Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169

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Tourism Management
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tourman

Influence of popular culture on special interest tourists' destination

image
SoJung Lee a, *, Billy Bai b
a
Iowa State University, 8A MacKay, Ames, IA 50011-1121, United States
b
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration, 4505 Maryland Parkway Box 456021, Las Vegas, NV 89154-6021,
United States

h i g h l i g h t s

 This research revealed the impact of pop-culture on destination image formation.

 Pop-culture was a significant autonomous agent on destination image.
 Pop-stars played an important role in influencing the image of their own country.
 Actual visitation due to pop-star events strengthened fans' destination image.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: In this study the role of pop-culture on shaping destination image was derived from focus groups and
Received 10 February 2012 interviews with 24 fans from different nationalities of the Korean pop star Ahn Jae-wook. Three main
Received in revised form theses emerged from the study: 1) the destination image induced by pop-culture was changed in a
15 June 2015
positive way; 2) the pop-star's event reinforced a positive place image through experiences of the event
Accepted 23 June 2015
and travels in South Korea; and 3) the positive image from pop-culture experiences had a strong impact
Available online xxx
on future behavior. Results of the study suggest that pop-culture as an autonomous agent delivers a more
powerful and stronger influence on destination image than previously recognized in the literature.
Keywords:
Destination image
Theoretical contributions and practical implications are discussed.
Destination image formation © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Popular culture (pop-culture)
Special interest tourism

