Factors in tourists’ food decision processes:: a US-based case study

• González, Angel F. ^[2] ; Curtis, Catherine ^[3] ; Washburn, Isaac J. ^[1] ; Shirsat, Abhijeet R. ^[4]
  1. [1] Oklahoma State University

     Oklahoma State University

     Estados Unidos

     
  2. [2] College of Business, California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside,California, USA
  3. [3] School of Hospitality and Tourism Management,Oklahoma State University System, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
  4. [4] Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration, California State University,Sacramento, California, USA

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• Localización: Journal of Tourism Analysis = Revista de Análisis Turístico, ISSN 1885-2564, Vol. 27, Nº. 1, 2020, págs. 2-19
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically test an existing conceptual model from Mak et al. (2012a, 2012b) to discern which factors have the most influence on food choices when travelers visit destinations with different options, i.e. local foods, other than those available in their home environments.

    Design/methodology/approach The quantitative study surveyed 330 travelers and used descriptive analyses of all the variables involved. A hierarchical linear regression was calculated to predict for the dependent variable of local cuisine consumption, based on the independent variables of culture and religion, socio-demographic factors, motivational factors, food trait personality and exposure effect/past experience.

    Findings Culture, motivational factors and food-related personality traits were consistently significant predictors of local food consumption.

    Research limitations/implications Limitations include using an English-only online questionnaire and self-reported bias. The impacting delimitation relates to data collection from US travelers and thus limiting generalizability findings.

    Practical implications The study explained factors involved in travelers’ decision to consume local foods at a destination. Government, tourism-related organizations, producers and service providers gain information to improve products, increase interest, create additional employment opportunities, increase tax revenues that assist local communities and increase consumption of local foods, products and services.

    Originality/value The limited availability of research on this topic prompted the interest of the researchers. Mak et al. (2012b) provide a conceptual model that was first tested empirically in this study. It presents a five factors impacting tourist food consumption at a destination. Local food consumption of tourists was tested using the aforementioned conceptual model.