Proposing a Model of the Effect of Word of Mouth on Destination Image of Tourists and Travel Intention

Abstract

The awareness of a tourism destination and establishment of a destination image are often the result of a long range of information resources on a place and its people in which the efforts of organizations related to destination management is a part of the resources. This paper aims to propose a conceptual model to understand the mechanism of affective information sources on formation of destination image in the mind of tourists and consequently, travel intention. This study is descriptive-analytical in terms of method which employed document studies. That is, it reviews theoretical background and related research conducted in various countries and then would propose a model to understand the dynamics of tourism industry. This study is one of very few studies which have investigated the effect of word of mouth on destination image and travel intention in a conceptual model based on the comprehensive literature review in the area of information resources and destination image. The previous works have not addressed the issue in the context of tourism industry.