Exploring destination psychological ownership among tourists: Antecedents and outcomes

Abstract

Abstract Authors explore the role of ‘destination’ as an object of individual possession. Grounded in psychological ownership theory, this study explores the role of a sense of psychological ownership towards the destinations in tourism. Data collected from 430 tourists in India through intercept survey questionnaire was analyzed through SEM. The results indicate that the tourists' identification and belongingness with the destination result in a sense of psychological ownership towards the destination. The sense of psychological ownership towards the destination positively influences the revisit intentions and intentions to recommend the focal destination. The results also reveal that the destination brand salience facilitated by the concerned tourism departments and agencies moderates the influence of destination identification and destination belongingness on destination psychological ownership. The study contributes to the existing understanding of tourism researchers by adding a relatively new theoretical background to tourist-destination relationships. The study also has specific implications for destination marketers.