Behavioral Intention Towards “Halal Hotels”: Religiosity or Ethnicity?

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study is to empirically examine and compare the effects of religiosity and ethnicity in influencing behavioral intention towards halal hotels concept. Is it the religion or ethnic values that really matters in selecting an Islamic concept of hotel such as the halal hotel? This study involving 492 respondents randomly selected among travelers at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport used SEM as the main method to test the hypotheses. Underpinned by the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), the findings of this study revealed that religiosity (represented by the construct of religious commitment) significantly influence behavioral intention towards halal hotels via attitude while ethnicity (represented by ethnic identity) has no significant influence on intention to patronage a halal hotel. Theoretically, this present study help extends the TRA model by incorporating religiosity factor in the context of Islamic tourism. With regard to practical implications, the findings provide inputs to the hoteliers particularly in the hotel’s positioning theme development as well as marketing communication strategies.