Exploring the emotions and well-being of food neophobic travelers in the consumption of comfort food

Some travelers feel reluctant to try novel food in foreign countries. However, limited empirical research has been done on tourists with food neophobic tendencies and their well-being associated with comfort food consumption. The purposes of this research were to explore the relationship between food neophobic tendencies and perceived well-being derived from eating comfort food and the effects of emotions on food neophobic tendencies and perceived well-being. The influence of demographic characteristics on the perceived well-being of comfort food consumers was also investigated. Purposive sampling was conducted at two major international airports in Taiwan, and a total of 381 responses were collected. The results showed that: (1) food neophobic tendencies had a positive influence on perceived well-being when consuming comfort food on international trips; (2) emotions played a moderating effect between food neophobic tendencies and perceived well-being; and (3) demographics and consumption characteristics did not affect neophobic tourists' perceived well-being. Based on the results, suggestions for academic researchers and industry were proposed.