1. Introduction 2003). Particularly, a new market segment in special interest

Given the worldwide interest in extensive media coverage, it has
become relatively easy for people to become familiar with celeb-
rities, global stars, sports, singers, and actors (Smith, 2006). Along
with the global interests, special interest tourism has been devel-
oped in many different aspects: culture, heritage, nature, health,
sports, wine, and festivals (Young & Crandall, 1984; Hall, 1989;
Tabata, 1989; Hall & Zeppel, 1990). Special interest tourists are
defined as “travelers who visit a destination to pursue their special
interests in a particular region or destination” (Read, 1980, p.195).
As more and more people visit a destination to indulge their in-
terests, special interest tourism has been identified as niche
tourism in government tourism strategies worldwide (Macleod,
* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: sjlee@iastate.edu (S. Lee), billy.bai@unlv.edu (B. Bai).
tourism, popular culture (pop-culture) tourism has emerged in that
individuals travel to destinations mainly driven by pop-culture or
relative media themes such as TV programs, soap operas, movies,
music, and celebrities (Miller & Washington, 2007).
When it comes to destination image formation, the existing
literature discusses three major agents that can change the image
formation process: organic, induced, and autonomous agents
(Gunn, 1972; Gartner, 1993). Pop-culture has been considered an
autonomous agent that creates general knowledge about a desti-
nation through such factors as news media, articles, and movies.
While numerous studies have attempted to examine the role of
autonomous agents in forming a destination image (Keaveney &
Hunt, 1992; Gartner & Shen, 1992; Alhemoud & Armstrong, 1996;
Baloglu & McCleary, 1999), such autonomous agents as news me-
dia have been discovered to be a negative aspect that influences a
destination image.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2015.06.019
0261-5177/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
162 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169
However, recent research shows a country's pop-culture such as
TV drama series positively influence the perceptions of the country
(Kim, Agrusa, Chon, & Choi, 2008; Lee, Scott, & Kim, 2008). Given
the contrary findings in the impacts of pop-culture on destination
image formation, research is needed to further investigate the role
of pop-culture on destination image formation from various per-
spectives of pop-culture, including media, TV programs, and pop-
stars. This need for research is also advocated by the fact that
movie or film induced tourism serves as a powerful travel moti-
vation tool (e.g. Riley & Van Doren, 1992); more importantly, movie
or film induced tourism makes destinations more attractive, thus
enhancing the destination image (e.g. Hudson & Ritchie, 2006). As
an autonomous agent, movies or films have proved to be effective
in influencing destination image, generating awareness of the
destination, affect the decision-making process, and actual visita-
tion to the destination (Beeton, 2001a; Frost, 2006; Kim &
Richardson, 2003; Lin & Huang, 2007). However, there is a lack of
literature focusing on the influence of pop-stars on destination
image.
To address these identified gaps in the literature, this study
chose pop-stars’ fans that are significantly influenced by media and
pop-culture, particularly pop-stars. The purpose of this research
was to construct a model of the destination image formation pro-
cess on the basis of the impact of pop-culture from the perspective
of pop-star's fans that are considered as special interest tourists.
The study used a qualitative grounded theory approach to develop
a model considering pop-culture such as drama, music, and pop-
stars as an autonomous agent. Specifically, this study examined
pop-star fan profiles, destination image perspectives, and the role
of pop-culture and the event in the destination image formation
process. Focus group interviews were conducted with fans of Ahn,
Jae-Wook, a Korean pop-star in South Korea.
2. Literature review
2.1. Destination image
Image formation is defined as a construction of a mental
representation of a destination on the basis of information cues
delivered by the image formation agents (Alhemoud &
Armstrong, 1996; Bramwell & Rawding, 1996; Court & Lupton,
1997; Gartner, 1993; Gunn, 1972; Young, 1999). Destination im-
age formation agents include organic, induced, and autonomous
agents (Gunn, 1972; Gartner, 1993). Organic image formation
agents include noncommercial information sources such as
word-of-mouth and actual visitation; induced image formation
agents include marketing efforts of destination promoters,
namely promotional materials; and, autonomous agents consist
of media relations such as news articles, movies and pop-culture
(Gartner, 1993).
In destination marketing, induced image formation agents such
as promotional materials become significantly important to pro-
mote a destination due to the intangibility of travel products
(MacKay & Fesenmaier, 1997). However, autonomous image for-
mation agents with no intention to promote a destination are
considered to be more influential on image formation in that they
have higher credibility and the ability to reach wide audiences
more than induced formation agents (Gartner, 1993; Gartner &
Shen, 1992; Hanefors & Mossberg, 2002). Most research about
autonomous agents focuses on the strong negative influence of
news media such as political issues, violence, terrorist activities,
and natural disaster. However, little research has been devoted to
examining the impact of pop-culture as an autonomous image
formation agent, whether negative or positive.
2.2. Consumer behavior and destination image
In regard to the relationship between consumer behavior and
destination image, destination image has been studied as an in-
dependent variable impacting travel behavior in three phases: pre-
visit, during a visit, and post-visit (Tasci & Gartner, 2007).
Regarding pre-visit stage, destination image influences the in-
tentions and decisions of potential travelers due to intangible
destination products and limited knowledge. Particularly, a strong
positive image of a destination can play an important role in a
traveler's intention to visit the destination (Alhemoud &
Armstrong, 1996; Hunt, 1975; Ross, 1993). Studies examined
destination choice influenced by tourists' needs and wants (Joppe,
Martin, & Waalen, 2001), the benefits offered by the destination
(Tapachai & Waryszak, 2000), familiarity with a destination
(Baloglu, 2001), and awareness and interest generated from desti-
nation information (Court & Lupton, 1997; Milman & Pizam, 1995).
Relatively few studies on destination image during a trip have
been conducted. Dadgostar and Isotalo (1992), and Fakeye and
Crompton (1991) presented a positive relationship between desti-
nation image and the length of visiting the destination. As travelers
stay longer, they have more chances to gain a truer perception of
the place they want to visit. Ross (1993) reported that a destination
resident's attitude was the most important factor affecting trav-
elers' experiences and their image formation during their visit.
In regard to post-visit behavior, Alhemoud and Armstrong
(1996) and Fakeye and Crompton (1991) discussed destination
satisfaction by examining the relationship between a traveler's pre-
visit expectations and actual experiences during a visit. Milman and
Pizam (1995) and Ross (1993) investigated the impact of destina-
tion image generated by actual destination experience on future
travel behavior. They found that there was a positive relationship
between destination image and revisit intention. Joppe et al. (2001)
discussed destination loyalty affected destination dimensions such
as culture and transportation. There still seem to be many facets of
the destination image construct in pre-visit, visit, and post-visit
behavior to be investigated empirically (Tasci & Gartner, 2007).
2.3. Special interest tourism
The World Tourism Organization (1985) defines special interest
tourism as specialized tourism involving group or individual tours by
people who wish to develop certain interests and visit sites and places
connected with a specific subject. In general, special interest tourists
exercise the same profession or have a common hobby. Additionally,
the critical element of special interest tourism is that it is “active” or
“experiential.” Stebbins (1982) regarded special interest tourism as a
