INVESTIGATING DETERMINANTS OF INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS’ INTENTION TO USE MOBILE TOURISM GUIDE: THAI NATION PARKS CONTEXT

Abstract

This study investigates the determinants of international tourists’ intention to use mobile tourism guide in the context of Thai national parks. The study focuses on innovation characteristics as the determinants of international tourists’ intention to use mobile tourism guide. The innovation characteristics of mobile tourism guide consist of relative advantage, compatibility, simplicity, trialability, and mobility. A convenience sampling technique is used for data collection. The 708 data sets from international tourists are analyzed by SPSS. The factor analysis results suggests that two innovation characteristics of mobile tourism guide such as relative advantage and compatibility should be grouped into one characteristic, this characteristic is named practical advantage. The results of study also evidence that the determinants of international tourists’ intention to use mobile tourism guide in the context of Thai national parks are practical advantage, trialability, and mobility. The simplicity is not a determinant of international tourists’ intention to use mobile tourism guide. The empirical results of this paper extend the mobile information technology research in the context of mobile tourism guide, and provide a valuable guideline for developing and implementation mobile information technology.