Do political actions affect country image and travel intentions? The case of COVID-19

Abstract

ABSTRACT The existing literature on the intersection between tourism and politics has recognized that tourism planning and development can be a political process in which decisions are made in order to implement specific political policies and goals. However, there has been very little acknowledgment that political actions themselves can shape tourism. The current research seeks to address this gap. Using the COVID-19 pandemic as our context, we explore the potential implications of foreign aid on country image and tourists' travel intentions, we show that participants hold a more positive country image and thus are more likely to visit a country that provides aid to their own country compared to a country that is the recipient of aid provided by their own country. We also show that participants' patriotism in their own country can actually strengthen the country image and travel intentions they hold of the country that sends aid to them. The findings are among the first to show how political actions influence tourism and provide insights to managers and policy-makers in understanding how foreign aid may also influence tourism by improving their country's image.