form of “serious leisure” in that special interest tourists tend to pursue
their interests and seek durable benefits such as self-actualization,
social interaction and belongingness through special activities.
Weiler and Hall (1992) provided an overview of the literature
discussing special interest tourism in the categories of education,
arts and heritage, ethnic tourism, nature-based, adventure, sport,
and health tourism. They addressed that special interest tourists
travel to pursue their desire for novelty, quality, and experience. As
the special interest tourism market has recently grown (Keefe,
2003; Okanogan, 2003), special interest tourists are considered
potential visitors who contribute to the destination.
Relatively few reported studies have been found regarding pop-
star fans' motivations and behaviors as special interest tourists.
Mackellar (2006) recognized leisure fanatic tourists as special in-
terest tourists, discussed their motivations and behaviors of trav-
eling, and discovered that events can play an important role in
developing a special interest spectrum that draws implications for
marketing and managing events.
 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169
2.4. Popular culture (pop-culture) tourism
Pop-culture has been defined in many different ways. One way
is to consider pop-culture as mass culture for mass consumption
from a commercial perspective. It has been proven to be an
effective vehicle in attracting tourists to a destination while
boosting the economic impacts (Beeton, 2001b; Busby & Klug,
2001; Connell, 2005; Riley, Baker, & Van Doren, 1998; Tooke &
Baker, 1996) and reinforcing positive images of a destination
(Connell, 2005; Crockett & Wood, 2002). In this study, pop-
culture is considered as manifest in the facets of entertainment
such as sports, music, film, literature, TV programs, drama, and
pop-stars.
Popular culture-related tourism, where people visit to a desti-
nation that connects with films or television (TV) programs
(Iwashita, 2008), has received an increasing attention over a rela-
tively short time period (Connell, 2012). In particular, film induced
tourism has shown a rapid growth in the tourism industry for the
past 20 years (Beeton, 2005; Hahm & Wang, 2011). Film induced
tourism includes a variety of contents such as the viewing of a
moving image, television programs, pre-recorded products, and
digital media (Connell, 2012; Hudson & Ritchie, 2006). This type of
tourism has been developed with different forms and attractions
including film festivals and celebrity homes tours, film-themed
venues, and literature-portrayed locations.
The impact of pop-culture/film induced tourism has been
investigated from various perspectives including visitors' expe-
riences, destination image, travel motivation, future behavioral
intentions, destination brand construction, and residents' re-
sponses (Busby & Klug, 2001; Busby, Brunt, & Lund, 2003; Busby
& O'Neill, 2006; O'Connor & Bolan, 2008; Roesch, 2009; Ward &
O'Regan, 2009). Film induced tourism has its ability to provide
benefits to filmed and portrayed locations because TV shows,
media, and films can lead to high market penetration, stimulating
interest, formulating destination image, and eventually visiting
the destinations (Busby, Huang, & Jarman, 2013; Busby & Klug,
2001; Frost, 2010; Kim, 2012; Shani, Chen, Wang, & Hua, 2010).
Furthermore, celebrities shown in a film or TV drama can be an
effective marketing tool for the specific media-induced tourist in
promoting a certain destination (Yen & Teng, 2015). These tools
provide viewers with an opportunity to imagine what they may
actually see, do, touch, feel, or think in a specific destination
(Crouch, Jackson, & Thompson, 2005). Therefore, pop-culture has
been widely considered a driving force in developing a destina-
tion image.
Since 1999, Korean pop-culture has gained much recognition
across many Asian countries and regions through mass media
entertainment such as dramas, movies, and songs. The trend is
known as Hallyu, which literally means Korean wave in English.
The Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism appointed Korean
Wave pop-stars as cultural ambassadors in countries that have
had a strained political relationship with Korea (Cho, 2005). The
Korean wave affected intra-regional tourism, from Asia to the
United States, supporting an increase in inbound tourists. The
new generation of consumers classified as the “Korea tribes” are
aggressively adopting and emulating Korean lifestyles in fashion,
food, and consumption patterns, collecting Korean culture items,
learning the Korean language, and actually making pilgrim voy-
ages to Korea (Cho, 2005). The Korean National Tourism
Organization (2006) reported that approximately 3 million Hal-
lyu induced tourists visited Korea as of November 2004, which
was 37 percent higher than the previous year. The inbound
Korean tourism industry has been enjoying an annual average
growth rate of 6e7 percent due to the fever of Korean pop-culture
(Yeon, 2011).
163
3. Methodology
3.1. Grounded theory
Grounded theory aims at generating theory that accounts for a
pattern of behavior that is both relevant and problematic to those
being studied (Glaser, 1978). This approach is particularly appro-
priate when previous theories do not properly explain the current
question (Flint & Woodruff, 2001). The analysis is ideally suited to
construct a data-based theory that can be used as a basis for future
research (Creswell, 1998; Strass & Corbin, 1998). In general,
grounded theory uses participants' experiences as data to construct
and validate the emerging theory while moving back and forth
among the data and gradually advancing from coding to conceptual
categories, and thence to the theory development. This method
systematically links antecedents, situational conditions, coping
strategies, and consequences to the phenomenon of interest (Strass
& Corbin, 1998).
While the topic of destination image formation has been
extensively studied in tourism research, there was little research on
developing a model to examine the role of pop-culture in forming a
destination image. Furthermore, few studies have focused on the
process of destination image formation, whereas the majority
investigated factors and variables in influencing destination image
formation (Gartner, 1993; Gunn, 1972; Young, 1999). Therefore, this
research enlisted a grounded theory analysis to generate a model to
discover the destination image formation process through the in-
fluence of pop-stars.
3.2. Data sampling
This study selected a Korean pop-star, Ahn, Jae-wook's fans who
attended an event of summer camp in South Korea in July 2010.
Ahn, Jae-Wook is a singer and an actor. Since 1997 when his drama
series, “Star in my heart,” was on TV in Asia, he now has unrivaled
popularity in China, surpassing Leonardo Di Caprio as the most
popular celebrity in a poll (Choe, 2001). Forever, a song featured in
the series sold over 700,000 copies, and became the title song of his
debut album. Afterwards, his fan club was named as “Forever,”
consisting of over 10,000 registered members from Mexico and
United States as well as Asian countries such as China, Japan,
Malaysia, and Singapore as of 2010.
Two sampling strategies were used. First, a purposive sampling
strategy was employed to identify appropriate participants and to
maximize representation of a range of perspectives (Fossey, Harvey,
McDermott, & Davidson, 2002). Second, a theoretical sampling was
followed as concepts began to emerge (Charmaz, 2000). Theoretical
sampling is a pivotal strategy in the grounded theory methodology
and the purposeful selection of a sample according to the devel-
oping categories and emerging theory (Coyle, 1997). About 500 fan
club members attended the event in 2010, consisting of about 40%
members from Japan, 25% from Korea, 20% from mainland China,
5% from Hong Kong, 10% other places such as Singapore, Malaysia,
Mexico, Taiwan, and the Philippines. A total of 23 participants were
selected for this study (Creswell, 1998).
3.3. Data collection and data analysis
Focus group interviewing was a primary means of data collec-
tion as the method is suited to grounded theory. Participants
included eight Japanese, eight Chinese, and five Mexican fans
which formed three focus groups by each nationality. This sample
strategy aims at increasing the diversity of the chosen sample,
searching for different properties. Japanese and Chinese fans were
chosen because they were the majority among international fan
164 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169

