraver-
sion, openness, neuroticism, conscientiousness were 0.77,
0.78, 0.83, 0.80, and 0.71 respectively. Furthermore, it can
also be stated that multi-items for assessing each construct
618 B. B. DEDEOGLU ET AL.

Table 1. Results of the measurement model

Dimension Items SFL t CR α
IPS When choosing the destination, comments of others on a destination website and/or on social media websites .79 Fixed* .87 .86
(Facebook, Instagram, etc.) about the destination are important to me.
When choosing the destination, ratings of others on a destination website and/or on social media websites .79 17.95
(Facebook, Instagram, etc.) about the destination are significant to me.
When choosing the destination, ratings of other users on websites (e.g., Tripadvisor, booking.com) where travel .84 17.83
evaluations are included and holiday packages are sold are important to me.
When choosing the destination, comments of other users on websites (e.g., Tripadvisor, booking.com) where travel .73 18.76
evaluations are included and holiday packages are sold are important to me.
INPS Holiday related comments of other users on their own social media accounts (profiles) (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.) .76 Fixed* .84 .83
are important to me.
Holiday related sharing of other users on their own social media accounts (profiles) (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.) are .67 15.13
important to me.
Holiday recommendations of other users on their own social media accounts (profiles) (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.) .80 17.81
are important to me.
Holiday related sharing (photo, video) of other users on social media accounts of others (profiles) (Facebook, Twitter, .77 17.42
blogs, etc.) are important to me.
INV I attached great importance to being on holiday in Alanya. .80 Fixed* .89 .86
Taking a holiday in Alanya is important to me. .79 21.07
Taking a holiday in Alanya is significant to me. .89 24.76
Taking a holiday in Alanya means a lot to me. .55 13.62
Taking a holiday in Alanya is of concern to me. .88 24.47
Agg I see myself as quarrelsome. .89 Fixed* .77 .75
I see myself as sympathetic. .68 10.41
Ext I see myself as extraverted. .70 Fixed* .78 .77
I see myself as reserved. .89 12.01
Open I see myself as open to new experiences. .82 Fixed* .83 .83
I see myself as conventional. .87 11.48
Neu I see myself as easily upset. .86 Fixed* .80 .79
I see myself as calm. .77 12.27
Con I see myself as self-disciplined. .70 Fixed* .71 .71
I see myself as careless. .79 8.11
Goodness-of-fit statistics
Correlation Matrix, Discriminant Validity and AVE Values**
Dimensions IPS INPS INV Ext Open Neu Con Agg
IPS .62
INPS .26(.07) .56
INV .21(.04) .31(.10) .63
Ext .36(.13) .23(.05) .11(.01) .64
Open .14(.02) .18(.03) .23(.05) .31(.10) .71
Neu .33(.11) .35(.12) .35(.12) .22(.05) .37(.14) .66
Con .34(.12) .13(.02) .02(.00) .33(.11) .23(.05) .16(.03) .56
Agg .33(.11) .13(.02) .06(.00) .51(.26) .17(.03) .21(.04) .31(.10) .63
*Parameter fixed at 1.0 during ML estimation; Notes. IPS: Importance attached to participant sharing; INPS: Importance attached to non-participant sharing;
INV: Involvement; Agg: Agreeableness; Ext: Extraversion; Open: Openness; Neu: Neuroticism; Con: Conscientiousness; CR: Construct Reliability; α: Cronbach
Alpha; AVE: Average variance extracted. **Squared correlations between constructs are in the parentheses. Diagonal elements (bolds) are AVE values. For
discriminant validity, the diagonal elements should be larger than the off-diagonal elements (squared correlations) in parentheses.

