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. 2022 Oct 28;19(21):14100.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph192114100.

The Influence of Message Framing on Elderly Tourists' Purchase Intentions of Health Services: A Case Study of Guangxi Bama

Ji Wen  1 , Xiaolin Mai  2 , Wei Li  2 , Xin Liu  1
Affiliations

The Influence of Message Framing on Elderly Tourists' Purchase Intentions of Health Services: A Case Study of Guangxi Bama

Ji Wen et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Traveling has become an increasingly important lifestyle for the elderly to realize active aging. The elderly are more inclined to pay attention to wellbeing-related products whilst on vacations, representing a market opportunity for providers of tourism health services. This study conducted an experiment to explore how message framing affects intentions to purchase health services in elderly tourists over the age of 59 years. A total of 216 elderly tourists from Bama, a famous wellness tourism destination in China, were recruited as participants for a single-factor (message framing: positive versus negative) experiment. Our results indicate the following: (1) message framing has a significant impact on elderly tourists' intentions to purchase health services. Compared with messages that are negatively framed, positive messages are more persuasive. (2) Perceived benefits mediate the above relationship. (3) Perceived susceptibility moderates the impact of message framing around perceived benefits, as well as the indirect effect of perceived benefits on purchase intention. Theoretically, this paper clarifies the mechanism and conditions of message framing in relation to its effects on consumer intentions, enriching knowledge about the intersection between tourism and health consumption. This paper also provides guidance for providers of health tourism who are seeking to capture the market of elderly tourists.

Keywords: elderly tourists; message framing; perceived benefits; perceived susceptibility; purchase intention.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Hypothesis Model.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Results of simple slope analysis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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