COVID-19 and the travel behavior of xenophobic tourists

Abstract

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic led to a dramatic loss of human lives worldwide and presented an unprecedented challenge to public health, tourism and community relations. Previous research on the relationship between xenophobia and travel behavior is limited, especially in the context of concerns over potential contagion. Therefore, this study examined the relationship between xenophobia and travel behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic in a sample of 489 Iranian travelers participated in survey conducted online. The results demonstrated that xenophobia positively correlates with the fear of COVID-19, travel risk perception, untact tourism, and travel precautions, although it is negatively correlated with the intention to undertake outbound and domestic travel. The relationships between push and pull factors to xenophobia were found insignificant. Interestingly, a significant difference between genders in the relationship between travel risk perception and xenophobia was identified. The study presents significant theoretical and practical implications and offers new avenues for future research.