Modeling precursors of impulsive tourist shopping behavior : evidence from long-haul Chinese outbound tourists

Abstract

Studies have examined tourism shopping in various aspects, but scarce research has specifically focused on impulsive shopping behavior of tourists, which is of particular relevance in the tourism settings. This study addresses this paucity by examining factors influencing impulsive tourist shopping urge and purchase from the aspects of tourist internal attribute, social influence, and product attribute. By examining Chinese long-haul tourists traveled outside Asia, the empirical results suggest that (a) impulsive trait and hedonic and materialistic tendency of tourists lead to impulsive urge and engagement in actual impulsive buying; (b) shopping companion/social influences from family and relatives, peers (friends/colleagues), and shop assistants also affect the impulsive shopping urge; (c) product brand variety shows significant effect on impulsive urge, whereas the influence of product price is insignificant; and (d) traveling with a shopping list or not moderates the relationship between impulsive urge and actual impulsive purchase. The study advances the theoretical understanding of tourist impulsive shopping behavior and provides marketing/managerial insights into Chinese overseas tourism market.