The fundamental objective of the literature review section was to elucidate consumer behavior and culture specific to Chinese nationals and the extent to which they moderated purchase decisions, with a particular focus on international tourism. The fixation on Chinese tourists was informed by the growing affluence in the country as most citizens transitioned from poverty to the higher income brackets (Barton, Chen, & Jin, 2013). Thus, outbound tourism was fuelled primarily by the middle-class population.
Wang, Vela, & Tyler (2008) observed that cultural influences had a significant impact on the emotional, cognitive and affective states, which in turn affected consumer satisfaction and tourist destination choices. Therefore, a better understanding of consumer behavior was necessary to sustain tourist satisfaction. Traditionally, Chinese culture was defined by wariness to foreigners, pictographic language, morality and agrarianism (Wang et al., 2008) – behaviors that were derived from the Confucius ideology that placed more emphasis on the “standard high culture” (Zhou, Arnold, Pereira, & Yu, 2010). Despite the sociopolitical and economic dynamism witnessed in China over the years, it was evident that the remnants of the four elements were ingrained in Chinese behavior.
Another justification for the present literature review was that the current body of research evidence regarding Chinese tourists was inconclusive (Chow & Murphy, 2011; Li, Lai, Harrill, Kline, & Wang, 2011; Wang et al., 2008; Lee, Jeon, & Kim, 2011). Despite a 21 percent surge outbound tourism annually (Li et al., 2011). In particular, there was scarce information regarding the state of outbound tourists in the Chinese mainland. The absence of such critical information was further compounded by the significant variations in consumer behavior in the mainland and coastal regions of China (Zhou et al., 2010). Besides, a comprehensive understanding of the consumer behavior was necessary given that guest loyalty had the potential to increase the profits of the service providers in the hotel industry by up to 85 percent (Zhang et al., 2014). The present body of research had also established that it was much more affordable to retain the current pool of customers compared to searching for new clients. The ability to understand consumer behavior and purchase paths was critical to long-term profitability and tourist loyalty. Thus, the present review offered new insights that would enable service providers in the hospitality sector (Sparks & Pan, 2009).
Socioeconomic Transformation and Chinese Outbound Tourism
Since the 1970s, China had witnessed an unprecedented socioeconomic transformation that advanced consumerism while at the same time providing people with the necessary opportunities and tools for cultural rebellion (Zhao & Belk, 2008). The tremendous economic growth had increased the number of dollar millionaires in the country; in fact, China had the highest proportion of ultra-rich millionaires and billionaires globally (Liu, Zhou, & Chandnani, 2013). The population had increased notably in the last four years. An improvement in the socioeconomic conditions had a positive impact on international tourism. Leisure travel was intertwined with Chinese culture as evidenced in ancient writings (Tony, Tse, & Hobson, 2008). According to Tony et al. (2008), ancient sayings and proverbs in Chinese culture emphasized on the essence of travel, one of the Chinese proverbs posited that more knowledge would be derived from travel compared to study. For instance, locals who travelled to the Great Wall were perceived as heroes; therefore, from a traditional perspective, the Chinese had an obligation to travel.
The ultra-rich in China spent an average of 15 days visiting international tourist destinations (Liu et al., 2013). The short holiday visits were attributed to the restrictive working policies that limited the available leave days for the working middle class. The limited travel time caused most of the tourists to make travel arrangements in the course of the Golden Weeks season (Sparks & Pan, 2009).
The Brookings Institution noted that China was home to the second highest population of middle-income earners (157 million), who represented less than 15 percent of the population. However, by 2030, the ratio would increase to 70 percent (Kharas, 2011). Consumerism was the bedrock of outbound tourism in China. The viewpoint was informed by the fact that only persons with higher disposable incomes had the luxury of international travel (higher salaries were a catalyst for spending). Besides, the socioeconomic transformation had impacted the value system of the Chinese nationals, and in turn, it had triggered significant changes in tourist behavior. For instance, traditionally, the Chinese were regarded as a collectivist society – they had a natural affinity towards family; cohesive relationships and harmonious co-existence was the way of life. Nonetheless, new changes began to emerge in the recent past as the country adopted specific western cultures. For instance, young Chinese nations exhibited individualism – they placed more focus on individual pleasure, success, and wealth (Xiao & Kim, 2009).
