“Can Intelligence Make You Happy?” The Influence of Tourists’ Cultural Sustainability and Intelligence on Their Flow Experience

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Please see the attachment.

Comments for author File: Comments.pdf

Author Response

The paper provides interesting evidence about the role of cultural intelligence in promoting positive emotions and a flow experience in the context of tourists’ cultural sustainability. In terms of writing, the paper was written in the way that is easy to follow. However, there is a major issue related to the inadequate literature review of cultural intelligence which is the key variable in the study. Moreover, the research gap and the knowledge contribution of the research needs to be clarified. These are the main issues that must to handle before the paper can be evaluated further.

1. In the introduction, the author only provides the rational for conducting the study. However, the section is still not clear about the research gap and the knowledge contribution of the research. These are the contents that need to be emphasized in the introduction.

Thank you very much for your comments. According to the suggestions you raised, we reviewed some references related to flow experience to highlight the contribution of this study, hoping to further improve the overall structure of the introduction by emphasising the research gap and knowledge contribution. Thank you again. The specific modifications are as follows:

 

1. Introduction

……

Although flow experience contributes to the creation of positive effects on tourists’ satisfaction and happiness [2], the current research on tourists’ flow experience is still quite limited. Flow originates from the mutual interaction between individuals and external elements and is characterised by a high concentration of individual attention. Therefore, it is mainly used to explore the human-computer interaction experience in the early stage and has been extensively studied in gaming, education, and internet research [5‒8]. As research continues to deepen and expand, scholars have found that outdoor recreation can provide participants with a sense of challenge and focus, which coincides with flow characteristics [3,9]. Flow experience has been gradually applied to the research of adventure tourism, theme tourism, mountaineering tourism and cultural and creative tourism, which shows high participation and strong feelings of experience [1,2,10,11]. In addition, as the state of individual flow comes with a strong sense of participation, such exploratory behaviour will lead to positive behaviours and emotions in individuals [12]. The relevant studies mainly focus on the “consequences” analysis of the flow experience, including the positive influence on tourists’ emotions, behaviour, and acculturation [4,13].

Furthermore, some scholars have explored the "antecedents" of flow experience, proposing that destination design, authenticity and entertainment activities can promote tourists’ flow experience [1,3,11]. However, few studies have explored the influence of individual characteristics on tourists' flow experience from internal factors. Importantly, individual characteristics will lead to differences in tourism experience even in the same tourism type [14]. Especially in cultural and creative tourism, destination culture is regarded as the core tourist attraction and a critical element of the experience. Individuals’ understanding of and ability to adapt to diverse cultures will directly affect the tourism experience quality and emotional value [15]. The higher the cultural intelligence of tourists is, the easier it is to perceive the cultural connotation of local tourism and enhance immersion and pleasure in the tourism experience [15,16]. Therefore, the individual’s level of cultural cognition, understanding and adaptability plays a major role in the tourist flow experience. To fill in the research gap on the "antecedent" of tourists’ flow experience, this study takes cultural and creative tourism as the research background. It explores the influence mechanism of cultural intelligence on tourists' flow experience from the perspective of individual characteristics.

In the context of cross-cultural tourism activities, Frías-Jamilena et al. [17] asserted that cultural intelligence helps tourists adapt to multicultural tourism environments. The higher the level of cultural intelligence, the stronger tourists’ cognitive ability will be to appreciate the cultural aspects of a destination [18]. Previous studies have proven that tourists’ cognition of the external environment will affect their emotional state, thereby resulting in a change in behavioural intention [19]. In the process of a cultural and creative tourism experience, tourists’ cultural perception and participation can stimulate their pleasure and positive emotions, thus exerting a positive effect on the flow experience [1]. In this way, this study constructs the theoretical path of “cultural intelligence—perception—enjoyment—flow experience”. The perception of tourists in the process of the tourism experience includes cultural product experiences, environmental aesthetic perceptions and authenticity perceptions [20,21]. Consequently, against the backdrop of cultural and creative tourism, variables such as cultural experiences, perceived aesthetics and perceived authenticity are introduced to construct the causal relationship between cultural intelligence and tourists’ flow experience.

