Developing an extended model of self-congruity to predict Chinese tourists' revisit intentions to New Zealand: the moderating role of gender

Purpose: This study developed an extended model of self-congruity by integrating destination image, destination personality, self-congruity, revisit intention and gender. 

Design/methodology/approach: Surveys were conducted with 645 Chinese tourists visiting New Zealand. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was performed to estimate linkages between destination image, destination personality, self-congruity and revisit intention. To compare effects on revisit intention across male and female Chinese tourists, PLS-Henseler's multigroup analysis and PLS-permutation test were conducted to analyse gender as a moderator in the proposed framework. 

Findings: Our results revealed positive direct effects among destination image, destination personality, self-congruity and revisit intention. Our findings indicated a highly significant difference in the effects of destination personality on ideal self-congruity across male and female Chinese tourists. The association between destination image and self-congruity identified through this model represents a crucial contribution to the tourism literature. This study also enriches tourism research by comparing male and female Chinese tourists' intentions to revisit New Zealand, having identified crucial heterogeneity within female tourists. 

Practical implications: The practical implications from our research can improve destination marketing organization (DMO) officials' awareness of one-time and repeat Chinese tourists' experiences, which strongly trigger subsequent visits. 

Originality/value: This paper is the first to examine the direct correlations among destination image, destination personality, self-congruity and revisit intention by considering whether gender might moderate these factors. Our study innovatively adopted PLS-SEM along with several advanced analytical approaches, such as multigroup analysis (MGA) of women and men, to examine our research model.