club members. Mexican fans were chosen for the diversity purpose Table 2
in that it was their first time to visit South Korea. In addition, two Initial categories and codes in Phase 1.

Malaysian fans were selected for individual interviews to test,
validate, and explicate a model.
Data collection procedures included the two steps: (1) three
focus group interviews that generated a data set along with inter-
view transcripts from participants and (2) additional in-depth in-
terviews, which ensured the validity of the findings with the focus
group interviews. The four interviews were conducted in Seoul,
South Korea during July 2010 after the fans participated in the pop-
star's event. The study used semi-structured interviews for data
collection through focus group and in-depth interviews. Each
interview took approximately one and a half hours. A translator of
Japanese, Mandarin, and Cantonese each was hired to assist the
interviews in ensuring the validity and accuracy of data collection.
The collected data was analyzed in a series of the following
steps: open coding, axial coding, selective coding, and the genera-
tion of a conditional matrix (Strass & Corbin, 1998). The four-stage
data analysis strategy along with the purposes and interview
questions (Harry, Sturges, & Klingner, 2005) is summarized in
Table 1.
Phase 1 data analysis was conducted to create a list of codes
within four categories in the model. The interview questions used
in Phase 1 corresponded to the major components of the model
described by Strass and Corbin (1998). Table 2 shows initial codes
extracted from the interviews. A code constituted a meaningful
topic of discussion related to destination image, particularly
autonomous image agents. For example, many participants
mentioned the role of pop-culture and the pop-star e Ahn, Jae-
Wook as the main factors that made them interested in South Ko-
rea as a destination. Similar codes emerged into four categories:
image of destination, role of pop-culture, role of pop-star's event,
and revisit intention.
Phase 2 data collection was conducted to create a better un-
derstanding of each of the four main categories in the model, using
a semi-structured interview questions in Table 1. After a question
was addressed, specific probes were followed on the basis of spe-
cific categories that emerged during the analysis in Phase 1. Phase 2
included a procedure to identify a variety of preliminary themes
and combine them in a manner consistent with the interviews. For
Category Code
Image of destination 1. Confucianism
2. Respect of older people
3. Spirit of solidarity from 2002 World Cup
4. Harmony of traditional and modern culture
5. Red from Kimchi, and World cup t-shirts
6. Cosmetic, good looking people
7. Kindness
Pop-culture 8. The motivation of being interested in Korea
9. Watching Korean drama (Soap Opera)
10. Collecting a merchandize about pop-stars
11. Being a fan club member
12. Having Korean food
13. Learning Korean language
14. Likelihood to visit Korea for leisure travel
15. Soften negative image from news, article
Pop-star's event 16. Offering a chance to visit Korea
17. Having Pop-star's close access
18. Meeting fan club members from all over the world
19. Learning Korean culture
20. Eating real Korean food
21. Shopping
Revisit intention 22. Visiting a new place, drama related venue
23. Encouraging friends/relatives to visit Korea
example, themes in destination image appeared to group into two
general types of themes, including positive and negative image.
General themes within a category were labeled “Macrothemes”
because they subsumed associated themes. For example, themes
such as good manners, unique culture, and the power of unity were
grouped within the positive macrotheme and themes such as
military system and severe violence were within the negative
macrotheme. Phase 2 played a role in organizing and labeling
themes that could be tested in Phase 3. Therefore, macrothemes
and themes identified in Phase 2 were viewed as tentative in na-
ture, subject to revision or deletion in Phase 3.
Phase 3 employed selective coding, which led to the process of
testing the macrothemes and themes identified in Phase 2. Phase 3
intended to link the categories to one another and develop a
storyline to integrate the model (Strass & Corbin, 1998). As shown

Table 1
Four phases in data analysis.

Phase Coding Purpose and interview questions

1 Open  Identify codes with categories by recognizing unique topics worthy of closer study and explanation
Q1. How do you perceive South Korea as a destination?
Q2. What were the main factors in constructing the destination image?
Q3. How have pop-stars contributed to the destination image?
Q4. Will you visit South Korea again in the near future?
2 Axial  Explore codes in detail by clustering codes into themes and patterns related to a main phenomenon (i.e., the impact of pop-culture on destination
image)
Q1. Describe a picture of South Korea in your mind. Probe: Name some features or aspects of South Korea
Q2. Describe sources that affect the image of South Korea. Probe: negative (e.g., news media) and positive (e.g., pop-culture)
Q3. How did you become interested in South Korea? Probes: actions
Q4. How has your perception of the country been changed through the pop-culture? Probes: positive and negative
Q5. How was the summer camp of the pop-star's event? Probe: cultural experiences, meeting with the pop-star and his fans.
Q6. Describe a situation in which you have experienced Korean culture while visiting. Probe: positive and negative.
Q7. Will you visit again? Probe: where do you want to visit in the near future?
3 Selective  Construct model and discuss themes in relation to model
 Replicate significant codes and themes identified in Phase 1 and 2
 Explore the relationships among macrothemes within each category
 Discuss the relationships between categories
 Identify a storyline about the central phenomenon of study
4 Selective  Validate the model and identify emergent principles related to the phenomenon
 Test, validate, and explicate model
 Identify emergent principles consistent with model
 Conduct member checks
 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169 165

Table 3
Macrotheme and themes in Phase 3.