In summary, the purpose of this study is to answer the following questions. First, does cultural intelligence affect the flow experience in the context of cultural and creative tourism? Second, what is the intermediary mechanism and effect path between cultural intelligence and the flow experience? Third, what role does creative performance play in the process of influencing the path? To address these unanswered questions, this study sought to establish an integrated theoretical model that combined the mediation-moderation process between cultural intelligence and flow experience. Theoretically, by exploring the antecedent of cultural and creative tourists’ flow experience at the individual level, this paper compensates for the deficiency of the formation of flow experience in the research perspective and enriches the field of flow experience. Practically, the research sheds light on the management and innovation of cultural and creative destinations, contributing to the enhancement of the attractiveness and market competitiveness of destinations.

 

2. The review of Cultural intelligence, which is the key variable in the study, is not adequately provided. Before the section that the Hypotheses are presented, the author must put Cultural intelligence in its separated section. This can be put as section “3 Cultural intelligence”. The content about Cultural intelligence in this section must give more detail about the characteristics of individuals who possess cultural intelligence and how cultural intelligence generally benefits individuals.

Thank you for your advice. As you mentioned, the description of the crucial variable CQ in this study is still lacking. According to your suggestions, we put section "2.3 Cultural intelligence" before the hypothesis to fully elaborate on the characteristics and functions of CQ. It will provide stronger theoretical support for subsequent hypotheses through a detailed explanation of CQ. Your comments are of great help to the theoretical improvement of this study. Thank you again. The modifications are as follows:

2.3. Cultural intelligence

Cultural intelligence (CQ) is proposed in the context of economic globalisation, reflecting people's willingness and ability to adapt, learn and interact effectively in a cross-cultural environment [18]. In developing the concept of CQ, Ang et al. [33] developed a four-dimensional structure of “meta-cognition, cognition, motivation and behaviour”. Metacognitive CQ and cognitive CQ determine the overall knowledge of other cultures [36]. The former reflects the individual's ability to learn and understand cultural knowledge before and during cross-cultural interaction. The latter refers to the individual's basic understanding of the target culture [33,37]. Furthermore, motivational CQ reflects an individual's interest in different cultural experiences and represents the confidence to continue to function after encountering obstacles in cultural experience and interaction [36]. Finally, behavioural CQ refers to the ability to effectively adjust and perform verbal and nonverbal behaviours in the cross-cultural environment [37,38].

Given that CQ helps to complete tasks effectively in a cross-cultural environment, many studies have used CQ to explain the positive outcomes of individuals in learning and work. It covers cross-organizational integration [13,38,39], learning and work performance [34,40‒42], and knowledge interaction [38,43,44]. However, the utility of CQ goes far beyond study and work. Frías-jamilen et al. [17] pointed out that tourism activities are based on a high level of interaction between individuals with different cultural backgrounds, consistent with the functional environment of cultural intelligence. Furthermore, destination culture is the crucial source of flow experience and positive emotions for tourists [1,15]. As CQ affects the effectiveness of cultural interaction between tourists and the destination, tourists with high CQ are more likely to perceive, understand and utilise the cultural resources of the destination to meet their experience expectations [17].

 

3. When reviewing the concept of Cultural intelligence, it is important to incorporate some key paper as the reference. I highly recommend these papers to be added as the references to support the characteristics of cultural intelligence and the general benefits it provides to individuals.

• Cultural Intelligence and Relationship Quality in the Cabin Crew Team: The Perception of Members Belonging to Cultural Minority Groups, Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality and Tourism, 20(2), 147-173. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332845.2020.1821431
• An examination of two major constructs of cross-cultural competence: Cultural intelligence and intercultural competence. Personality and Individual Differences, 164(1), 110105 https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110105
• Does Cultural Intelligence Promote Cross-Cultural Teams’ Knowledge Sharing and Innovation in the Restaurant Business?, Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 12(2), 183-203. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJBA-05-2019-0109
• The influence of expatriate cultural intelligence on organizational embeddedness and knowledge sharing: The moderating effects of host country context. Journal of International Business Studies, 52(3), 432-453. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41267-020-00349-3
• The Effects of Cultural Intelligence on Leadership Performance among Chinese Expatriates Working in Thailand, Asian Business & Management. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41291-020-00112-4
• Foreign language skill, anxiety, cultural intelligence and individual task performance in global virtual teams: A cognitive perspective. Journal of International Management, 26(2), 100729. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intman.2019.100729

