The Dimensions of Tour Experience, Emotional Arousal, and Post-experience Behaviors: A Research on Pamukkale in Turkey

AbstractAs the emotions settling in the center of the consumptions, the level of the emotional arousal directly affects the human behaviors. As tourists choose the destinations according to the emotions formed by pre-experience and the post-experience, the understanding the formation of the emotional arousal in tourism sector has been a mediator to understand the post-experience behaviors. In this context, the purpose of this study is to identify the dimensions of tour experiences and to investigate the relationship between the tour experience dimensions, emotional arousal, and post-experience behaviors. To examine the relationship between the parameters, a questionnaire based on four dimensions of the 4E model (Escapism, Education, Entertainment and Esthetics) of Pine and Gilmore (1998) were conducted on tourists who visited Pamukkale popular with the white terraces and Hierapolis ancient city in Turkey. The data was analyzed with Structural Equitation Model (SEM). Results of this study indicate that tour experiences can be represented in terms of 4E dimensions demonstrating adequate reliability and validity. As the tour experience was disclosed in 4E model dimensions, only escapism, entertainment and esthetics have positive effects on emotional arousal. And also it was determined that the tourists’ emotional arousal affect the post-experience behavior positively as being a fundamental determinants of satisfaction and post experience intentions