Examination of the Relationship Between Professional Competence, Experiential Value and Behavioral Intention: A Research on Local Tourists Receiving Tourist Guidance Service

Abstract

This study aimed to reveal how the perceived professional competence level of tourist guides affects the experiential values of tourists during the tour and their behavioral intentions after the tour. It has also been tried to determine whether an experiential value has a mediating effect between perceived professional competence and behavioral intention. For this purpose, a quantitative research approach was adopted in the research and a questionnaire technique was used to collect primary data. A survey was conducted on the domestic tourists who participated in the package tours accompanied by tourist guides for the South Eastern Anatolian Region and the Eastern Anatolian Region. As a result of the research, it was determined that the perceived professional competence of tourist guides has a positive effect on the experiential values and behavioral intentions of the tourists during the tour. In addition, it has been observed that the experiential value of the tourists as a result of the guidance service they receive within the scope of the package tour has a positive effect on their behavioral intentions. When the mediating effect of experiential value between professional competence and behavioral intention is examined, it has been determined that experiential value has a full mediator effect.