In addition to the socioeconomic transformation, western influences had mediated outbound tourism. The view was founded on the fact that previously, the Chinese government had exerted undue influence on all public matters including putting a cap on the number of outbound tourists leaving the country (Tony et al., 2008). Nonetheless, a transition into an open economy had resulted in the elimination of the restrictive policies.
Purchase Paths
According to KPMG, the consumer purchase paths in the 21st century were affected by e-commerce, digital innovation, and the internet. The advent of the new technologies had not impeded four phases of the customer’s journey namely, acquaintanceship, deliberation, conversion, and evaluation as depicted in Figure 1 (KPMG, 2017). Nonetheless, the new technologies had modified the customer’s journey from a liner to a cyclical relationship because modern customers preferred to follow a non-linear trend (KPMG, 2017). Acquaintanceship was the first stage in which the client became aware of the product or the service. In the case of the outbound tourists from China, the information was available through the Chinese tour operators under the approved destination scheme (ADS) program (Li et al., 2011). Other sources of tourism information included the TV programs, Chinese websites, marketing brochures, fashion magazines and referrals (Sparks & Pan, 2009).
A survey by Keating & Kriz (2008), established that the ADS system was one of the fundamental external moderators for outbound tourism. Apart from the ADS program, information regarding the potential tourist attraction sites was available from the internet. The purchase paths observed among the Chinese tourists were distinct. For instance, a majority of the outbound travelers first visited the short-haul destinations before they committed to long-haul travels; it was postulated that such behaviors were motivated by the need to acclimatize to the new places with similar cultures before they explored new regions with entirely different cultures (Keating & Kriz, 2008).
The distinct variations in the tourism patterns partly explained why there was no association between destination choice and image; that is the selection of the preferred region was informed by other considerations beyond the physical appeal of the city or region (Keating & Kriz, 2008). In fact, it was postulated that cultural concerns were the primary determinants given that despite the establishment of the ADS program between China and countries in Europe, Africa, and North America, outbound tourism was highest among countries in South East Asia and the Pacific.
After awareness, the customer transitioned to the next stage which was deliberation, in the deliberation phase, the client decided whether to proceed with the purchase or to refrain. The accessible information regarding the destinations guided the deliberative process. The most preferred source of information among tourists included online reviews. Leisure travelers were less motivated to travel to specific locations if it had received negative reviews from other tourists. In a study by Reza Jalilvand & Samiei (2012), it was noted that surveys (both online and offline) informed the destination choice of the tourists. The findings were justified because they were founded on the theory of planned behavior. Sparks & Pan, (2009) noted that it was the tradition of Chinese tourists to enquire from friends and family before traveling to a specified location for leisure. At least 54 percent of the sampled respondents indicated that they had relied on the feedback from other people before making tourism-related decisions (Sparks & Pan, 2009). The media was classified as the second most valuable source of information.
The third stage was conversion – a process that was characterized by definite choice. The explicit decision involved whether to initiate the purchase or turn down the purchase offer (KPMG, 2017). The conversion stage was considered to be critical in informing the purchase decisions of the Chinese tourists in international destinations. The proposition was informed by the fact that most of the Chinese holidaymakers were more inclined to buy products and services that that was in line with their worldviews – collectivism and individualism (Xiao & Kim, 2009). Therefore, the provision of services that were incongruent with the traditions and cultures of the Chinese would diminish the purchase intention (conversion). The perspective was supported by previous research findings which indicated that international visitors from China were more content with eating local foods and booking hotels that provided services that were in line with Chinese traditions such as tea making facilities in the guest rooms (Office, 2016).
After making the final decision regarding the purchase, the final stage in the purchase path was an evaluation. The review process was defined by the use of social media to get feedback from other persons experienced the service. In addition to the social media platforms, the clients employed other avenues to obtain input such as the return policy, stock availability and options available for delivery (KPMG, 2017). Positive feedback was associated with a higher motivation to make the purchases; the inverse was true for the adverse assessments.
