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The companion effect on adventure
tourists’satisfaction and subjective
well-being: the moderating role of gender
Lujun Su, Jin Cheng and Scott Swanson
Abstract
Purpose –In an adventure tourism context (i.e. sky diving, bungee jumping) the effect of the absence or
presence of a travel companion; companion relative ability (i.e. perception of a companion’s possessed
resources useful for the achievement of travel goals); and tourist gender on the impact of companion
relative ability on tourists’ satisfaction and subjective well-being is examined. This paper aims to
investigate the mediating role of satisfaction that combines companion relative ability, tourist gender,
tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being.
Design/methodology/approach –This research uses three situational experiments. A one-factor
between-subjects experimental design was used for Study 1. Studies 2 and 3 used a one-factor
between-subjects and a 2 3 factorial between-subjects design. Participants included tourists visiting a
national park in China assigned to scenarios using an anonymous intercept approach and an online
survey.
Findings –Having a companion with greater/comparable relative ability produces a greater effect on
tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being than having a companion with lower relative ability.
Furthermore, the perceived relative ability of a travel companion results in a stronger positive effect on
tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being for female tourists. Meanwhile, satisfaction fully mediates
the impact of the interaction between companion relative ability and tourist gender on subjective well-
being.
Originality/value –The current research validates the companion effect on adventure tourists’
satisfaction and subjective well-being. An additional contribution is an investigation into the effect of
companion relative ability. The study is the only one the authors are aware of that examines the
moderating role of tourist gender on the effect of companion relative ability on tourist satisfaction and
subjective well-being and identifies the mechanism that combines companion relative ability, tourist
gender, tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being.
Keywords Gender, Satisfaction, Subjectivewell-being, Adventure tourism, Companion, Relative ability
Paper type Research paper
同伴效应对冒险旅游者满意度与主观幸福感的影响：性别的调节作用
目标:本研究探讨了在冒险旅游情境下,有旅游同伴和感知同伴相对能力对旅游者满意度和主观幸福感的
影响。
方法:研究1采用了单因子组间设计。研究2采用了一个单因子组间设计和一个23双因子组间设计。
结果:与拥有一个相对能力较低的同伴相比,拥有一个相对能力较高/相等的同伴对旅游满意度和主观幸
福感的影响更大。此外,旅游同伴相对能力感知对女性旅游者的满意度和主观幸福感有较强的正向影响。
同时,满意度完全中介同伴相对能力与旅游者性别之间的交互效应对主观幸福感的影响。
创新性:本研究验证了同伴效应对冒险旅游者满意度和主观幸福感的影响。另一个贡献是对同伴相对能
力影响的研究。本研究是我们唯一所知：1）检验旅游者性别在同伴相对能力对旅游者满意度和主观幸
福感影响中的调节作用;2）考察联结了同伴相对能力、旅游者性别、旅游者满意度和主观幸福感的机
制。
关键词：同伴;相对能力;满意度;主观幸福感;性别;冒险旅游
文章类型：研究型论文
Lujun Su and Jin Cheng are
both based at Business
School, Central South
University, Changsha,
China. Scott Swanson is
based at the University of
Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Eau
Claire, Wisconsin, USA.
Received 2 February 2021
Revised 26 April 2021
23 July 2021
31 August 2021
Accepted 31 August 2021
This work was supported by the
National Natural Science
Foundation of China
(71974206, 71774176,
71573279); National Science
Foundation of Distinguished
Young Scholars of Hunan
Province (2017JJ1032); and
the Consulting and Research
Project of China Academy of
Engineering (2019-Y-037).
DOI 10.1108/TR-02-2021-0063 ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 1660-5373 jTOURISM REVIEW j
El efecto Peer de la satisfacci
on y el bienestar subjetivo de los turistas de aventura: el efecto
moderador del ge
´nero
Prop
osito : Este estudio investig
o la influencia de la capacidad relativa de los pares y la percepci
on de
los pares en la satisfacci
on de los turistas y el bienestar subjetivoen el contexto del Turismo de aventura.
Diseño / metodología / metodología : En el estudio 1 se utiliz
o un disen
˜o experimental de un solo
factor entre sujetos.El estudio 2 utiliz
o un disen
˜o factorial
unico entre sujetos y 2 h3 entre sujetos.
Conclusiones : En comparaci
on con los pares con menor capacidad relativa, los pares con mayor
capacidad relativa tienen un mayor impacto en la satisfacci
on de los turistas y el bienestar subjetivo.