were highly reliable and internally consistent (Bagozzi & Yi,
1988) because CR was between .71 and .89 and Cronbach
alpha values were minimum .71. In order to check the
convergent validity, factor loadings and AVE values were
examined (Fornell & Larcker, 1981). The average variance
extracted (AVE) of IPS, INPS, involvement, agreeableness,
extraversion, openness, neuroticism, conscientiousness
were 0.62, 0.56, 0.63, 0.63, 0.64, 0.71, 0.66, and 0.56.
Because all factor loadings and AVE values were above
the recommended cutoff of .50, it can be indicated that
convergent validity was met. In addition, the squared cor-
relations of all constructs were lower than AVE value of
each construct; therefore, it can be indicated that discrimi-
nant validity was met (Fornell & Larcker, 1981).
Common method variance refers “to variance that is
attributable to the measurement method rather than to
the construct of interest” and method biases are “a pro-
blem because they are one of the main sources of mea-
surement error” (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Lee, & Podsakoff,
2003, p. 879). Therefore, common method bias (CMB)
should be analyzed. In the current study CMB was exam-
ined by using Harman’s single factor approach (Podsakoff
& Organ, 1986) and unmeasured latent method factor
(ULMF) (Podsakoff et al., 2003). An un-rotated factor ana-
lysis using the eigenvalue greater than one criterion
revealed three distinct factors that accounted for 70% of
the variance and the first factor captured only 34% of the
variance in the data. According to the EFA result as
a single factor did not emerge and the first factor did
not account for most of the variance (Podsakoff &
Organ, 1986), CMB did not appear to be a problem. In
the ULMF approach, the standardized factor loadings
 JOURNAL OF TRAVEL & TOURISM MARKETING 619

obtained from the model where ULMF was included in
and the one where ULMF was not included in were com-
pared. Since the gap between the loadings does not
exceed .20, CMB will not cause any serious problems in
the study (Gaskin, 2012; Tosun, Dedeoğlu, & Fyall, 2015).
After verifying the measurement model, the structural
equation modelling was applied. In light of the analysis
results, it is seen that the model’s goodness-of-fit statis-
tics are good (χ2 = 172.369, df = 62, p = .000; χ2/
df = 2.780, RMSEA = 0.055, CFI = 0.97, NFI = 0.96). As
shown in Table 2, IPS (β = .14, t = 3.071, p < .01) and INPS
(β = .27, t = 5.557, p < .001) affect the tourists’ involve-
ment levels in a positive and significant way. Also, 11% of
the tourists’ involvement levels are explained by the
importance attached to the social media sharings.
Moderating effects of personality traits
In order to examine the moderating effect of personality
traits, each personality trait was classified through
K-means cluster analysis. For personality traits, the groups
were named as “high” and “low” (e.g., high extraversion
and low extraversion). In order to perform the multiple
group analysis, the metric invariance is required to be met
for the classified groups (Hair et al., 2009). Therefore, at
first, the metric invariance was checked for low-high
groups formed per personality trait. At this point, the
baseline and metric invariance models developed for low-
high groups formed per personality trait were compared
through the chi-square difference test. The chi-square
difference between the baseline and metric invariance
model was found to be not significant for each group
Table 2. Results of the structural model.
Std. Fac.
Hypotheses Load. λ t values Result
H1: IPS⋄Involvement .14 5.5757* Supported
H2: INPS⋄Involvement .27 3.071** Supported
R2: Involvement: .11
Goodness-of-fit statistics χ2 = 172.369, df = 62, p = .000; χ2/df = 2.780,
RMSEA = .55, CFI = .97, NFI = .96
*p < .001; **p < .01. Notes. IPS: Importance attached to participant sharing;
INPS: Importance attached to non-participant sharing.
(Hair et al., 2009). Therefore, as shown in Table 3, the
metric invariance was met for low-high groups of five
personality traits.
After confirming that the metric invariance was sup-
ported per personality trait, the moderating effect of
the personality traits, which are agreeableness, extra-
version, openness, neuroticism and conscientiousness,
respectively, on the relationship between the impor-
tance of social media sharings and the involvement
level was examined.
As shown in Table 4, H3a is supported in that the
p value of the effect of IPS on the involvement with low
agreeableness equals to 0.004, while H5b is supported in
that p value of the effect of INPS on the involvement
with high openness equals 0.040. Similarly, H4a, H5a, H7a,
H6b are supported. In short, the effect of IPS on involve-
ment is more determinative for the groups with high
agreeableness, extraversion, openness, and conscien-
tiousness, whereas the effect of INPS on involvement
is more determinative for the groups with high neuroti-
cism and openness.
Conclusions and discussion
The current study had two main purposes. The first was
to examine the effect of CGC on destination involve-
ment. The second objective was investigate the moder-
ating effect of personality traits in the relationship
between the importance of CGC and destination invol-
vement. Findings from the study provide useful insights
concerning which type of customer-generated content
is more effective in determining the level of tourist
involvement related to destinations. In addition, impor-
tant findings and implications are identified based on
understanding the personality traits that shape consu-
mers’ consumption habits.
Theoretical implications
In the present study, both types of customer-generated
content (participant-sharing (IPS) and non-participant

Table 3. Results of metric invariance test for personality traits.