Category Macrotheme Theme

Destination image 1. Positive 1. Good manners to older people

2. Unique culture
3. The power of unity
2. Negative 4. Military system
5. Severe violence
Pop-culture 3. Direct 6. Interest in pop-culture
7. Fan's activities involvement
4. Indirect 8. Destination promotion
9. Weakened negative images
10. Cultural experiences in local
11. Intention to visit
Pop-star's event 5. Direct 12. Actual visitation
13. Close access to pop-star
14. fan-club members' cultural exchange
15. Actual cultural experience
6. Indirect 16. Strengthened positive image
Future behavior 7. Revisit 17. Visiting different attractions and venues
8. Word of Mouth 18. Recommending/Promoting Korea to friends and relatives

in Table 3, collectively 18 themes were grouped into 8 macro-
themes. A model was constructed in Phase 3.
Phase 4 was developed to test, verify and explicate the model
constructed in Phase 3. Two Malaysian fans among the event at-
tendees were interviewed and asked to respond to a model based
on the responses in Phase 3. This step ensured that the final model
is fully saturated, dependable, and credible (Maxwell, 1996).
Mexican fans were almost first-time visitors.
4.2. A model of pop-culture on destination image formation
The model is shown in Fig. 1. It includes the following major
components: overall destination image, the role of pop-culture, the
influence of the pop-star's event, and future behavior.