Adem
as, la capacidad relativa percibida de las mujeres turistas hacia sus pares tiene un fuerte efecto
positivo en la satisfacci
on de los turistas y el bienestar subjetivo.Al mismo tiempo, la satisfacci
on
mediaba plenamente la influencia de la interacci
on entre la capacidad relativa de los pares y el ge
´nero
de los turistas en el bienestar subjetivo.
Originalidad : Este estudio verific
o la influencia del efecto Peer en la satisfacci
on y el bienestar subjetivo
de los turistas de aventura.Otra contribuci
on es el estudio de los efectos de lacompetencia relativa entre
pares.Este estudio es el
unico que conocemos: 1) investigar el efecto moderador del ge
´nero de los
turistas en la capacidad relativa de los pares sobre la satisfacci
on de los turistas y el bienestar subjetivo;
2) determinar el mecanismo de combinaci
on de la capacidad relativa de los pares, el ge
´nero de los
turistas, la satisfacci
on de los turistas y El bienestarsubjetivo.
Palabras clave : Compan
˜ero, Capacidad relativa, Satisfacci
on, Bienestar subjetivo, Ge
´nero,
Turismo de aventura
Clasificaci
on de los artículos : Documentos de investigaci
on
Introduction
Tourists are increasingly participating in adventure travel (Han et al.,2020;Navarro-Ruiz
and McKercher, 2020;Prentice, 2020). The growth in adventure tourism has been attributed
to its benefit of improving subjective well-being (Bichler and Mike, 2021;Hung and Wu,
2021) and furthering positive mental health (Buckley et al.,2019). The mental health benefits
of engaging in these types of activities has grown in importance during the COVID-19
pandemic (Buckley and Westaway, 2020).
Adventure travelers anticipate encounters and events that have an element of risk (real or
perceived), stimulation or physical and/or psychological challenges, which impact their
satisfaction and subjective well-being (Cheng et al., 2018;Godovykh et al., 2021;Jin et al.,
2019;Liu et al.,2021). Traveling with a companion is common in tourism (Xie et al., 2021). It
has been reported (Ponte et al., 2021) that most adventure tourism participants (96.2%)
prefer to travel with a companion. Having a travel companion when engaging in adventure
tourism activities may be useful if one is injured, lost or encounters an equipment problem
(Morey and Kritzberg, 2012). However, the presence of a companion may also distract an
individual from their original goals (Borges et al.,2010) or lead to intra-group competition
and increased stress (Morey and Kritzberg, 2012). Hence, there may be value in exploring
how having a travel companion, or not, impacts satisfaction and the subsequent subjective
well-being of adventure tourists.
Having a companion does not directly translate to a tourist obtaining needed support while
engaged in adventure-based tourism activity. This research focuses on companion relative
ability, as provided support depends on the individual resources a companion possesses
(Aron et al.,2004). For instance, traveling with a companion of comparable or more
advanced ability has been shown to be preferred by tourists experiencing a new activity
(Porter and Usher, 2018) and crucial in high-risk situations (Morey and Kritzberg, 2012). It is
suggested here that a companion’s relative ability is an important element that may affect
adventure tourists’ satisfaction and subjective well-being.
Differences between female and male adventure tourists have been identified regarding
participation rates, prior experience, motivation and security concerns (Han et al., 2020;
Hardiman and Burgin, 2011;Tsaur et al., 2020). In a study on canyoning which “involves a
jTOURISM REVIEW j
combination of hiking, abseiling, swimming and rock scrambling” (Hardiman and Burgin,
2011, p. 1324), tourists were less likely to be female, and of those, women were
substantially less likely to be experienced canyoners. In addition, female tourists are more
likely to express security concerns when traveling (Morey and Kritzberg, 2012). Prior
research suggests that the desire for companion resources may differ across genders.
According to spillover theory (Neal et al.,2007), satisfaction impacts subjective well-being.
Additionally, traveling companions can impact tourist satisfaction (Choo and Petrick, 2014).
Given that the effect of companionship on an individual’s subjective well-being has been
validated in other contexts (Krause, 2010), the mediating function of satisfaction concerning
companion (relative ability), tourist gender and tourist subjective well-being in the adventure
tourism context has yet to be studied.
Grounded in the stress-buffering model, we conducted a preliminary study examining the
effect of the absence or presence of a travel companion on tourists’ satisfaction and
subjective well-being. Building on this finding, we investigated the effect of the relative
ability of a companion on tourists’ satisfaction and subjective well-being according to the
self-expansion model. Moreover, we also explored the effect of tourist gender on the impact
of companion relative ability on satisfaction and subjective well-being. In addition, the
mediating role of satisfaction that combines companion relative ability, tourist gender,
tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being was investigated. Overall, our research
provides a better understanding of the companion effect in adventure tourism while
contributing to the broader tourism and adventure recreation literature.
