Experimental investigation of the impact of a destination promotional video with physiological and self-reported measures

This experimental study addresses the effect of a destination promotional video on tourists' perceptions, attitudes, and intent to visit that destination depending on the viewing mode of the video: traditional versus semi-immersive. Two approaches were used to examine this effect: self-reported cognitive evaluations obtained via questionnaires and psychophysiological measures such as galvanic skin response (GSR) and heart rate. The context of this study was the country of Bahrain. Fifty-eight people participated in the experiment and were randomly assigned to either traditional or semi-immersive group. The study found that the overall effect of the promotional video was quite large; however, the viewing mode was not a factor in the effect of the video. The study also found that psychophysiological measures and self-reported measures were not in complete agreement with each other. Both affective and cognitive appraisals were responsible for the posttest change in participants' perceptions and overall attitude toward the destination.