Effect of sincere social interaction on tourist inspiration: an affective events theory framework

Inspiration is crucial to the self-development and creative experiences of tourists, which has increasingly received research attention. However, the role of host–tourist interactions in arousing tourist inspiration has yet to be examined. This study applies affective events theory to investigate how sincere social interaction evokes tourist inspiration and the boundary of that relationship. An on-site questionnaire survey was administered to 402 tourists who visited the Wuyi Mountain Scenic Resort in China. Through structural equation modelling based on partial least squares, this study revealed that tourist inspiration was directly stimulated by sincere social interaction and that this link was mediated by tourist delight. Travel risk appraisal moderated both the direct impact of sincere social interaction on tourist delight and the indirect influence of sincere social interaction on tourist inspiration via tourist delight. These effects were significant only among tourists with low travel risk appraisal. The findings extend the application of affective events theory to host–tourist interactions, highlight the critical role of sincere social interaction in engendering tourist inspiration, and identify the boundary effects of travel risk appraisal at a destination.