Theoretical background and hypotheses
Companions in adventure tourism, satisfaction and subjective well-being
Companions are an important part of the travel experience, playing a critical role in the
tourist’s customer journey (Su et al.,2020;Su, Cheng and Swanson, 2020). A travel
companion (e.g. friend, family member, tour member) is a person who travels with the
tourist and may provide nonmaterial (e.g. emotional encouragement, relationship
enhancement, information) and/or material support (Wang et al., 2019;Yang and Tung,
2018). Tourists and their companions share similar travel goals. As such, tour guides,
whose behaviors are motivated by economic benefits, cannot be regarded as companions,
but members from tour groups can be (Tang et al.,2020).
To overcome interpersonal and intrapersonal constraints, Chen et al. (2016) suggests that
having a travel companion is important when engaging in nature-based tourist activities.
Adventure tourists, in particular, are driven by the desire to take risks, seek new knowledge
and pursue self-development (Ponte et al., 2021). These pursuits often occur in situations
where the tourist has limited control over the risks encountered when engaging in adventure
tourism-based activities (Carnicelli-Filho et al.,2010). Travel companions can aid in
mitigating anxiety caused by this sensed lack of control (Frye, 2018).
The expectancy-disconfirmation model posits that satisfaction is dependent on a
comparison of performance perceptions with expectations and is “a judgment that a
product or service feature, or the product or service itself, provides a pleasurable level of
consumption-related fulfilment, including levels of under or over fulfilment” (Oliver, 1997,
p. 13). Tourist satisfaction comprises the emotional reactions and cognitive appraisals that
result from experiences obtained at a destination (Leri and Theodoridis, 2020). The
availability of social support from companions is assumed to lessen (i.e. buffer) the impact
of perceived stress from adventure tourism (Morey and Kritzberg, 2012). The stress-
buffering model suggests that travel companions can act as buffering agents, resulting in a
positive impact on tourists’ emotions (Wang et al.,2019). Lack of a companion can make
adventure tourism more challenging and less secure, reducing tourists’ confidence (Tsaur
et al.,2013
;Yang, 2020).
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Subjective well-being, referring to happiness and life satisfaction, has been examined as an
overall perspective, as well as via composite scores that capture different domains, such as
leisure life and social life (Kazakov and Oyner, 2020;Uysal et al.,2016). Adventure tourism
is regarded as a distinct type of leisure domain that has been linked to subjective well-being
in prior tourism research (Hung and Wu, 2021) as it often includes activities that involve
physical and mental challenges that result in a greater sense of self-fulfillment (Buckley,
2020).
Travel often includes human interaction, with the maintenance and enhancement of
relationships providing social companionship, decreasing loneliness (Kleiber et al.,2002)
and promoting well-being (Fullagar and Brown, 2003). The emotional and social value
provided by companionship is associated with greater levels of psychological well-being
(Krause, 2010). Shared engagement with companions in adventure tourism should be
positively related to higher levels of subjective well-being as follows (Frye, 2018):
H1. Adventure tourists traveling with a companion will report a significantly greater level
of positive satisfaction.
H2. Adventure tourists traveling with a companion will report a significantly greater level
of subjective well-being.
Companion relative ability, satisfaction and subjective well-being
Morey and Kritzberg (2012) point out “it is not where you do it, it is who you do it with”
(p. 176), suggesting the importance of travel companion attributes. With respect to
safety and social value, companion relative ability is important in adventure activities
(Porter and Usher, 2018). Companion ability is a relative perspective that includes
the following three levels: lower than, comparable to and greater than. In this paper,
we consider companion relative ability as the perception of a companion’s
possessed resources, which can help tourists achieve their traveling goals.
Resources are “any item, concrete or symbolic, which can become the object of
exchange among people” (Foa and Foa, 1980, p. 78). Specifically, resources include
knowledge (conceptual/informational/procedural), material assets and/or social
resources (Aron et al., 2004).
Expanding the self-enhances one’s ability to accomplish goals through acquiring others’
resources (Aron et al.,2004). Self-expansion theory suggests that one’s sense of self needs
to continually develop over time to obtain satisfaction with life. The foundation for achieving
self-expansion lies with other people who can provide needed resources. Through a
companion’s resources (e.g. instrumental support and emotional support) tourists’ self-
expansion is achieved (achieving traveling goals) and positive affect experienced (Aron
et al., 2004). Meanwhile, tourists perceive that the companions who have the greater ability
have the skills to avoid potential negative outcomes associated with adventure tourism
(Rusbult et al., 2000). For example, tourists whose companions are skydivers will have
higher levels of subjective well-being compared to those whose companions are not
skydivers (Frye, 2018).