The State of Outbound Tourism
According to the World Bank, the population of China was currently estimated to be 1.38 billion (The World Bank, 2018). In 2009, at least 49 million outbound tourists from China visited international destinations (Chow & Murphy, 2011). Five years later, China surpassed the US; it became the number one source of foreign tourists in Europe with one of the most substantial spending per trip ($1,400 per tourist) (Croce, 2016).
McKinsey and Company estimated that in 2022, at least 75 percent of Chinese nationals residing in cities would be earning over $9,000 annually, thus effectively placing them in the middle-class (Barton et al., 2013). The population of Chinese tourists could not be wished away given that it was more than the entire population of Canada and Sweden combined (Government of Canada, 2017; Statistics Sweden, 2016). Based on the statistics, it was evident that the social transformation policies effected by the communist regime had a positive impact on the national economy, labor market and international tourism. The socio-economic transformation had resulted in significant changes in consumption behaviors among the Chinese in the upper-middle income category (Barton et al., 2013). A graphical representation of the projected socioeconomic transformation between 2012 and 2022 was depicted in Figure 2.
The socio-economic change in China was substantially associated with the state of outbound travel in China. For instance, in 1983, the government of China officially eliminated the restrictive outbound tourism policies (Sparks & Pan, 2009); Chinese residents in the mainland had the luxury of traveling to semi-autonomous regions such as Hong-Kong (Li et al., 2011). The strategy was implemented through the “approved destination scheme” – a policy that facilitated the travel of groups of Chinese nationals to international destinations (Australian Government, 2018). The arrangement was promoted through the development of partnerships between the Chinese government and other partner countries such as Australia and the US (Li et al., 2011). The restrictive policies that made it difficult for Chinese nationals to travel to the US were eliminated in 2009 (Agrusa, Kim, & Wang, 2011). Since then there has been a remarkable growth in the number of Chinese holidaymakers in the US, especially in Hawaii. An investigation of the preferred travel locations for the leisure travelers from China indicated that most preferred to travel to nations within the Asia-Pacific region; countries in the other areas were not perceived as potential leisure destinations except Hawaii. According to the study, the choice of the tourist destination was mediated by political stability. Visa requirements were a secondary determinant. For instance, the multiple points of entry visas provided to Chinese tourists visiting South Korea and entry to the Jeju islands without visas had appealed to a significant fraction of Chinese tourists (Liu et al., 2013).
The sustained growth of outbound tourism in China offered both numerous advantages and risks. The risks in outbound tourism emanated from the fact that it was a new phenomenon and therefore different stakeholders had not fully appreciated the dynamics of Chinese international luxury travel. For instance, recent statistics indicated that within the last six years, the sector had grown by 70 percent; that is over two-thirds of the cumulative number of tourists had traveled out of China within the last six years (Liu et al., 2013). In the short term, it was projected that the population would grow to 25 million tourists annually. South Korea, Macau, Hong Kong, and Japan were traditionally the primary beneficiaries of the outbound tourism following the adoption of the ADR system. Nonetheless, moving forward, it was projected that North America and European countries would be the primary beneficiaries (Liu et al., 2013).
The shift in tourist expectations was a predictor of the shifting preferences among the Chinese tourists. Guo, Kim, & Timothy (2007) noted that there was an equal number of outbound tourists traveling for leisure and work purposes until the year 2000, during that time, the market was 50 and 50 percent for leisure travel and work travel, respectively. After 2000, there was a consistent increase in the number of outbound leisure travelers to 23 million. The research indicated that demographics influenced outbound tourism in China. In particular, the researcher observed that most of the outbound tourists came from specific localities in China such as Shanghai and Beijing (Guo et al., 2007); other cities were Zhejiang and Fujian. The four towns were the leading sources of outbound tourists. The skewed distribution of international holidaymakers was partly attributed to the fact that the cities were close to Hong Kong, South Korea, and Macau – the preferred destinations for the tourists. Another demographic factor was the socioeconomic status of the households. A large majority of families with higher disposable incomes resided in metropolitan areas rather than in remote villages. Therefore, it was natural for such regions to record high numbers of outbound tourists.
