Measuring Museum Visitors’ Perceived Value to Predict Word-of-Mouth (WoM) Communication

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Xueyan Cao, Ke Li

Xueyan Cao is a Ph.D. student in Communication at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Her research interests involve the psychological mechanisms during human-machine interaction and the mixed-methods approach.
Ke Li is a researcher at the Wuhan Academy of Social Sciences, having obtained his Ph.D. from Wuhan University. His research focuses on the influence of advanced technologies, including VR and AR.

ABSTRACT
This mixed-method research aims to understand visitors’ perceived value of museum visits and the mechanisms of visitors’ word-of-mouth (WoM) communication, drawing upon psychological sense of brand community. Study 1 aimed to identify and measure the components of visitors’ perceived value of museum visits using semi-structured interviews, an exploratory factor analysis, and a confirmatory factor analysis. Seven dimensions were identified for visitors’ perceived value of museum visits (i.e., education, exhibit, entertainment, leisure, escape, mark, and social), and a scale with 21 items was developed. Study 2 employed structural equation modelling (SEM) to explain the mechanisms influencing WoM. Results revealed that museum brand identification mediated the relationship between the perceived value of museum visits and WoM. However, museum brand identification only positively influenced WoM for non-local visitors rather than local visitors. These findings provide museum management with a comprehensive understanding of museum visitors’ perceptions of their museum visits.
KEYWORDS
Perceived value of museum visits; scale development; word-of-mouth communication; museum brand identification; museum management