In line with social comparison theory, individuals prefer people who are like themselves
(Festinger, 1954). Some adventure tourism studies have reported that having a companion
whose relative ability is comparable is favored (Morey and Kritzberg, 2012;Porter and
Usher, 2018), as the resources exchanged would increase an individuals’ satisfaction and
subjective well-being (Choo and Petrick, 2014).
However, when the relative ability of a companion is lower, adventure tourists may face
greater challenges and be less likely to achieve their traveling goals as expected (Tsaur
et al., 2013), therefore reducing their satisfaction and subjective well-being (Zhu et al.,
2020). For instance, undertaking adventure tourism as a family can be difficult given that
jTOURISM REVIEW j
satisfaction is contingent on the accessibility of activities for each family member, and there
will be differences among family members’ abilities as follows (Scha
¨nzel and Yeoman,
2014):
H3. The greater the perceived companion relative ability, the greater an adventure
tourist’s satisfaction.
H4. The greater the perceived companion relative ability, the greater an adventure
tourist’s subjective well-being.
The moderating role of tourist gender
Gender differences in tourism experience have been previously identified (Az
ˇi
c and Sus
ˇtar,
2021;Higham, 2020;Pung et al.,2020;Yang et al.,2017). For example, female tourists
have been found to pay more attention to security concerns (Morris et al.,2018;Wantono
and McKercher, 2020). Travel risks have a positive effect on female tourists’ anxiety, yet
psychological-social support weakens this effect, promoting subjective well-being (Karago
¨z
et al., 2020;Kim and Lee, 2011). Therefore, female tourists may seek out more support
relative to men (Buckley and Westaway, 2020) and may, thus achieve higher satisfaction
and subjective well-being once their needs are satisfied according to the expectancy-
disconfirmation model (Oliver, 1997). When travel companion ability is greater than or
comparable to tourists themselves, psychological-social support may convey from travel
companion to tourist.
Competitive and cooperative relationships exist between adventure tourists and their
travel companions (Tsaur et al.,2020). Competing with a more competent or evenly
matched companion can be challenging (Ali-Haapala et al.,2020), especially for male
tourists who have higher competitive awareness (Buser et al.,2021). Thus, the interaction
effect between a companion’s relative ability and tourist gender should be considered in
contexts where participants may perceive that they have limited control over the perceived
risks associated with the activity. That is, female tourists may feel greater satisfaction and
subjective well-being than male tourists when traveling with a companion who has relative
ability greater than or similar to their own as follows:
H5. The gender of the tourist will moderate the effect of companion relative ability on
adventure tourist satisfaction (The greater the companion’s relative ability, the
greater the female adventure tourist’s satisfaction).
H6. The gender of the tourist will moderate the effect of companion relative ability on
adventure tourist subjective well-being (The greater the companion’s relative ability,
the greater the female adventure tourist’s subjective well-being).
The mediating role of satisfaction
According to spillover theory, leisure-based satisfaction can vertically spill over to overall
subjective well-being (Neal et al.,2007). Specifically, tourists’ subjective well-being is
affected by their satisfaction with destination experiences (Su et al.,2015) which travel
companions impact (Tung and Ritchie, 2011). Moreover, once female tourists have
achieved greater satisfaction with a companion of greater/comparable ability, that
satisfaction will spill over to her subjective well-being. Hence, we infer that satisfaction will
mediate the interaction effect between companion relative ability and tourist gender on
subjective well-being as follows:
H7. Adventure tourists’ satisfaction will mediate the interaction effect between
companion relative ability and tourist gender on subjective well-being.
A model of the investigated relationships is provided in Figure 1.
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Methodology and overview of studies
Experiments are adept in capturing dependent variable changes caused by psychological
processes (Viglia and Dolnicar, 2020), including companion effects across differing
contexts (Su et al.,2020). This research uses three situational experiments to test the
proposed hypotheses. Specifically, Study 1 tests H1 and H2,Study2testsH3 through H7.
To improve external validity the first two studies recruited tourists outside of a laboratory
setting (Su et al.,2020). To advance the generalizability of results, Study 3 controls the
confounding effect of companion gender and the familiarity of adventure tourism activities
while testing H3–H7 using stimuli and respondents that vary from Study 2.