Moderator Models χ2 df RMSEA CFI Δχ2(df) Result
Agreeableness B.M 228.883 124 .038 .97 Δχ (10)-6.61
2
Supported
M.I. 235.493 134 .036 .97 p = .762
Extraversion B.M 277.911 124 .046 .97 Δχ2(10)-14.52 Supported
M.I. 292.427 134 .045 .96 p = .151
Openness B.M 301.532 124 .050 .95 Δχ2(10)-3.84 Supported
M.I. 305.370 134 .047 .96 p = .954
Neuroticism B.M 270.729 124 .045 .96 Δχ2(10)-10.92 Supported
M.I. 281.650 134 .043 .96 p = .364
Conscientiousness B.M 275.590 124 .046 .96 Δχ2(10)-10.99 Supported
M.I. 286.578 134 .044 .96 p = .358
Notes. B.M: Baseline model; M.I: Metric invariance; df: degree of freedom.
620 B. B. DEDEOGLU ET AL.

Table 4. Results of moderating effects of personality traits.

Hyp. Moderator Relation Group SFL t Baseline Nested Δχ2(df) Supported
H3a Agg IPS⋄INV High .23 4.039* 235.493 243.785 Δχ2(1)-8.29 Yes
Low -.02 -.286NS (134) (135) p= .004
H3b INPS⋄INV High .26 4.417* 235.493 235.774 Δχ2(1)-.28 No
Low .32 3.856* (134) (135) p= .596
H4a Ext IPS⋄INV High .23 3.924* 292.427 298.731 Δχ2(1)-6.30 Yes
Low -.01 -.164NS (134) (135) p= .012
H4b INPS⋄INV High .22 3.723* 292.427 294.808 Δχ2(1)-2.38 No
Low .37 4.594* (134) (135) p= .123
H5a Open IPS⋄INV High .27 4.627* 305.370 310.366 Δχ2(1)-5.00 Yes
Low -.02 -.235NS (134) (135) p= .025
H5b INPS⋄INV High .41 6.758* 305.370 309.587 Δχ2(1)-4.22 Yes
Low .10 1.179NS (134) (135) p= .040
H6a Neu IPS⋄INV High .02 .253NS 281.650 284.925 Δχ2(1)-3.18 No
Low .18 2.427*** (134) (135) p= .075
H6b INPS⋄INV High .37 5.735* 281.650 288.437 Δχ2(1)-6.79 Yes
Low .11 1.516NS (134) (135) p= .009
H7a Con IPS⋄INV High .31 4.832* 286.578 294.771 Δχ2(1)-8.19 Yes
Low .01 .143NS (134) (135) p= .004
H7b INPS⋄INV High .34 5.232* 286.578 287.469 Δχ2(1)-.89 No
Low .22 3.179** (134) (135) p= .345
Notes. IPS: Importance attached to participant sharing; INPS: Importance attached to non-participant sharing; INV: Involvement; Agg: Agreeableness; Ext:
Extraversion; Open: Openness; Neu: Neuroticism; Con: Conscientiousness.

