Consumers' decision to visit a risky destination country: an analysis of tourists' risk taking

This study examines the risk-related predictors of destination decisions in a series of models across two types of tourism services: leisure and medical tourism. Data come from a survey of 1,024 Australian respondents across states who evaluated both tourism services in Indonesia (n=511) and Singapore (n=513). The comparison of attitudinal and behavioural responses towards the two types of tourism services draws on the differences in experience and credence services (Mitra et al., 1999) which assumes that a credence service (i.e., medical tourism) is considered as riskier than an experience service (i.e., leisure tourism). Results of the study are presented in four papers. In the first paper, the domain of willingness to take risks (WTR) construct was tested in destination decision models across leisure and medical tourism settings. The results suggested WTR is better measured as a behaviour than as an attitude. In the second paper, the combined effects of visitors’ experience and cultural distance on the likelihood of destination decisions were explored. In the third paper, the combined effects of visitors’ experience along with risk aversion also increase the likelihood of destination decisions. In the fourth paper, risk reduction strategies were incorporated into a destination decision model. The results provide evidence that risk reduction strategies can be distinguished into both risk relief (RRT) and risk mitigation tactics (RMT). The choice of RRT is a more favoured approach to WTR than RMT. Overall, the results show the importance of risk-related factors and risk reduction strategies across both leisure and medical tourism and in a range of tourist destinations. The (mediating) destination decision model fits across leisure and medical tourism settings and the risk-related predictors, in general, are able to distinguish destination decisions in both settings.