Thanks for your suggestions. The latest and important papers play a critical role in theoretical reasoning, which can improve the rationality, integrity, and persuasiveness of research. However, references to key papers were missing owing to our neglect of the CQ concept review. The six articles you have listed are of great reference significance to the description of CQ. After careful reading, we finally adopted them as theoretical support for the review of the concept of CQ. The reasons are as follows: First, the articles have detailed and substantial descriptions of the characteristics and functions of CQ, which have great value as references. Second, the articles were all published in authoritative journals, and their arguments were scientifically and rigorously tested, making them highly reliable. Third, since this study takes tourism as the research background, it should be more rigorous and cautious when citing papers with other research backgrounds. These papers you suggested are of great help to enhance theoretical enrichment and logical rigour. Thank you again for your careful review and valuable suggestions. The specific modifications are as follows (new references are highlighted in red):

 

2.3. Cultural intelligence

Cultural intelligence (CQ) is proposed in the context of economic globalisation, reflecting people's willingness and ability to adapt, learn and interact effectively in a cross-cultural environment (Earley & Ang, 2003). In the development of the concept of CQ, Ang et al. (2007) developed a four-dimensional structure of “meta-cognition, cognition, motivation and behaviour”. Metacognitive CQ and cognitive CQ determine the overall knowledge of other cultures (Li, 2020). The former reflects the individual's ability to learn and understand cultural knowledge before and during cross-cultural interaction. The latter refers to the individual's basic understanding of the target culture (Ang et al., 2007; Guang & Charoensukmongkol, 2020). Furthermore, motivational CQ reflects an individual's interest in different cultural experiences and represents the confidence to continue to function after encountering obstacles in cultural experience and interaction (Li, 2020). Finally, behavioural CQ refers to the ability to effectively adjust and perform verbal and nonverbal behaviours in the cross-cultural environment (Guang & Charoensukmongkol, 2020; Stoermer, Davies, & Froese, 2021).

Given that CQ helps to complete tasks effectively in a cross-cultural environment, many studies have used CQ to explain the positive outcomes of individuals in learning and work. It covers cross-organizational integration (Lin et al., 2012; Stoermer, Davies, & Froese, 2021; Seriwatana & Charoensukmongkol, 2021), learning and work performance (Alshaibani & Bakir, 2017; Jyoti & Kour, 2017; Presbitero, 2020; Ruparel et al., 2020) and knowledge interaction (Stoermer, Davies, & Froese, 2021; VlajčIć et al., 2018; Ratasuk & Charoensukmongkol, 2020). However, the utility of CQ goes far beyond study and work. Frías-jamilen et al. (2017) pointed out that tourism activities are based on a high level of interaction between individuals with different cultural backgrounds, consistent with the functional environment of cultural intelligence. Furthermore, destination culture is the crucial source of flow experience and positive emotions for tourists (Ruan et al., 2021; Zhang et al., 2019). As CQ affects the effectiveness of cultural interaction between tourists and the destination, tourists with high CQ are more likely to perceive, understand and utilise the cultural resources of the destination to meet their experience expectations (Frías-Jamilen et al., 2017).

2.4. Cultural experience

……Setbacks will not diminish their confidence during their experience (Li, 2020). Importantly, CQ is conductive to reducing cultural distance and helping individuals better understand local culture better (Guang & Charoensukmongkol, 2020) .……

 

References:

Li, M. (2020). An examination of two major constructs of cross-cultural competence: Cultural intelligence and intercultural competence. Personality and individual differences, 164, 110105.

Guang, X., & Charoensukmongkol, P. (2020). The effects of cultural intelligence on leadership performance among Chinese expatriates working in Thailand. Asian Business & Management, 1-23.

Presbitero, A. (2020). Foreign language skill, anxiety, cultural intelligence and individual task performance in global virtual teams: A cognitive perspective. Journal of International Management, 26(2), 100729.

Ratasuk, A., & Charoensukmongkol, P. (2020). Does cultural intelligence promote cross-cultural teams' knowledge sharing and innovation in the restaurant business?. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration.

Seriwatana, P., & Charoensukmongkol, P. (2021). Cultural intelligence and relationship quality in the cabin crew team: The perception of members belonging to cultural minority groups. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 20(2), 147-173.