An evaluation of the progress in Chinese tourism indicated that Hong Kong was the preferred tourist destinations because at least 42 percent of the outbound travelers visited the territory (Sparks & Pan, 2009). Thus, consumer behavior and purchase paths in Hong Kong would help to predict the behavior of Chinese tourists in other destinations within South Asia and the Pacific. Song et al. (2011) observed that a majority of the leisure travelers from mainland China were highly satisfied with the quality of service in the Hong Kong hotels. The level of contentment was rated 74/100 (Song et al. 2011). The high scores were attributed to the fact that the culture in Hong Kong was comparable to mainland China. Moreover, guest satisfaction in Hong Kong was moderated by antecedents such as excellent service performance which facilitated value delivery. Nonetheless, satisfaction was impacted by intrinsic expectations.
Destination Factors
The choice of the tourist destination was moderated by both internal and external factors namely, pull and push attractiveness, and destination image (Keating & Kriz, 2008). The pull elements included the physical attractiveness of the location as defined by the ambiance of the tourist destination, culture, history, infrastructure and other tourist-centric attractions. The primary pull factors among the outbound holidaymakers included the desire to augment personal relationships, improve one’s self-image and obtain new knowledge regarding the tourist destination (Keating & Kriz, 2008). In addition to the pull factors, it was deduced that the push elements impacted the choice of the destination location. The push considerations included pressure from family and friends to participate in specific activities (Keating & Kriz, 2008). For instance, preference for group travel among the Chinese tourists to fit into the psychological and social groups.
According to Keating & Kriz (2008), the social and psychological groups represented the demographic and individual values of the tourist, respectively. A synergy between the push and the pull factors resulted in higher purchases and returned visits among the hotel guests. In a survey conducted among Chinese tourists in Vietnam, it was established that the tourism products influenced the frequency of positive recommendations and repeated visitations on offer (Truong, & King, 2009). The tourism products included both tangible and intangibles. For instance, some tourists were concerned about the destination country’s exchange rates (Truong, & King, 2009) – an element that was perceived to be trivial.
Chinese Tourist Behaviors and Culture
The unique cultures and national approach towards tourism had a substantial role on the success of the outbound travel in the country. The distinctive cultural background of China coupled with the fact that the nation unlocked its borders to international travel a few years ago makes China a distinct source of foreign tourists (Chow & Murphy, 2011). The robust attachment among the Chinese towards their culture provided both opportunities and barriers to hotel service providers in the international destinations. Nonetheless, service providers such as Bicester Village in the UK had incorporated Chinese friendly signage and employees who were fluent in Mandarin (Office, 2016). Additional changes included a diversity of Chinese foods on the menu. Such approaches had helped to reduce the existing language barriers, which in turn attracted more Chinese tourists. The new procedures adopted by hoteliers in the UK were justified given that most Chinese tourists preferred traditional foods available in mainland China (Office, 2016). Besides, an evaluation of spending among the Chinese tourists indicated that most of them spent most of their tourist budget on food. The findings were in contrast to observations made by Croce (2016) who claimed that the holidaymakers were frugal in food spending. The most significant consideration among the visitors included the availability of hot water and other ingredients required to prepare tea and coffee in the residential areas; a standard tradition in China (Office, 2016). The absence of such amenities demotivated the tourists, and it also impacted their experiences abroad.
Service Expectations. Service expectation was one of the standard identifiers of Chinese behavior. The expectancies were not ubiquitous among all Chinese tourists; there were marked variations depending on the geographic origin of the tourist (Wang et al., 2008). For instance, tourists from mainland and coastal areas differed in the motivation for spending and purchasing. The latter were driven by hedonistic desires in purchase decisions due to western influences (Zhou et al., 2010).
