The Influence of Destination Promotion Videos on Residents’ Sense of Empowerment and Support for Tourism

Abstract

This article uses the theoretical bases of Resident Empowerment through Tourism Scale, Framing Theory, and Self-Identification theory to explore the moderating effect of destination promotional videos on the relationship between residents’ empowerment and support for tourism. Initially, a large-scale survey with 1,634 respondents from Chinese Ningbo communities was performed to confirm that the destination promotion videos were widely viewed by the residents. After that, 492 questionnaires were administered to residents to test the moderating effect of media identification on the relationship between residents’ empowerment and support for tourism. The findings show that, overall, promotional media moderates the relationship between resident empowerment and support for tourism. Specifically, the use of destination promotion videos has been found to give residents a stronger sense of empowerment within society, increasing their high level of support for tourism. However, in this study’s case study of Ningbo, media were not found to moderate the relationship between perceived economic profit and support for tourism. The findings of this study could provide implications of how to use promotional video wisely to engage residents and build a “happy host.”