Stoermer, S., Davies, S., & Froese, F. J. (2021). The influence of expatriate cultural intelligence on organizational embeddedness and knowledge sharing: The moderating effects of host country context. Journal of International Business Studies, 52(3), 432–453.

 

4. Given that the concept of Cultural intelligence is not adequately reviewed, the argument to support the hypotheses that involve cultural intelligence is still weak. After the authors add more detailed review of cultural intelligence, they can bring the information about the from the characteristics and the general benefits of Cultural intelligence from the review to strengthen the hypotheses. The references I recommended above can be used as the additional support for the role of cultural intelligence in the hypotheses.

Thanks for your suggestions. The review of crucial variables helps to support the development of a theoretical framework. According to your comments, we revised the hypothesis concerning CQ after putting Section 2.3 Cultural intelligence in the hope of further strengthening the hypothesis by explaining the function of CQ. Thank you again for your valuable suggestions. The specific modifications are as follows:

2.4. Cultural experience

Tourists’ perceived value in destinations comes from experience-based products and service-based products while the former is more likely to bring an unforgettable personal experience to tourists [20,45]. Previous studies have asserted that high levels of cultural interactions for tourists in a cross-cultural environment can enable them to achieve deep cultural participation and an elevated tourism experience, thereby generating happiness [29]. Consequently, to enable tourists to obtain a better travel experience, tourism destinations usually promote interesting cultural activities to attract tourists to participate and to stimulate their positive emotions [20]. Tourists’ intrinsic interest in cultural activities represents their primary motivation for participation in tourism activities that allow them to experience different cultures. Importantly, cultural intelligence is considered to serve as a measure of individuals’ willingness and confidence to adapt and learn in a cross-cultural environment [8,17]. Therefore, tourists with high levels of CQ not only have a strong willingness to participate but also invest more attention and energy in the experience process [34]. Setbacks will not diminish their confidence during their experience [36]. Importantly, CQ is conducive to reducing cultural distance and helping individuals better understand local culture [37]. As a result, tourists with high CQ are more likely to achieve high-quality cultural perceptions and experiences that facilitate the awakening of enjoyment. Accordingly, the subsequent hypothesis is proposed.

Hypothesis 1 (H1). Cultural experiences will mediate the relationship between cultural intelligence and the awakening of enjoyment.

 

2.5. Perceived aesthetics

In cultural and creative tourism, perceived aesthetics and enjoyment are essential elements of aesthetic value [32]. Perceived aesthetics is the aesthetic response of one or more senses to environmental stimuli, which will affect individual information processing after being internalized, so aesthetic quality can be regarded as the result of the interaction between individuals and the environment [46]. When tourists perceive aesthetics in tourism activities, the impact of the tourist destination environment on the tourist experience is direct and profound [47]. In cultural and creative tourism, tourists interact with the overall environment of the destination and form sensory perceptions; thus, tourists’ enjoyment is also influenced by the environmental aesthetics of the destination [47,48]. In addition, the aesthetic process is also considered a cognitive process, and different individuals have different perceived aesthetics and judgement [31]. For cultural and creative destinations, environmental aesthetics are an important form of cultural concretization [48]. A destination’s aesthetic value extends beyond its own external physical attributes to include a deeper cultural value and social significance [32]. However, it is difficult to reach a consistent view on aesthetic experience when appreciating cultural products from different cultural norms. The conveyance of such cultural and aesthetic values requires tourists to have a higher ability to realise an aesthetic understanding of and identify with cultural and creative tourism environments. Significantly, CQ enables tourists with different cultural backgrounds to understand and adapt to destinations’ cultural connotations and cultural thinking and make rational judgements on tourism environments [17]. It will promote the aesthetic perception and identity of cultural and creative tourism destinations.

Hypothesis 2 (H2). Perceived aesthetics will mediate the relationship between cultural intelligence and the awakening of enjoyment.

