Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

 
Factor Analysis 
Since quality of tourism experience is measured by different phases of vacation process, factor analysis was 
employed for each dimension of the overall tourism experience construct, i.e., pre-trip planning experience, en-route 
experience, on-site experience, and after-trip reflection. The items for each dimension were tested using factor 

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2007 Annual International CHRIE Conference & Exposition 
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analysis utilizing a principal components analysis with varimax rotation. The analysis results indicated substantial 
explained variance for each dimension (sub-construct): pre-trip planning experience (55.75%), en-route experience 
(58.76%), on-site instrumental experience (59.61%), on-site expressive experience (52.97%), and after-trip 
reflection (61.45%). The reliability coefficients (Cronbach’s alpha) for these five dimensions (sub-constructs) were 
.69, .83, .84, .76, and .76 respectively, which all matched or exceeded the recommended reliability score of .70 (Hair 
et al., 1998).
The measurement items of perceived destination competitiveness were also factor analyzed utilizing a 
principal components analysis with varimax rotation to identify the underlying dimensions. Five factors of perceived 
destination competitiveness were derived to represent the data and were retained for further analysis: Accessibility 
and Information Availability, Environment, Tourism Attributes, Price and Value, Destination Management and 
Marketing, which jointly explained 60.47% of the total variance. The reliability coefficients (Cronbach’s alpha) 
ranged from .60 to .86, indicating satisfactory reliability result.