4. Results 4.2.1. Destination image

Participants attributed destination image to two types: positive
4.1. Profile of participants and negative (see Table 3). Media and pop-culture had been sig-
nificant agents of South Korea's recent image. Overall, pop-culture
Table 4 shows the profile of participants for this study. The such as pop-stars and TV programs played a role in creating a
sample consisted of only women in that 98% of the event attendees positive image while news media covering natural disaster and
were women. They were between 25 and 60 years old. They had political and social issues induced negative image (Sonmez,
been the fan club members for one to ten years. The number of Apostolopoulos, & Tarlow, 1999; Sonmez & Sirakaya, 2002).
visits to South Korea varied from one to 40 times. Most respondents Respect for older people in particular was one of the strongest
from Asian countries including Japan, China, and Malaysia had images of South Korea. Participants reported that Koreans respect
visited Korea at least two times a year to participate in the pop- the seniors and have good manners towards the elderly. The har-
star's events such as a summer camp and fan meetings. However, mony of traditional and modern cultures was appreciated as
Korea's unique culture. One Mexican fan mentioned that she
Table 4
especially liked the well-harmonized culture between nature and
Profile of participants. city, and between tradition and modernization, which is very
different from Mexico. She appreciated that South Korean gov-
Interviewee Age Membership since Number of visits to South Korea
ernment tries to keep its own traditional culture and natural
Japanese 1 44 2006 7 environment in the city. Most participants indicated the unity of
2 41 2004 14
Koreans from the 2002 World Cup which was one of the strongest
3 51 2002 5
4 52 2004 15 events to promote South Korea as a destination. One interviewee
5 60 2006 11 mentioned the color red symbolizes the power of South Korea,
6 57 2006 11 because it is related to spicy food, kimchi (Korean pickled cabbage),
7 41 1999 40
red pepper, and Korean soccer team's uniform in the 2002 World
8 53 2003 20
Chinese 9 32 2003 4 Cup. South Korea's military system, demonstrations, and rallies
10 35 2003 6 were other images of Korea, which was induced by TV news and
11 41 2001 20 newspapers. Those factors created an image of an aggressive and a
12 28 2001 20 strong character of Korean people.
13 40 2003 11
14 39 2002 10
15 46 2002 10 4.2.2. Pop-culture
16 25 2002 6 Most researchers have described autonomous agents in a
Mexican 17 32 2007 2
negative light as they have examined the impact of news media
18 24 2008 1
19 27 2008 1 (Baloglu & McCleary, 1999; Gartner & Shen, 1992). In contrast,
20 28 2008 1 participants in the current study indicated that as one of the
21 33 2008 1 autonomous agents, pop-culture (such as TV drama and actors/
Malaysian 22 55 2003 30 actresses) was a crucial component of changing their perception of
23 28 2004 5
South Korea as a more friendly and attractive nation. One fan stated,
166 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169
Fig. 1. A model of pop-culture on destination image formation.
“I was not familiar with South Korea before. I had known much
more about the North Korea than South Korea. But after I knew
[Ahn, Jae-Wook], I became interested in South Korea, and then I
visited the country.” The impact of pop-culture can be viewed in
two ways: direct and indirect. Most participants reported that they
were interested in Korea's pop-culture and the country after they
watched Korean soap operas, which led them to become a fan club
member for a pop-star. A Mexican participant reported, “If I did not
know [Ahn, Jae-wook] through his drama, I would not visit Korea.
He might not know the huge impact he had on me. He played a very
important role in getting the popularity of Korean drama, actors,
and actresses in Latin America.” The fan activities motivated them
to be more interested in Korean culture so that they share Korean
pop-culture e drama and pops-stars within fan club members, and
collect merchandise about pop-stars. Participants indicated that
they had tried to search for information about South Korea, eat the
Korean food available in their countries, learn the Korean language,
and even follow Korean fashion. Therefore, pop-culture was proved
to have an indirect influence on their experience of Korean culture
in their countries.
In addition, pop-culture was found to play a significant role in
weakening a negative image of South Korea that was previously
induced from news media and in changing to a positive image. A
Japanese interviewee stated, “I thought South Korea was a developing
country, imitating and following Japan. However, after watching
Korean drama, I had to change my perception of South Korea that its
culture and fashion are moving fast just like Japan and I wanted to
know the actor more and visit the country.” A Mexican respondent
agreed on the positive aspect of pop-culture, “I believe Korean pop-
culture played an important role in promoting South Korea and
delivering its own culture, tradition, and custom. In fact, Korean soap
operas spontaneously let us have access to these cultural factors.”
Eventually, the positive image of destination through pop-culture
made the participants desire to visit Korea for a future trip.
4.2.3. Pop-star's event
One of the main goals of this research was to identify the role of
pop-star's event in forming a destination image. The role of pop-
star's event can be viewed in two ways: direct and indirect. First,
the event directly provided an actual chance to visit the destination.
An interviewee stated, “I visited South Korea in 1999 for the first
time to attend the pop-star's summer camp. Since then, I have
visited South Korea more than 20 times, including the annual event
and other fan activities. If there were not such events, I would not
plan to visit South Korea that often.” Particularly, fan events can
motivate those fans to visit South Korea who live in distant coun-
tries such as Mexico. As indicated in Table 4, three Mexican fans
visited South Korea for the first time to participate in the pop-star's
event. One of them stated, “Many people want to visit South Korea,
but it is not easy for them due to time and financial restrictions,
even though they are interested in visiting the destination after
watching soap operas and TV shows.”
Participants reported that the event had allowed them to have
an intimate access to the pop-star and get to know him on a per-
sonal level. Such closeness enabled them to understand Korean
people's characteristics through interactions with the pop-star. A
Chinese interviewee mentioned, “I believe Ahn, Jae-wook's sum-
mer camp is the best one since the event has allowed us to meet the
pop-star face-to-face and stay with him in the same place for three
entire days. He is very modest and honest, not like any other stars,
but like a close friend. For example, in the mini-concert during the
event, he just frankly said ‘my lyric in the song was wrong,’ which
made us feel close to him. I feel much closer to him after the event.”
A Mexican respondent also stated, “The pop-star cares for his fans
in his deep heart. He personally came to us, saying ‘thank you’ in
Spanish, and took a picture together. We were so much impressed.”
Furthermore, the event provided an opportunity for attendees to
interact with other fans from all over the world. One Japanese
participant recalled the experience of the first attendance, “I
remember my first visit to the event; Korean fans were so kind to
me even though my Korean was not good enough to communicate
with them. In fact, now I participate in the event to not only meet
the pop-star but also interact with other fan club members.”
Most participants indicated that they had extended their stay
after the summer camp in order to travel throughout South Korea.