Wang et al. (2008) deduced that holidaymakers from China had different service expectations. In particular, the tourists were keen on having new experiences, reliable services, and sufficient facilities in international destinations. Nonetheless, the primary requirement was that the service offerings, cuisines, and accommodation should be similar to what was provided back home (Wang et al., 2008); in essence, the experiences of Chinese tourists were primarily defined by their national culture. Therefore, Chinese travelers had a higher probability of purchasing Chinese foods despite the fact that tourism provided them with an opportunity to sample new cultures and cuisines. For instance, the absence of Chinese tea in the tourist destinations was a fundamental issue of concern among outbound Chinese sightseers (Li et al., 2011). The outcomes reported by Wang et al. (2008) were in line with the observations made by Huang (2008) who noted that outbound Chinese tourists in North America had substantially different service expectations compared to the locals. Another possible explanation for the unique Chinese behaviors was that the Confucius worldview, Buddhism, and communist ideology regarding social cohesion, and group identity informed individual choices (Wang et al., 2008; Zhou et al., 2010). According to Liu, Zhou, & Chandnani (2013), consumer behavior among the Chinese was predetermined by the synergy between the social mobility attributed to the rising household incomes and the age-old patriarchy. Therefore, the behavior of the Chinese tourists was influenced by the mismatch between regimentation and ambition; in the Chinese society there little to no compatibility between the individualism and social collectivism.
The inability or willingness by international service providers to replicate services offered in China risked alienation of Chinese tourists and in turn reducing the rate of guest return and positive word-of-mouth – a critical element in modern marketing. According to Li et al. (2011), the mismatch between the ancillary products offered to hotel guests in China vis-à-vis those provided abroad resulted in dissatisfaction among Chinese holidaymakers outside their country of residence. In particular, the Chinese visitors were concerned about the fact that hotels did not provide them with hot water – a standard practice in China. The ancillary products included shaving creams, razors, lotions, shampoos, combs, and toothbrushes (Li et al., 2011); in most instances, the Chinese nationals did not see it necessary to purchase the standard amenities before travel or after booking the hotel. Thus, based on the Chinese guest expectations it was evident that national cultures and behaviors had an impact on the sustainability of outbound tourism.
Food Preferences. The Chinese food culture influenced consumption patterns of the international holidaymakers. Chang, Kivela, & Mak (2010) claimed that Chinese foods were distinct from the western foods in their adaptability, diversity, and sophistication. For instance, in China, all animals were perceived as potential sources of food. Apart from meat, Chinese food also features fan and vegetables. Therefore, the Chinese tourists were inclined to exhibit food neophobia if they visited regions with foods that were strikingly dissimilar to those locally available in China. Globalization and growing western investments in China had exposed most of the citizens to western diets. Nonetheless, some of the Chinese nationals had remained loyal to their traditions. For instance, Chinese tourists in Australia showed aversion towards non-familiar foods and most preferred locations providing Chinese meals. The food preferences were standard across the board considering that all tourists were concerned about the prospects of consuming western foods each meal (Chang et al., 2010). Therefore, it was justified to presume that the penchant for native foods would inform Chinese tourist’s spending on food items during the holiday visits.
After considering the unique food preferences among the Chinese tourists, the hotel service providers were best placed to offer a wide array of foods to satisfy the innate desires by settling on foods that reminisced of “ home” and to meet the needs of those tourists who might desire to explore new foods. Office (2016) claimed that it was prudent for hotel service providers to avail brief menus to the hotel guests written in a familiar language such as Mandarin rather than long English names to attract new tourists. The recommendation was informed by the fact that traditionally the Chinese were always comfortable with familiar items and it was also not prudent to overwhelm the guests with an unfamiliar language. Besides, some of the Chinese guests were concerned about the fact that they might accidentally order unpalatable foods due to the language barrier. Another notable observation was that most of the Chinese tourists preferred to use a single payment method that was available both at home and abroad; Union Pay satisfied the above criteria (Office, 2016). In brief, the ability to satisfy the requirements of the outbound tourists was dependent on the ability of service providers to combine both variety and accessibility.
