Musical Prior Knowledge, Audience Satisfaction and Word-of-Mouth: A Moderated-Mediation Analysis

Abstract

디지털기술의 발달로 소비자들은 어느 때보다 상품에 관한 해박한 사전지식을 보유하게 되었다. 뮤지컬과 같은 서비스재는 무형성, 비분리성, 이질성 등으로 인해 사전지식 추구 경향이 더욱 강하게 나타난다. 공연예술 분야의 선행연구들은 관람객의 사전지식이 관람만족과 구전의향에 긍정적인 영향을 준다는 사실을 밝혔으나 최근에는 사전지식이 많은 경우 오히려 상품평가에 부정적 영향을 미친다는 주장도 있다. 이에 본 연구에서는 뮤지컬사전지식이 어떤 조건에서 관람만족과 구전의향을 높이는지 확인하고자 했다. 이를 위해서, 뮤지컬사전지식이 관람만족을 매개로 구전의향을 높이는 매개모형을 설정하였다. 그리고 이 매개경로를 조절하는 변수로서 트랜스포테이션을 도입하여 트랜스포테이션 수준에 따라 관람만족과 구전의향이 변화하는지를 검증하였다. 스토리로의 몰입과 동일시를 설명하는 개념인 트랜스포테이션을 도입한 이유는 뮤지컬 구성요소로서 스토리의 중요성이 크다는 선행연구결과를 반영한 것이다. 조절된 매개분석 결과, 뮤지컬사전지식이 관람만족을 통해 구전의향에 영향을 주는 매개경로는 트랜스포테이션에 의해 조절됨을 알 수 있었다. 이러한 결과를 통해 사전지식으로 무장한 관람객들을 만족시키기 위해서는 질 높은 뮤지컬스토리가 중요하다는 사실을 최초로 실증하였다는 점에 본 연구의 의의가 있다.The development of digital technology has made consumers more knowledgeable about products than ever before. In this regard, experts have defined consumers in the digital age as knowledge seekers and pointed out that they are proficient in acquiring and sharing product knowledge prior to purchase. For service goods such as musicals, product prior knowledge executes strong effect due to such characteristics as intangibility, inseparability,and heterogeneity. Prior studies in the field of performing arts, including musicals, have revealed that the prior knowledge of the audience has a positive effect on the satisfaction of the audience and WOM(word-of-mouth) intention. However, studies in the marketing field argue that consumers’ high prior knowledge may have a negative impact on customer satisfaction and product evaluation depending on conditions, as they are more likely to compare, review, and expect products more closely. Therefore, in this study, we tried to identify under what conditions the musical prior knowledge enhances audience satisfaction and WOM intention. According to the results of previous studies, a mediating effect model was established in which the musical prior knowledge enhances the WOM intention through the mediation of the audience satisfaction. Then, Transportation was introduced as a mediation variable and it was verified whether the level changed the audience satisfaction and WOM intention. The reason for the introduction of the transportation construct reflects the results of previous research that the story is important component of musical. The results showed that the musical prior knowledge has a significant effect on WOM intention through the mediation of audience satisfaction. The moderating effect of transport was also significant on the relationship between musical prior knowledge and audience satisfaction. Lastly, through moderated-mediation analysis, it was confirmed that transportation moderates the mediating effect that prior knowledge affects on the WOM intention through audience satisfaction. Based on the results, we demonstrated that a musical story is fairly important to satisfy audiences with high prior knowledge. This study could contribute to the related filed in that it introduced the transportation construct for the first time, thereby broadening the understanding of the musical audiences in the era of smart consumers.