Tourism Memory Characteristics Scale: Development and Validation

Abstract

Recall of tourism experiences is a decisive factor in tourists’ future behavior and decision making when choosing destinations. Understanding the phenomenology of tourism memory can enable tourism organizations to enter a more competitive marketplace. Although extensive literature has addressed how to provide memorable tourism experiences, limited studies have focused on the autobiographical memories associated with these experiences. This research employed rigorous scale development procedures to establish the Tourism Memory Characteristics Scale (TMCS). Findings point to a seven-dimension scale consisting of accessibility, trip details, vividness, sensory details, valence, emotional intensity, and sharing. Tourism memory characteristics were found to support the scale’s dimensional structure, validity, and reliability. It was also found that tourism memory influences revisit intention and word of mouth. Results present opportunities for tourism organizations to capture the fundamental characteristics of their products by using the TMCS.