Urban tourist profiles during the pandemic in Taiwan: A multigroup analysis

Abstract

Participating in tourism activities in crowded areas such as cities during the COVID-19 pandemic represents a risk. This study examined the demographic and psychological features of Taiwanese domestic urban tourists during the pandemic in 2021. The theoretical framework was based on push–pull motivation, self-concordance, and push–pull–mooring theories. The 680 valid questionnaire responses indicated that the respondents were generally interested in domestic urban tourism despite the pandemic threat. Moreover, 187 respondents regarded themselves as urban tourism seekers. Their demographic features were consistent with the typical primary urban tourism market profile: they were young, highly educated, and employed in skilled occupations. In terms of psychological features, the push factors, representing the individuals' intrinsic urban tourism motivations, were more potent than the pull factors, representing a city's tourism opportunities, as motivational drivers for increasing seekers' urban tourism intention during the pandemic. The methodology and findings of this study strengthen the literature on urban tourism and pandemic recovery.