The interviews revealed that pop-culture driven soap operas and
pop-stars are a medium to attract tourists to featured, actor-related,
or original work-related locations. A Chinese interviewee
mentioned, “I was so excited to visit many venues introduced in
soap operas. They were so memorable.” In addition, such oppor-
tunities provided respondents to experience and learn about
Korean culture by visiting attractions, tasting Korean food, and
meeting local people. The interviewees appreciated the similarities
and differences in culture in comparison to their own. A Mexican
participant stated, “I found that there are a lot of facilities, attrac-
tions, and theme parks where all generations can enjoy regardless
of age and gender. It is easy to use subway and convenient to travel
in South Korea as the names of most places and facilities are
translated in English.” Most respondents experienced Koreans'
kindness. “I have found many times that Koreans are, in general,
very friendly and nice; for example, they help me carry my luggage
in the subway. It doesn't happen in my country. I truly believe
Koreans are so warmhearted.” Overall, participants indicated that
the event had provided additional opportunity to experience
Korean culture through traveling, which in turn results in a very
positive image of South Korea.
4.2.4. Future behavior
Through the interviews, it was found that respondents' experi-
ences through the event and trips had positive impacts on their
future behavior in two aspects: revisit intention and word-of-
mouth. Participants reported that they would visit South Korea
 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169
again in the future to travel to other places that they had not had a
chance to visit this time. Most interviewees stated, “As new soap
operas are released every month, places and venues in the drama
are spontaneously introduced and promoted. They become a future
destination that I want to visit in the next trip.” They indicated that
they had found that South Korea has so much to explore as they
visit more destinations, even though the country was not well
promoted to other countries. Some respondents mentioned that
they want to visit Korea to have different experiences that they
cannot have in their countries. One participant expressed, for
example, “I would like to visit South Korea in every season as it has
different characteristics in every season. Particularly, I would like to
go skiing in winter because we don't have snow in winter.” Another
respondent wanted to have different cultural experiences by stay-
ing in a temple and visiting ancient palaces.
In addition, respondents reported that they had shared their
experiences in the summer camp and their trips with their friends
or families. One interviewee said, “Every time I go back to my
country from the event, I tell my friends and family about my ex-
periences of getting close to the pop-star and visiting beautiful
places. I see many of them becoming interested in visiting South
Korea even though they are not interested in the pop-star. In fact, I
invited several friends to the camp.” Mexican participants even
shared their experiences and souvenirs with their fan members
who did not have a chance to visit the camp, encouraging them to
attend the next event. Some other respondents indicated that the
event had been a good way to promote South Korea as a destina-
tion. A participant mentioned, “My mother lives in China and has
never been to South Korea; but when I asked her which country she
wants to travel to, she said South Korea is her first choice. I believe
that I influenced her so much.”
4.2.5. Summary of the model
Results from the interviews provided a compelling portrait of
destination image, which can be summarized in three main points.
First, destination image induced from pop-culture was changed in a
positive way. Participants became interested in South Korea's pop-
culture and the country itself after they were exposed to its pop-
culture including Korean soap operas and pop-stars. They had in-
direct experiences of South Korean culture such as its food, lan-
guage, and fashion style in their counties, which made them want
to visit South Korea as a future destination. The pop-culture and the
experiences changed their perceptions of South Korea in a more
positive way by weakening negative images that were previously
generated from news media. Second, the pop-star's event rein-
forced the positive image through experiences of the event and
travels. The event directly provided participants with an actual
chance to visit the destination and a close access to the pop-star,
which allowed them to understand South Koreans' characteristics
through interactions with the pop-star. In addition, as they trav-
eled, visited attractions, and went shopping after the event, they
were able to have intimate experiences of South Korean culture.
These experiences through actual visits helped them form a very
positive image of South Korea. Third, the positive image from pop-
culture experiences had a strong impact on future behavior in two
aspects: revisit intention and word-of-mouth. Respondents re-
ported to revisit South Korea in the near future as they found that
South Korea has so many attractions as they visit more frequently.
They spread the positive word of mouth to their friends and fam-
ilies about South Korea as a preferred country to visit in the future.
5. Conclusion
The purpose of this research was to construct a model of desti-
nation image formation process on the basis of the impact of pop-
167
culture from the perspectives of a pop-star fans as special interest
tourists. The study was exploratory in nature and based on verbal
reports through focus group interviews and in-depth interviews.
Grounded theory was useful for achieving a deep understanding of
the destination image formation process. This research identified in
greater detail the direct and indirect impact of pop-culture and the
pop-star event on destination image formation and future behaviors
affected by the formed destination image.
The present study considered pop-star fans to be special interest
tourists. As this study gained access to pop-star fans, closeness to
the people and the phenomenon through intense interactions
provided subjective understandings that can greatly increase the
quality of qualitative data (Toma, 2000). Participants appeared to be
diverse in socio-demographic characteristics including age, and
visit frequency as Weiler and Hall (1992) discussed special interest
tourists' characteristics. The participants' profiles showed that
Asian fans are relatively older than Mexicans, which indicates that
the Korean pop-star, Ahn, Jae-Wook had older fan-club members
since he became famous in 1997 in Asian countries. In addition,
most participants have visited South Korea more than 20 times to
attend the pop-star events, showing that they are loyal fans/trav-
elers to the pop-star and destination, respectively. These findings
reveal that pop-culture can reach all generations from young to old
and influence their travel decisions.
Findings of the study support several claims from previous
research and yield several new perspectives. This research is in
agreement with the finding by Gartner (1993) that autonomous
agents can change the destination image quickly if the information
received is considered credible. The study delineates the role of
pop-culture and pop-star events in several perspectives. Pop-
culture has an indirect impact on special interest tourists about
their experiences of Korean culture in their countries. More
importantly, their favorite pop-stars played a significant role in
weakening a negative image of Korea and strengthening a positive
image of the destination. Thus, the current trend of the Korean
wave appears to deliver more powerful and stronger influence than
intended destination promotions.
In addition, results of the study indicate that newly released soap
