No jab, no international travel? Linking TRA, mass media, motivation, and experience

• Published in: Journal of vacation marketing Vol. 29; no. 3; pp. 365 - 385
• Main Authors: Radic, Aleksandar, Koo, Bonhak, Kim, Jinkyung Jenny, Han, Heesup
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.07.2023; Sage Publications Ltd
• Subjects: mass media coverage; theory of reasoned action (TRA); travel motivation; travel experience; international tourism; COVID-19 mandatory vaccination
• ISSN: 1356-7667; 1479-1870
• DOI: 10.1177/13567667221095587

Despite mixed emotions about COVID-19 vaccination as a precondition for international travel, COVID-19 vaccination is being advocated as one of the instruments that could facilitate safe free movement during the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, the purpose of the present research is to distinguish the underlying mechanisms that could predict individuals’ intentions to take the COVID-19 vaccine as a precondition for international travel. The conceptual framework was built on the extended theory of reasoned action (TRA), which incorporates mass media coverage, travel motivations, and previous travel experience. An online purposive sampling technique was utilized in this study, and 1188 responses were collected. Subsequently, structural equation modeling was utilized to test the proposed model. The originality of the present study lies with unraveling the mechanisms that affect the intention to take the COVID-19 vaccine as a precondition for international travel. In addition, the discussions are presented in subsequent sections of the paper.