Tourists' willingness to contribute to smart tourism: a construal level theory perspective

Purpose Smart tourism has become an inevitable trend in future tourism development. However, despite significant investment in its technological foundation, little is known about whether and when tourists are willing to be involved in smart tourism. This study explores tourists' willingness to contribute to smart tourism development by empirically examining their intention to share personal information and use smart technology. Design/methodology/approach Based on construal level theory (CLT), a 2 (far/near spatial distance) × 2 (gain/loss persuasive information frame) × 2 (altruistic/egoistic value orientation) laboratory experiment with different contextual features was designed to examine tourists' willingness to contribute to smart tourism. Findings Tourists are most willing to share personal information and use smart technologies when spatial distance aligns with information framing, spatial distance aligns with value orientation and information framing aligns with value orientation. Practical implications This study provides essential insights for destination management organizations (DMOs) about tourists' perceptions of smart tourism, enabling DMOs to develop more precise marketing strategies to encourage tourists to contribute to smart tourism development and enrich tourists' travel experiences. Originality/value This study enriches theoretical knowledge of DMOs' boundaries in encouraging tourists to contribute to smart tourism and provides critical insights into future smart tourism development for researchers and practitioners.