sharing (INPS)) affected involvement level in a positive
way. One important observation was that INPS especially
was a more effective factor on tourists’ involvement levels.
This can be explained by considering the reasons why
non-participant content is generated and how other tour-
ists approach these sharings. A NPS can be generated
with different motives of consumers; however, what mat-
ters is how consumers exposed to content see that con-
tent. One interpretation of the results of the study is that
non-participant content generated by other consumers in
the context of tourism creates bandwagon or snob effects
on tourists. More specifically, at first, tourists could con-
sider other tourists as a reference group and give impor-
tance to their sharings generated in their own or their
friends’ pages in social media platforms (bandwagon
effect), or, secondly, tourists could attribute importance
to a sharing by taking into consideration that the tourists
having generated the content took an action different
and unique compared with those taken by people around
them (snob effect). The rationale for ascribing importance,
then, can be based on the desire of tourists to achieve
social and unique values (Corneo & Jeanne, 1997;
Leibenstein, 1950; Vigneron & Johnson, 1999). The way
in which participant sharings increase involvement level
can be explained through the fact that participant shar-
ings are generated in order to provide information about
product and services (Dedeoğlu, 2016), and the more that
tourists encounter those sharings and acquire information
about an object, the more interested they become.
Another important theoretical finding in the study is
that personality traits play a moderating role in the relation-
ship between the importance attached to social media
sharings and involvement level. As seen in the findings,
the effect of IPS on involvement is more determinative for
tourists with high-agreeableness because those tourists are
supportive and helpful (Barrick & Mount, 1991; Costa &
McCrae, 1992). These characteristics could lead those tour-
ists to spend more time with participant sharings, and thus,
to be influenced by them more. In addition, the effect of IPS
on involvement was found to be more determinative in
tourists high in extraversion. One explanation is that extro-
verted tourists demonstrate friendly behaviors to develop
more social relationships with those in their vicinity and
want to be in interaction with them (Blackwell, Leaman,
Tramposch, Osborne, & Liss, 2017; Correa et al., 2010;
Zywica & Danowski, 2008). The effect of both IPS and
INPS on involvement is more distinctive for tourists high
in openness. This could be based on curiosity and novelty-
seeking characteristics of tourists with a high level of open-
ness to experience (John & Srivastava, 1999). Besides being
curious and looking for experiences, tourists for whom
high-openness trait is dominant may consider social
media as a relatively new practice (Correa et al., 2010).
They may give importance to all sharings regardless of
participant or non-participant, and, thus, could be more
involved with sharings generated by other tourists. This
interaction could increase the effect of those sharings on
them. In addition, motivations for socialization and self-
status seeking of these individuals may also increase as
the tourist’s openness aspect of their personality increases
(Lin, Lee, Jin, & Gilbreath, 2017). At this point, tourists can
attach importance to the content generated by other indi-
viduals in their social media tools in order to develop their
self-status and a desire to participate in the same type of
holiday experiences as other individuals.
The results also showed that the effect of IPS on invol-
vement is more determinative for high-conscientiousness
tourists. Since high-conscientiousness tourists tend to

