Linking customer positive emotions and revisit intention in the ethnic restaurant: A Stimulus Integrative Model

Abstract

ABSTRACT The objective of this study is to determine the stimulus that influences customer’s revisit intention to the ethnic restaurant through customer-positive emotion and customer satisfaction. A total of 388 completed surveys were obtained from customers who have visited ethnic restaurants that served foreign ethnic food, which was used for analysis and hypothesis testing with Smart PLS. Findings indicated that food, service, and ambiance qualities; facility aesthetic; spatial layout, and perceived authenticity and price have positive effects on customer-positive emotion toward ethnic restaurants. Customer satisfaction was also found to have a mediating effect between customer-positive emotions and revisit intention. In the restaurant context, the Mehrabian–Russell Model (M-R) was extended and validated the causal relationship in which all the stimulus variables positively affect the organism, which directly influences response. This contributes to the consumer behavior knowledge on the significant stimulus variables that could enhance customer-positive emotions and revisit intention to an ethnic restaurant. For restaurant operator and managers, this finding helps to draft and build effective marketing strategies to encourage the customer to revisit their restaurant.