A study of the developmental process of participant loyalty in leisure

This study examined the theoretical relationships between leisure attitude, leisure involvement, attitudinal loyalty, and behavioral loyalty using structural equation modeling (SEM). The main purpose of this study was to provide a better understanding of the mechanisms and conditions of why and how existing and/or potential participants develop their loyalty to an activity, a product, and/or a service. A convenience sample of 312 was used for the data analysis. An attitude scale developed by Ajzen and Madden\u27s (1986) was used to measure general attitude toward internet use for leisure activity. The degree of involvement in one\u27s favorite internet leisure activity was measured by using the Consumer Involvement Profile (CIP) developed by Dimanche, Havitz, and Howard (1991). Attitudinal loyalty toward one\u27s favorite internet leisure activity was measured by using the Psychological Commitment Instrument (PCI) developed by Pritchard (1992). Frequency, duration, and intensity were used to measure behavioral loyalty toward one\u27s favorite internet leisure activity based on Park\u27s (1996) study. Data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling. ^ The results of this study suggest that there is a significant theoretical relationship between attitude, leisure involvement, attitudinal loyalty, and behavioral loyalty. In detail, the degree of attitude toward internet leisure activity shows a strong effect on the degree of involvement but not on other latent variables. The degree of involvement in one\u27s favorite internet activity showed direct strong effect on the formation of attitudinal loyalty toward the favorite activity. It was also shown that the degree of attitudinal loyalty was a strong influential factor in the formation of behavioral loyalty. It was concluded that the development of behavioral loyalty is not a simple behavioral attribute in consumer behavior but results from multiple developmental processes, including attitude, involvement, and attitudinal loyalty.