Linking self-congruity, perceived quality and satisfaction to brand loyalty in a tourism destination: the moderating role of visit frequency

Purpose This study aims to examine the direct and indirect relationship between self-congruity and destination brand loyalty (DBL) based on the conceptual linkages of cognition, affect and conation. A multiple-step, multiple mediator model is investigated to explain the indirect effect of self-congruity on DBL through perceived destination quality (PDQ) and tourist satisfaction (TS). The moderating impact of visit frequency in these relationships is also proposed and empirically evaluated. Design/methodology/approach The conceptual model and research hypotheses were assessed by applying covariance-based structural equation modeling (SEM), mediating and multi-group analysis. An online survey was used to collect data from 347 domestic tourists visiting a destination in Vietnam. Findings The results support the link from self-congruity to PDQ, TS and then to DBL. Visit frequency was found to moderate the links between the research concepts. Research limitations/implications Future research would benefit from considering other self-congruity components (e.g. social self-congruity and ideal social self-congruity) and moderating variables (e.g. cultural distance). This would provide insights into the relationships between self-congruity and tourist behaviors and could be based on comparisons in different destinations to achieve more wide-ranging results. Originality/value The effect of self-congruity on DBL that evolves from linking self-congruity to PDQ and TS to increase DBL was examined within a tourism destination context. This study is valuable to destination managers as it provides suggestions to improve DBL.