 

2.6. Perceived authenticity

Authenticity reflects the uniqueness and historical connotations of local culture [30]. The perception of authenticity stems from interactions between tourists and destinations and includes elements such as objects, buildings, people, activities and food [49]. In the process of perceiving authenticity, tourists will experience desire and express enthusiasm for further interaction, which will trigger pleasant emotions [1,50]. However, the assessment of authenticity involves individual subjective judgement. Tourists with dissimilar cultural and social backgrounds have different perceptions of authenticity [51]. Moreover, tourists’ perceptions of authenticity are easily generated during interactions with the destination environment, and such experience is driven by tourists’ desire for authenticity [49]. Therefore, due to the different cultural distances between individuals and destinations and the different degrees of individual desire for cultural authenticity, there are divergences in the perception of authenticity. Tourists with high CQ have enough interest in and understand the universality and diversity of cultures [52]. They can break away from the original cultural thinking inertia and effectively adapt to the uniqueness and locality of different cultures [53]. Similarly, high CQ tourists' existing understanding of the destination culture also contributes to the perception of cultural value in the authentic experience [1,17]. Subsequently, it can be inferred that cultural intelligence can affect tourists’ perceptions of the authenticity of cultural and creative tourist destinations and thereby promote their enjoyment. The following hypothesis is proposed.

Hypothesis 3 (H3). Perceived authenticity will mediate the relationship between cultural intelligence and the awakening of enjoyment.

 

5. For the measure of Cultural intelligence, generally the cultural intelligence scale (CQS) developed by Ang et al. (2007) is the popular scale that has been used in Cultural intelligence research. The author will need to explain the CQS was not used in the study.

Thank you very much for your comments! As you point out, the CQ scale developed by Ang et al. (2007) is authoritative, popular, and widely cited in CQ research. The CQ scale of Frías-Jamilena et al. (2017) was adopted in this study for the following reasons. First, with cultural and creative tourism as the research background, this paper explores the impact of CQ on individuals’ perceived value in tourism destinations. Similarly, Frías-Jamilena et al. (2017) took tourism as the research background. They developed the CQ scale to measure tourists’ ability to function effectively in the destination, which is consistent with the research background and theoretical framework of this study. Second, the scale used by Frías-Jamilena et al. (2017) was established based on the CQ scale developed by Ang et al. (2007), both of which have the same essence. Third, the reference tests the rationality of the internal structure of the CQ variable through a reasonable and rigorous factor analysis method, which has high reliability. Finally, the CQ scale proposed by Frías-Jamilena et al. (2017) has been cited and tested by many scholars in tourism research, for example, Coves-Martínez et al. (2021) and Ruan et al. (2021). These articles were also published in prestigious journals and examined by other peer references. Therefore, we believe that the scale has a high reference value. In summary, we finally refer to the research scale of Frías-Jamilena et al. (2017). Since scale reference is not the focus of this study and is limited by words, we will not provide a detailed explanation. Therefore, we only give a brief description of the scale reference. Thank you again. The specific modifications are as follows:

 

3.1. Measures

……

• Cultural intelligence was measured using Frías-Jamilena et al.’s scale [17], which is developed in tourism research using Ang et al.’s scale [33]. The example item is “I can communicate with the local people by relying on my current cultural knowledge”.

……

 

References:

Coves-Martínez, Á. L., Sabiote-Ortiz, C. M., & Frías-Jamilena, D. M. (2021). Cultural intelligence as an antecedent of satisfaction with the travel app and with the tourism experience. Computers in Human Behavior, 107049.

Ruan, W. Q., Yang, T. T., Zhang, S. N., Liu, C. H., & Li, Y. Q. (2021). How to create tourists’ enjoyment? critical factors and strategic configurations for cultural and creative tourists’ enjoyment. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 38(6), 554-567.

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

How does previous experience (post travel) ay affect flow experience? 

please check recent papers 2020/ 2021 (eg. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJML-08-2020-0584 ) 

 

more than half of the population is undergraduate which may influence the choice of traveling (PLACES TO VISIT). Please verify how they can travel also on grounds of money (5000mrb) little money to be able to "comfortably travel"

Author Response

 

1. How does previous experience (post travel) ay affect flow experience? Please check recent papers 2020/ 2021 (eg. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJML-08-2020-0584 ) 

Thank you very much for your advice. Previous studies have shown that previous experience has a moderating effect on tourists' value perception in the experience process (Dedeoglu et al., 2020), confirming the positive effect of previous experience on the tourism experience. However, this study focuses on the effect of CQ on the flow experience, which is not directly involved with tourists' previous experience. Therefore, our study does not cover and analyse the influence of previous experience on flow experience. Future research may further expand the theoretical framework of flow experience by using previous experience as an "antecedent". At the same time, based on your comments, we fully reviewed the literature on flow experiences, which includes the "antecedents" of flow experience, in an attempt to grasp the generation and effect of flow experience in a more comprehensive way.

