Effects of psychological distance on the destination choice of international tourists visiting Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya

Abstract

Understanding the concept of destination choice is central to experiences that are memorable to tourists; and to effective presentation of destinations by practitioners. Although past studies have examined destination attributes with regard to tourists’ destination choice, the effect of psychological distance on international tourists’ destination choice remains unexplored. This study employs the Construal level theory (CLT) to examine the effect of psychological distance on destination choice by international tourists visiting the Maasai Mara National Reserve (MMNR). Specifically, the study aimed at determining the direct effect of temporal, spatial and social distances on destination choice by the tourists. In retrospect, the study postulated that temporal, spatial and social distances had no significant effect on destination choice. The study adopted the mixed methods research design anchored in the pragmatist research paradigm. The target population included international tourists and managers of the 38 star-rated lodges situated in the MMNR. A sample of 327 international tourists was obtained from 2105 accessible population using the systematic random sampling technique. The 25 managers studied were picked from the 38 star-rated purposively selected accommodation facilities. Data from the tourists were collected using a self-administered questionnaire while interview schedules were used to collect data from the managers. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze data. The study established that; temporal distance (β=0.417, p<0.05) and spatial distance (β=0.277, p<0.05) were positive and significant predictors of tourists’ destination choice. It was further established that social distance (β=-0.114, p>0.05) was not a significant predictor of tourists’ destination choice in the context of this study. The three dimensions of psychological distance together accounted for 63 percent of the variance in destination choice by international tourists as determined by a coefficient of determination (R 2 ) value of 0.63. Unlike previous studies which indicate that temporal distance as a construct has two indicators namely: proximal future and distal future, this study revealed the intermediate future as the third indicator of temporal distance and this constitutes new knowledge. This study also reveals that distant tourists’ destination choice is influenced more by abstract information while that of near future tourists is influenced more by concrete information. The study concludes that under CLT, choice of MMNR as a destination by international tourists was mainly driven by temporal and spatial distance. The study confirms the effect of psychological distance on how tourists perceive information by proving that both temporal and spatial distance dimensions have a significant effect on international tourists’ destination choice. It is therefore recommended that abstract information be created for tourists planning to travel in the distant future and concrete information for those planning to travel in the near future.