Proposta de um modelo explicativo da lealdade a destinos turísticos com apelo ecológico

Abstract

Loyalty has been a subject of study in the areas of marketing and consumer behavior over six decades (Bagozzi, Gürhan-Canli, & Priester, 2002); however in important industries such as tourism, there are very few scientific papers. In order to improve knowledge about the topic, we proposed a model aimed to explain the loyalty to a touristic destination with ecological appeal having satisfaction, perceived value, quality, perceived image, consumer connection with nature and ecological consumption as its antecedents. Although it is a descriptive research, the study gathered most characteristics that an exploratory research requires. To this end, a survey was carried out with a non-probabilistic sample, selected by convenience, of 1,289 Brazilian and foreign tourists, all of them at the end of their tours motivated by the search of ecotourism and recreation in the State of Amazonas. The initial sample was purified and split randomly into confirmatory and exploratory subsamples. The theoretical model was evaluated and adjusted through the maximum likelihood (ML) method in structural equation modeling (SEM), reaching evidence for its validity and adjustment in the exploratory and confirmatory stages. The obtained results with the adjusted model indicated that it could explain at least 56% of the variation of the intention of loyalty, having the perception of value as its main antecedent. The results contributed to the advancement of knowledge on the studies of loyalty within the context of ecotourism applied to a specific situation: touristic destinations with ecological appeal. As a practical matter, the proposed model can used as a tool to aid management in tourism, especially in covering the understanding of the essential factors in touristic behavior that may indicate loyalty to the visited destination.