Unveiling the antecedents of senior citizens′ behavioural intentions to travel: A mixed-method approach

The purpose of this study is to develop and validate a multi-dimensional scale on factors affecting senior citizens’ behavioural intentions to travel in terms of approach and avoidance. The study is longitudinal in nature and has used a mixed-method approach (qualitative and quantitative) to collect and confirm a series of indicators concerning the different constructs. Under study 1, a pool of items was generated by conducting industry expert survey and reviewing the existing literature. Afterwards, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed for extracting the distinct factors. Under study 2, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was performed to validate the proposed scale. The results of EFA and CFA revealed six dimensions of push factors, three dimensions of pull factors, two dimensions of perceived travel risks, three dimensions of perceived travel constraints and two dimensions of behavioural intentions of senior citizen tourists. Under pull factors, two additional dimensions were found, namely, familiarity and friendliness quotient of a destination as well as health safety and security quotient of a destination and under perceived travel constraints, outbreak of COVID-19 has been identified as a novel structural constraint. Since there is very limited research on senior citizens’ behavioural intentions to travel, the current study adds to the body of knowledge by identifying the additional factors that affect the same. Further, the study develops and validates the items through qualitative and quantitative analysis.