Visit Intention Via Mobile App Usage in Pandemic Alleviation: Influences of Regulatory Focus and Risk

This study examines the relationship between pandemic alleviation and tourists’ intention to visit tourist and hospitality sites. It identifies that tourists’ regulatory focus affects their risk perception in visiting tourist and hospitality sites via mobile app usage during the stage of pandemic alleviation. Mixed methods that combine quantitative modeling and experiment were adopted. A total of six sets of panel data of mobile app usage in South Korea during and after the first wave of the pandemic was analyzed, supported by an experimental study to test the causal effect. Results reveal an increasing intention to engage in on-site hospitality and tourism activities in the alleviating period of a pandemic wave. This tendency is stronger for promotion-focused (vs. prevention-focused) tourists. The experimental study also confirms that risk perception mediates the relationship between pandemic alleviation and visit intention. This research provides insights for facilitating the recovery of the travel and hospitality industry. Mobile app use records reflect visit intention to tourist sites in the pandemic. Perceived risk mediates the effect of pandemic alleviation on visit intention. Promotion-focused people show higher visit intention when pandemic waves abate. A mixed-method approach was adopted to examine the aforementioned effects.