Interpreting disaster: How interpretation types predict tourist satisfaction and loyalty to dark tourism sites

Abstract

Tourism interpretation is crucial in delivering heritage value and managing tourism sites; however, existing literature neglects interpretation in the dark tourism context from tourists’ perspectives. Thus, in this study, a conceptual model was established to predict tourist satisfaction and loyalty to disaster memorials according to interpretation type (i.e., personal and non-personal). Visitors to the Tangshan Earthquake memorials in China were surveyed. Multi-group difference analysis estimated the biased effects of interpretation types, and the proposed model’s applicability was verified. Results showed that tourists who utilize non-personal interpretation services perceived lower interpretation quality, interpretation satisfaction, and overall tourist satisfaction. However, the impact of interpretation quality on interpretation satisfaction was significantly higher for this tourist group than those who use personal interpretation services, whereas the impact of tourist satisfaction on loyalty was considerably higher for tourists who utilize personal interpretation than their counterparts. Findings contribute a dynamic mechanism for dark tourism researchers and provide practical implications for destination managers.