Development and validation of an experience scale for pilgrimage tourists

Abstract

This research measures and explores the dimensionality of pilgrimage experiences. The study used the free associations method to identify preliminary measurement items, solicited expert opinions to revise them, applied exploratory factor analysis to explore the underlying structure of pilgrimage experiences, and adopted confirmatory factor analysis to further validate the measurement scale. Five dimensions representing 19 items were extracted: Spirituality, Learning, Physicality, Help, and Unpleasantness. Developing a pilgrimage tourist experience scale is a welcome addition to the literature and can serve as a foundation for future research into pilgrimage tourists' behavioral intentions. The scale also provides a useful instrument for pilgrimage hosts to better understand pilgrimage tourists' experiences. Furthermore, the results can serve as a reference in the destination planning process.