Determining destination risk perceptions, their effects on satisfaction, revisit and recommendation intentions: Evidence from Sanliurfa/Turkey

Abstract

Visitors’ risk perception plays a vital role in their destination choice, intention to return, satisfaction and recommendations to others. At the same time, perceived risks affect destination image, which in turn causes increased or decreased demand for attractions of destinations. The aim of this study is to determine risk dimensions and their effects on recommendation and revisit intentions. Scale is most widely used in tourism research. This scale consists of six dimensions, namely, physical, time, social, performance, financial, and psychological risks, which consist of 28 items. A total of 471 respondents were collected via convenience sampling method among domestic tourists who visited Sanliurfa from May to June 2021. The results of the study indicated a weak inverse and significant relationship between the performance, social, physical, psychological, financial, and time risk perception of the participants and general satisfaction levels. Meanwhile, there is a moderately strong, inverse and significant relationship between all dimensions of risk perception among the participants and their recommendation and revisit intention. Thus, perceptions of risk dimensions have a strong negative influence on overall satisfaction, recommendation, and revisit intentions. By employing three regression models, the present study reported that time and psychological risks highly affect all dependent variables. Furthermore, overall satisfaction is significantly affected by the physical and performance dimensions. Recommendation intention is affected by the financial dimension beyond the aforementioned dimensions. The overall satisfaction levels of the participants were highly correlated with their recommendation levels and revisit intention. At the same time, their recommendation intention was highly correlated with their level of revisit intention. It might be said that visitors may change their future behaviors according to travel risk perceptions. Finally, the study revealed that understanding of customers risk perception is essential to all tourism and hospitality stakeholders.