In addition, the literature you suggested confirms the influence of CQ on tourists' post-travel evaluation and behaviour. At the same time, this study focuses on the role of CQ in the process of tourism experience. Although both of them confirm the positive effect of CQ on tourists, there are still great differences. The former focuses on "post-travel", while this study focuses on "on-travel". The former analyses the direct effect of CQ on outcome variables, while this study explores the process mechanism of CQ on outcome variables. As a result, there are great differences between them in the experience stage and the research logic. Therefore, we conducted a theoretical dialogue with this research you advised in the theoretical contribution, which further emphasises the contribution of our conclusions in the "antecedent" research of flow experience. Thank you again for your valuable suggestions. The specific modifications are as follows:

 

1. Introduction

……

Although flow experience contributes to the creation of positive effects on tourists’ satisfaction and happiness [2], the current research on tourists’ flow experience is still quite limited. Flow originates from the mutual interaction between individuals and external elements and is characterised by a high concentration of individual attention. Therefore, it is mainly used to explore the human-computer interaction experience in the early stage and has been extensively studied in gaming, education, and internet research [5‒8]. As research continues to deepen and expand, scholars have found that outdoor recreation can provide participants with a sense of challenge and focus, which coincides with flow characteristics [3,9]. Flow experience has been gradually applied to the research of adventure tourism, theme tourism, mountaineering tourism and cultural and creative tourism, which shows high participation and strong feelings of experience [1,2,10,11]. In addition, as the state of individual flow comes with a strong sense of participation, such exploratory behaviour will lead to positive behaviours and emotions in individuals [12]. The relevant studies mainly focus on the “consequences” analysis of the flow experience, including the positive influence on tourists’ emotions, behaviour, and acculturation [4,13].

Furthermore, some scholars have explored the "antecedents" of flow experience, proposing that destination design, authenticity and entertainment activities can promote tourists’ flow experience [1,3,11]. However, few studies have explored the influence of individual characteristics on tourists' flow experience from internal factors. Importantly, individual characteristics will lead to differences in tourism experience even in the same tourism type [14]. Especially in cultural and creative tourism, destination culture is regarded as the core tourist attraction and a critical element of the experience. Individuals’ understanding of and ability to adapt to diverse cultures will directly affect the tourism experience quality and emotional value [15]. The higher the cultural intelligence of tourists is, the easier it is to perceive the cultural connotation of local tourism and enhance immersion and pleasure in the tourism experience [15,16]. Therefore, the individual’s level of cultural cognition, understanding and adaptability plays a major role in the tourist flow experience. To fill in the research gap on the "antecedent" of tourists’ flow experience, this study takes cultural and creative tourism as the research background. It explores the influence mechanism of cultural intelligence on tourists' flow experience from the perspective of individual characteristics.

……

• Theoretical contribution

……

Second, this study clarifies the logical relationships of the influence of CQ on tourists’ flow experience, expanding the research framework of CQ and tourists’ flow experience. Zhang et al. [69] proved that CQ has a positive effect on satisfaction and behavioural intention post-travel, but how CQ affects tourists' positive experience in the process of tourism experience is still unknown. By clarifying the logical relationship of "perception—enjoyment—flow" between cultural intelligence and flow experience, the study further deepens the understanding of the functional logic of CQ. It enriches the theoretical system of tourists' flow experience research [2,3]. Additionally, Zhang et al. [1] proposed that cultural perceived authenticity can enhance tourists’ flow experience. While confirming this conclusion, we also found that cultural experience and perceived aesthetics also have a positive effect on tourists’ flow experience.

 

References:

Dedeoglu, B. B., Bilgihan, A., Ye, B. H., Buonincontri, P., & Okumus, F. (2018). The impact of servicescape on hedonic value and behavioral intentions: The importance of previous experience. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 72, 10-20.

Zhang, Y., Shao, W., & Thaichon, P. (2021). Investigating tourist post-travel evaluation and behavioural intention: a cultural intelligence perspective. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics.

