How risk messages influence tourist processing and sharing: The role of emojis

Understanding how tourists process and share risk messages during a crisis is critical for tourism risk communication. This research develops and tests a theoretical framework of tourist risk information processing and sharing in the context COVID-19 pandemic. A mixed-method design was employed, consisting of three separate studies conducted in different case contexts, involving different experimental subjects. The results showed that: a) risk message framing significantly impacted information sharing; b) heuristic and systematic processing and perceived value of information sharing were critical mediators that underpin the tourists' role shift from “receiver” to “sharer”; c) emojis strengthened tourists’ processing of risk message, and improved their perceived value and information sharing in the risk amplifying frame, compared with the risk attenuating frame. This research advances the risk communication literature and provides implications for destinations to set effective risk communication strategies in times of crisis.