Impact of Sharing Economy on Customer Purchasing Intention in the Hotel Industry in Sri Lanka

Abstract

As a result of the phenomenal growth of the sharing economy in the tourism industry, investigating its impacts on travellers and tourist destinations is of paramount importance. Accordingly this study attempts to measure the impact of sharing economy on customer purchasing intention in the hotel industry. Based on a survey targeting foreign tourists from the Southern province, it was identified that economic benefit, sustainability consideration, trustworthiness, local experience & facilitating conditions significantly impact on customer purchasing intention in the hotel industry. The statistical outputs revealed out of the five main factors, trustworthiness and economic benefits were identified as to be the most impactful variables on customer purchasing intention. Even though the importance of these variables has been different from country to country the situation prevailing within the Sri Lankan context has been identified here. Further the empirical evidence from this study suggests several theoretical and practical implications for the tourism and hospitality businesses and directions for future research.