Optimal order: The influence of tourist-generated content message-sidedness orders on tourist travel intentions

The characteristics and order of tourist-generated content may lead to uncertain changes in tourists’ expectations and travel intentions. By referring to the order effect and regret theory, this study takes the message-sidedness of tourist-generated content as the message characteristic and analyses whether and how the order effect of tourist-generated content sidedness affects potential tourist travel intentions by conducting three experiments. The results indicate an order effect of tourist-generated content message-sidedness on travel intention and that expected pleasure and regret play different mediating roles. Furthermore, the order of two-sided messages followed by positive one-sided messages will most likely stimulate travel intention. Nevertheless, the change of travel intention between the initial and final stages in this order is not significant. This paper enriches the research and perspectives on tourist-generated content and provides sound advice for the scientific observation and use of tourist-generated content.