Price
The cost of services was a critical consideration especially among outbound Chinese holidaymakers who were traveling on a budget. For instance, middle-income earners in the lower income bracket limited their visits to short-hauls – countries close to China because they did not want to incur more expenses (Croce, 2016). Nonetheless, Chinese nationals with higher disposable incomes were also price-sensitive. According to Zhu (2013), consumers were only price sensitive if the service or product that was provided was not premium. Thus, Chinese consumers were less price sensitive if the services were premium. The association between price and a high value was embedded in the Chinese culture which placed more emphasis on economic status.
The inclination towards premium products was informed by the fact that luxury brands moderated peer recognition (Liu et al., 2013). In fact, it was the primary reason why most of the holidaymakers from cities in the mainland were ready to pay a premium on a product due to the guarantees that the product or service would result in significant extrinsic benefits. Nonetheless, such actions were stabilized by higher price sensitivity, an inclination towards conservative purchasing and a saving tradition. The extravagant spending during holidays did not cases reflect the frugal life that the Chinese nationals were living back home (Liu et al., 2013).
Subjective norms. Subjective norms influenced the travel to western countries and Australia. The subjective norms included social influences and personal resources. Social forces were defined by perceptions that friends and peers expected one to travel to western tourism destinations in line with the theory of planned behavior. Another observation from the Sparks & Pan (2009) study was that unlike European tourists whose tourism choices were primarily influenced by attitudes towards specific destinations, Chinese tourism choices were not mediated by attitudes. Furthermore, Chinese travelers exhibited diverse and unique behaviors including the fact that most preferred to book offline and spend less on accommodation and food but more on shopping (Croce, 2016). In addition to subjective norms, tourist choices were moderated by the infrastructure, safety, climate, and aesthetic appearance of the tourist destination of choice (Sparks & Pan, 2009). The preferences listed above were similar to those of other European tourists. In contrast, the Chinese vacationists were less concerned about the local cultures and experiences (Sparks & Pan, 2009). The observations were primarily attributed to the fact that most of the tourists were more concerned about re-experiencing Chinese cultures abroad.
Tourist Destinations. Chinese tourism behaviors and purchase decisions were also impacted by the language barriers, the distance between the tourism destination and mainland China and visa payment expenses (Sparks & Pan, 2009). Additionally, it was established that outbound Chinese tourists had an affinity for territories such as Macau and Hong Kong (Sparks & Pan, 2009). The preference for Asian states was attributed to four factors. One, Asian countries were the primary beneficiaries of the ADS program because they were the first to enroll. Two, the regions had cultures and service offerings that were similar to what was available in the mainland; cultural similarity was a critical element given that the leisure travelers were primarily attracted to international destinations that offered services nearly identical to those in China (Li et al., 2011; Sparks & Pan, 2009). Three, 90 percent of the population had disposable incomes lower than $20,000 – outbound tourism was limited to international destinations that were close to China (short hauls) (Croce, 2016). Four, the restrictive visa policies in the US dissuaded most Chinese tourists from traveling to the country.
Apart from the visas, most of the tourists were not content with connecting flights to the US because they preferred seamless travel (Agrusa et al., 2011). In addition to the factors highlighted above, it was observed that the choice of the preferred leisure travel location was informed by destination loyalty (Zhang et al., 2014). From a geopolitical perspective, the choice of the above-listed destinations was partly attributed to the One China policy and the political belief that Macau and Hong Kong were part of the greater China (Guo et al., 2007).
The affective-cognitive states had an impact on the selection of the tourist destination. On the one hand, the cognitive state represented the individual belief regarding a certain tourist destination – such beliefs were premised on the available information regarding the tourist site. On the other hand, personal feelings regarding the tourist location were represented by the affective states (Martín & del Bosque, 2008). A congruence between individual perceptions and knowledge enhanced the holidaymaker's decision to travel to specific destinations despite the fact that such destinations might not feature the best tourist attraction sites. Bekk, Spörrle, & Kruse, (2016) made similar observations. Specifically, the researchers reported that the choice of the tourism destination was dependent on a fit between the individual and the potential site (person object fit).