think that something is expected from them, it is highly
possible that they would share information in order to
contribute to the community (Matzler, Renzl, Mooradian,
von Krogh, & Mueller, 2011). Considering that participant
sharings are information sharing-oriented, it is possible for
those tourists to get more information about products
and services by reviewing the participant sharings more
carefully and to wish to contribute more on these subjects
(Yoo & Gretzel, 2011). Therefore, those tourists’ involve-
ment levels regarding products and services could be
more affected by participant sharings. The rationale,
then, is that tourists with a high perception of responsi-
bility have a greater tendency to use the platforms where
participant sharings are generated. On the other hand, the
effect of INPS is more determinative for tourists with high-
neuroticism. One interpretation is that those tourists use
social media primarily to relieve feelings of loneliness
(Amichai-Hamburger & Ben-Artzi, 2003) or to be recog-
nized by society and to gain more friends by carrying out
the activities mentioned in social media sharings (Amiel &
Sargent, 2004). In other words, consumers with high-
neuroticism could be influenced by sharings that might
enable them to communicate with other people and to be
recognized by society, rather than being influenced by
web-sites where consumers share information or make
comments and evaluations about products. The effect of
INPS, therefore, on involvement is more determinative for
tourists with this kind of personality.
In summary, the importance that tourists attach to
social media sharings has an effect on their destination
involvement levels, and it can differ in line with tourists’
personality traits. The reason underlying the moderat-
ing effect of personality traits is primarily related to the
time that tourists spend in social media, in parallel with
their personality traits. Tourists with certain character-
istics can spend time in specific social media environ-
ments and this can differentiate the distinctiveness of
social media sharings for them.
Practical implications
The study found that the importance attached to both
sharing types affected destination involvement in
a positive way. One implication of this finding is that
destination management and marketing organizations
should take actions to prompt tourists to generate both
participant and non-participant sharings. In order to
encourage tourists to demonstrate participant sharing
behavior, these organizations could offer tourists var-
ious promotions or bonus points in return for every
kind of participant sharing they would generate in
relevant platforms (e.g., expressing their opinions
about the destination and how much they like the
JOURNAL OF TRAVEL & TOURISM MARKETING 621
destination, sharing photos and videos about their
experience in the destination, etc.). Promotions could
increase the probability of tourists having had holiday
experiences in the destination to share their experi-
ences in the platforms where participant sharings are
generated. In order to encourage non-participant shar-
ing, destination management and marketing organiza-
tions should provide products and services prompting
tourists to generate more sharings. At this point, unique
experiences that a destination provides unlike other
destinations are of vital importance. Tourists, especially
snobs, might want to have unique experiences in
a destination and use these experiences as a clue of
social status (Vigneron & Johnson, 1999). Tourists con-
sidering that they had unique experiences, then, would
feel the need to share these experiences through social
media. Providing unique and different experiences is
critically important for encouraging INPS. To support
this, destinations can offer distinctive and unique
experiences using their own cultural services (e.g., cul-
tural food) as well as their natural qualities.
The findings related to the moderating role of per-
sonality between the importance attached to social
media sharings and involvement indicate that practi-
tioners should focus on tourists high in extraversion,
conscientiousness, agreeableness and openness if they
want to increase the determinative role of IPS on invol-
vement. On the other hand, if they want to increase the
determinative role of INPS on involvement, they should
focus on tourists high in neuroticism. At this point, it
would be necessary for practitioners to be knowledge-
able about the personality traits of consumers.
Alternatively, the motivations that lead tourists to
use social media can also give clues about tourists’
personality traits. In other words, the motivations
which develop attitudes and behaviors of tourists
with high-extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeable-
ness, openness, neuroticism traits towards the activ-
ities in social media, should be known. According to
a study by Yoo and Gretzel (2011), tourists high in
extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness and
openness could spend more time in social media
due to altruistic and enjoyment/self-enhancement
motivations; however, those high in extraversion and
openness could spend time in social media in order
to express their problems. In addition, tourists with
a high-extraversion trait tend to share their experi-
ences more, whereas it is more possible for tourists
high in both extraversion and openness to contribute
to shared content in order to communicate with unfa-
miliar audiences. This research also indicated that
high-agreeable and conscientious tourists could be
active in social media for others’ benefits (Yoo &
622 B. B. DEDEOGLU ET AL.
Gretzel, 2011). Drawing from these insights, it is more
likely that tourists with altruistic and enjoyment/self-
enhancement motivations are high in extraversion,
conscientiousness, agreeableness and openness, or
that tourists who need to express their problems are
high in extraversion and openness. Accordingly, it can
be ensured that tourists with these motivations are
influenced by content generated in social media by
other consumers. In addition, destination marketing
organizations should create platforms where tourists
can socialize and enjoy more in social media. While
creating these platforms, it should also allow for indir-
ect sharing of information. In this way, the motiva-
tions of individuals can be achieved. At this point,
however, giving consideration to these motivations,
practitioners can have prior knowledge about what
kind of personality traits would prompt tourists to
what kind of activities in social media mediums. In
addition, it should not be ignored that most of these
motivations will be satisfied within the framework of
participant sharing.
Limitations and future directions
Despite the fact that the present study makes signifi-
cant contributions to literature, there are several lim-
itations. Firstly, personality traits were examined within
the framework of the Big Five Model. However, in
addition to the Big Five Model, psychobiological per-
sonality theory is very important in terms of consumer
behavior (Holbrook & Hirschman, 1982; Hoyer &
Ridgway, 1984). Therefore, it would be beneficial to
examine different personality traits defined by person-
ality theories, which are also very important in terms of
consumer behavior, within the framework of the model
developed in the present study. Secondly, the differ-
ences that might be caused by such demographic
variables as age or gender were ignored in the present
study. Nevertheless, both age and gender are impor-
tant in terms of determining tourists’ attitudes towards
social media (Correa et al., 2010). Therefore, the mod-
erating effects of gender and age can be examined in
future studies. The third, the convenience sampling
method was selected in this study therefore sampling
bias might compromise the accuracy of the reported
results. This can be seen as a limitation. Therefore,
different random sampling method should be applied
in future research to minimise the sampling bias.
Finally, the rationale underlying the moderating effects
of personality traits was based on the time spent in
social media, which is affected by the personality traits.
However, as found in other studies, it should not be
ignored that tourists with high-conscientiousness and
neuroticism have lower levels of social media use
(Tuten & Bosnjak, 2001). For instance, the fact that
the importance of social media sharings has a greater
effect on the involvement of tourists with high-
conscientiousness is, in the present study, based on
the level of social media use; however, the possibility
to observe a negative relationship between conscien-
tiousness and social media use should not be ignored.
As a result of the daily tasks in life, responsible people
might perceive the use of social media as procrastina-
tion, and therefore, their level of social media use
might decrease (Ryan & Xenos, 2011). At this point, it
can be recommended to carry out future studies on
specific social media platforms (e.g., Pinterest,
Facebook, Twitter) or under specific classifications.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
ORCID
Bekir Bora Dedeoglu http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0722-3392
Fevzi Okumus http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8670-9720
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