Destination branding in tourism: insights from social identification, attachment and experience theories

Using social identification, attachment and experience theories, this study aims to develop and test a theoretical model of destination branding, which integrates the concepts of destination brand experience, identification, value congruence, attachment and tourist’s behavioural intentions. To investigate these issues, the present study draws on tourist data collected from key tourism destinations in India, including in Jammu and Kashmir. Structural equation modelling is used to analyse the data. Findings suggest that brand experience, value congruence, and destination credibility exert differing effects on destination brand identification, which subsequently affects tourists’ destination attachment, advocacy, and brand loyalty towards tourism destinations. As such, this study bids newer insight into the role of destination branding, from which we develop relevant implications.