Public’s perceived overcrowding risk and their adoption of precautionary actions: a study of holiday travel in China

Abstract

The importance of travel risk has been recognized, but only a limited number of studies have been conducted on this risk and the precautionary actions the public may take to manage it during holidays. This study applied the protective action decision model and the protection motivation theory to examine the public’s intent to take precautionary actions during holiday times to handle the risk of overcrowding in China. Our survey showed that efficacy-related attributes of precautionary actions were positively correlated, whereas resource-related attributes were negatively correlated, with the intention to take precautionary measures. Risk perception also significantly influenced the adoption intention, but the amount of variance in the intention to adopt precautionary actions that was motivated by risk perception was lower than that related to efficacy-related attributes. In addition, we found that risk perception mediated the influence of past overcrowding experiences on people’s intention to adopt precautionary measures. Travel frequency, length of time spent away for the holiday, and the number of underage family members involved were significantly correlated with the intention to adopt precautionary actions. Finally, this paper discussed suggestions and implications for travelers, tourist departments, and related stakeholders.