 

2. More than half of the population is undergraduate which may influence the choice of traveling (PLACES TO VISIT). Please verify how they can travel also on grounds of money (5000mrb) little money to be able to "comfortably travel"

Thank you for your comments. According to your questions and suggestions on the research samples, we offer the following explanations. First, cultural and creative tourism in China is a young and emerging tourism mode that takes novel and innovative means to carry cultural resources. Young people with higher education are more receptive to this emerging model. In addition, cultural and creative tourism, with cultural resources as its core, is more attractive to tourists with a certain cultural foundation. Therefore, the young group with a bachelor's degree usually occupies a high proportion of the source market for cultural and creative tourism destinations. Second, cultural and creative tourism is not a high-consumption tourism type. The destinations’ consumptive products are mainly creative goods and performing activities, and tourists with ordinary consumption levels can bear the cost. Third, unlike natural scenery (e.g., due to the high altitude and distance from the city centre, the transportation of goods in scenic mountain areas is costly, which leads to higher commodity prices in general than in urban areas.), cultural and creative tourist destinations are usually located in urban areas, making rigid consumption, such as accommodation, food, and transportation, within the normal price range.

 Moreover, because of the free tickets in some cultural and creative tourist destinations, tourists can enjoy many open cultural relic buildings for free. Finally, according to the information released by the National Bureau of Statistics in China, the per capita income of Chinese residents in 2020 was 32,198 RMB, and the average monthly income was only 2,682.4 RMB. Consequently, young people with a monthly income of 5,000 RMB are fully able to "comfortably travel" in cultural and creative tourist destinations. In addition, in the current research on cultural and creative tourism, there are other articles with sample characteristics similar to this study, such as Liu (2019), Ruan et al. (2021) and Zhang et al. (2019). In general, the sample characteristics of this study are reasonable and conform to the actual situation. Thanks again for your careful review.

 

References:

Liu, C. H. . (2019). Local and international perspectives of the influence of creative experiences of chinese traditional culture on revisit intentions. Current Issues in Tourism, 1-19.

Ruan, W. Q., Yang, T. T., Zhang, S. N., Liu, C. H., & Li, Y. Q. (2021). How to create tourists’ enjoyment? critical factors and strategic configurations for cultural and creative tourists’ enjoyment. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 38(6), 554-567.

Zhang, S. N., Li, Y. Q., Liu, C. H., & Ruan, W. Q. (2019). How does authenticity enhance flow experience through perceived value and involvement: the moderating roles of innovation and cultural identity. Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing, 36(6), 710–728.

Reviewer 3 Report

The work is well structured and of school, interest but also for the business environment in the tourism industry. The theoretical substantiation completes the analysis of the logical relation perception-enjoyment-flow. The conclusions are brief and are based on analysis and research based on the seven hypotheses. At the same time, the paper has managerial implications that can be considered by tour operators. Perhaps the authors consider adding a paragraph, at the end of the paper, regarding Acknowledgment.

Author Response

The work is well structured and of school, interest but also for the business environment in the tourism industry. The theoretical substantiation completes the analysis of the logical relation perception-enjoyment-flow. The conclusions are brief and are based on analysis and research based on the seven hypotheses. At the same time, the paper has managerial implications that can be considered by tour operators. Perhaps the authors consider adding a paragraph, at the end of the paper, regarding Acknowledgment.

Thank you very much for your comments. According to your suggestion, we have added an acknowledgement section at the end of the paper to thank the researchers and scholars who contributed to this research. Thank you again for your suggestions, which helped to improve the structure of our article. The modifications are as follows:

 

Acknowledgments:

We would like to express our gratitude to Yating Lin, Yaowei Chen, Qionglan Hong and Songyin Zheng from Huaqiao University for their important contribution in the data collection. We gratefully acknowledge comments received from the editor and three anonymous reviewers.

 

According to your valuable suggestions, we have made some major changes to this paper. Over the past few days, we have worked to answer these questions. We have thoroughly reviewed the comments and made revisions based on specific recommendations in your suggestions. We believe that you will find the paper greatly improved. Your opinion is valuable for highlighting the contribution and practical significance of our paper. We attach great importance to these issues and have worked to better develop potential theoretical issues.

Thank you very much for your considering and help in this process.

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

The authors clearly handled all comments provided in the previous evaluation. The quality of the paper is now adequate for publication. There is no further comment from my part.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments have been taken care of