operas, TV programs, or movies spontaneously introduce and pro-
mote places and venues in these media resources, which become a
future destination for the fans in the next trip. This observation is
consistent with the findings of Yen and Teng (2015) and Crouch et al.
(2005). Pop-culture also provides the respondents with the access to
South Korea's own culture, tradition, which can be an important
vehicle to promote the country. Eventually, the induced destination
image through pop-culture made the participants desire to visit
Korea on a future trip. Therefore, this study shows that pop-culture
resources can help a destination to develop special interest
tourism e particularly pop-culture and/or film induced tourism.
The study also extends literature by providing an in-depth look at
the positive aspects of autonomous agents on destination image.
Previous studies (Gartner, 1993; Gartner & Shen, 1992; Hanefors &
Mossberg, 2002) found that autonomous agents provide strong
credibility and reliability to the receiver, especially in a negative way.
By considering pop-star as an element of pop-culture, however, this
study revealed that pop-culture as an autonomous agent provides
and strengthens a strong positive image of a destination to potential
tourists. Korean soap operas and pop-stars provided indirect expe-
riences of South Korean culture such as its food and language, which
changed their perceptions of South Korea in a more positive way and
reinforced the positive image. And the pop-star event directly pro-
vided participants with an actual opportunity to visit the destination
and a close access to the pop-star, which allowed them to have
intimate experiences of South Korean culture. The actual visits led
them to have a stronger positive image of South Korea.
168 S. Lee, B. Bai / Tourism Management 52 (2016) 161e169
Results indicate that as compared to Asian participants, Mexican
tourists had different perspectives of destination image and were
more eager to seek destination information due to the lack of re-
sources and limited access. Literature has linked various external or
situational factors as constraints on travel behavior, affecting pre-
trip decisions including social, political, physical, financial, time,
and distance (Fakeye & Crompton, 1991; Selby & Morgan, 1996).
Under some situational constraints such as distance, finance, and
time, however, the present study demonstrates that pop-star
related events play a critical role in influencing Mexican fans'
travel decision and bringing them to the destination. This finding
supports Gartner and Shen's argument (1992) that in the case of a
distant country, where lack of knowledge exists, the autonomous
agents, such as news reports, articles, and movies are able to cause a
more dramatic change in image due to their high credibility and
ability to reach wide audiences than induced image agents.
Moreover, the results show that the actual visitation due to the
pop-star event helped them have a more positive and clear image
than that prior to visitation, which agrees to the previous research
by Gunn (1972) that actual visitation can create an image more
realistic than image prior to visitation. Such a finding suggests that
future research should consider including the degree of informa-
tion credibility related to distance as a variable of interest. Findings
on future behaviors indicate that there is a positive relationship
between actual visitation and future behavior, which is consistent
with previous studies that if visitors have a positive image of
destination, they are more likely to revisit the destination (Milman
& Pizam, 1995; Ross, 1993). More importantly, this research con-
tributes to the literature by demonstrating that the word-of-mouth
is influential, a unique finding that previous research has not
observed. It also implies that special interest tourists induced by
pop-culture could be loyal to a destination.
The impact of actual visitation on destination image is another
interesting dimension to the research findings. The pop-star event of
the summer camp has successfully led participants to actually visit
the destination, which helps the fans experience Korean culture and
motivate them to travel after the event. Gartner and Shen (1992)
stated that the events such as service personnel attitudes, local
people's characteristics and safety and security are negatively
affected to promote a destination. However, the present study re-
veals that the event of the pop-star's summer camp affected the way
in which participants view the country as a whole. As indicated in the
results, the event strengthens positive perceived images of South
Korea and revisiting intention in the future. Therefore, the fans'
actual visitations and experiences are significant in shaping tourism
demand and changing their perception of South Korea as a desti-
nation. Given the positive impact of pop-culture as an autonomous
agent on destination, destination marketing organizations shall
consider the use of pop-culture as a strong promotion tool. As special
interest tourists form strong opinion groups and influence event
organizers and government decision-making (Mackellar, 2006),
understanding the current phenomenon in the tourism industry will
be helpful for tourism marketers to attract visitors to a destination.
Hence, the present study suggests that destination marketing orga-
nizations utilize the study results to formulate destination image and
promote the destination to the right target audience.
The present study did not investigate cultural differences and
travel behavior among different nationalities as this research was
aimed at constructing a model and not detecting differences. Future
studies should identify the differences in destination image as
perceived by different cultures. Such findings will provide insights
to tourism planners in their efforts to understand the cultural dif-
ferences and travel behaviors of special interest tourists.
The model that emerged from the findings needs to be tested,
verified, and expanded by future qualitative and/or quantitative
research. As this study employed a grounded theory approach to
propose a model to examine the direct impact of pop-culture as an
autonomous image agent on destination image, future research
should collect replicable data to validate this model. Quantitative
studies may help researchers and practitioners identify the image
formation process and generalize the findings. Additional studies
are also needed to investigate the relationship between the
autonomous image agent and the induced agent as the present
research found that the autonomous image agent (pop-culture)
leads to actual visits and positive word-of-mouth, which are
considered as the induced image agents.
A longitudinal approach should be called for in the examination
of the impact of pop-culture on destination image. As observed by
Benjamin, Schneider, and Alderman (2012), such tourists may have
a variety of reasons to be drawn to a destination. It is important to
monitor travel motivations as they can change over time. Desti-
nation marketing organizations must design alternative marketing
campaigns and more importantly develop attractions in the desti-
nation that have lasting appeal.
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SoJung Lee is Assistant Professor in the Apparel, Events,
and Hospitality Management Department at Iowa State
University. Her research focuses on pop-culture tourism,
sustainable tourism, and consumer behaviors, including
destination image, motivation, satisfaction, place attach-
ment, involvement, commitment, attachment, and loyalty.
Billy Bai is Professor in the William F. Harrah College of
Hotel Administration at the University of Nevada Las
Vegas. His current research interests focus on hospitality
and tourism marketing with a particular emphasis on
relationship marketing, customer behavior and loyalty,
destination marketing, and branding.