TouRes: Scale development and validation of a tourist resilience scale

Resilience in a tourist context describes the capacity for individuals to use psychological and social resources to adapt and bounce back from adversity. We theorize tourist resilience as a multi-dimensional construct consisting of four dimensions – preparedness, adaptiveness, social support, and risk reduction – and describe the development and validation of a behavioural measure of tourist resilience (TouRes). In study 1 (n = 260), exploratory factor analysis supports the four-dimensional structure of TouRes. In study 2 (n = 284), confirmatory factor analysis substantiates the scale's factor structure, and its convergent and discriminant validity. Data from study 2 and study 3 (n = 386) were also used to ascertain nomological and predictive validity of TouRes against various measures. Developed in the general context of unexpected changes to travel and destination experiences, TouRes can also be used to assess tourist resilience relative to travel plans disrupted by disasters and pandemics. Theoretical and managerial implications are offered.