Study 1
Method
Study 1 investigates whether the presence of a companion affects tourist satisfaction and
subjective well-being (i.e. H1–H2). A one-factor between-subjects experimental design
(companion vs no companion) was used where participants were presented with one of two
scenarios. In each scenario, the participant was told that they had taken a skydiving trip a
few days ago. In the companion scenario, participants were informed that they were
accompanied throughout the trip by a friend. In the no-companion scenario, participants
were informed that they experienced the activity alone.
Tourists visiting a national park in China (i.e. Yuelu Mountain) were the participants for this
study. The data collecting procedure used an anonymous intercept sampling method. All
tourists seated at two different rest areas were approached over the same time periods on the
same day and asked if they had an interest in anonymously being part of an academic
experiment. After reading the provided scenario, each participant was asked to complete a test
for scenario authenticity adopted from Liao (2007), which asked “In real life, such a scene as
described could realistically happen” (Yes/No), and a manipulation check that asked the
participant to indicate if they were traveling alone in the scenario (Yes/No). Participants were
then asked about their satisfaction (Spreng et al.,1996), subjective well-being (Su et al., 2015)
and if they had previously engaged in adventure tourism experiences and were familiar with
adventure tourism activities (i.e. I often engage in adventure tourism activity) (Tsaur et al.,
2020). The questionnaire concluded with questions to obtain demographic information.
Results
In total, 75 participants reported having prior adventure tourism experiences (n
companion
=40,
n
no companion
= 35). Participants were 52.0% female with 64% reporting they had earned an
Figure 1 Theoretical model
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associate or bachelor’s degree and representing a range of monthly incomes (Table 1).
Most of the participants (72%) indicated that the scenarios were realistic, and
the manipulation of the presence of a companion was successful (
x
2
[1] = 35.58,
p<0.001). The scales demonstrated acceptable reliabilities (
a
satisfaction
= 0.952;
a
subjective well-being
=0.964).
Controlling for the familiarity of adventure tourism activities, a one-way analysis of
covariance ANCOVA indicated that satisfaction for the participants having a companion
was significantly [F
(1, 72)
= 8.50, p= 0.005] higher than for those having no companion
(M
companion
= 5.44, standard deviation SD = 1.37;
M
no companion
= 4.44, SD = 1.64). For subjective well-being, the participants of the
companion treatment reported significantly [F
(1, 72)
=5.58,p= 0.021] higher scores
compared to the no companion group (M
companion
= 5.05, SD = 1.39; M
no companion
=4.23,
SD = 1.71. H1 and H2 were supported (Figure 2).
Figure 2 Study 2 companion, satisfaction and subjective well-being
5.68 5.53
5.43 5.31
4.79 4.68
0.00
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
Satisfaction Subjective well-being
Greater
Comparable
Lower
Table 1 Participants’characteristics
Study 1 Study 2 Study 3
Characteristics n (%) n (%) n (%)
Gender
Female 36 52.0 107 49.8 158 54.7
Male 39 48.0 108 50.2 131 45.3
Monthly income
<¥2,000 20 26.7 53 24.7 20 6.9
¥2,000–¥4,999 12 16.0 65 30.2 50 17.3
¥5,000–¥7,999 24 32.0 57 26.5 101 34.9
¥8,000–¥9,999 9 12.0 23 10.7 78 27.0
¥10,000 10 13.3 17 7.9 40 13.8
Age in Years
18 to 25 36 48.0 105 48.8 51 17.6
26 to 35 22 29.3 83 38.6 195 67.5
36 to 45 11 14.7 13 6.0 36 12.5
46 and older 6 8.0 14 6.5 7 2.4
Level of education
Less than high school 1 1.3 12 5.6 2 0.7
High school/technical school 9 12.0 29 13.5 19 6.6
Undergraduate/associates degree 48 64.0 131 60.9 247 85.5
Postgraduate degree 17 22.7 43 20.0 21 7.3
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Study 2
Method
Study 2 used a one-factor between-subjects (greater vs comparable vs lower relative
ability) and a 2 (female vs male) 3 (greater vs comparable vs lower relative ability)
factorial between-subjects design. The gender variable was based on participants’ self-
report, with relative ability being manipulated in the provided scenarios. The base
descriptions are the same as in Study 1 except that the scenario includes whether the
companion is much more experienced, has the comparable ability, or is much less
experienced with skydiving.
Tourists visiting a national park in China (i.e. Yuelu Mountain) were the participants for this
study. The sampling procedure was similar to Study 1, participants were randomly
assigned to one of three scenarios using an anonymous intercept survey. After reading
the provided scenario, each respondent was asked to complete a five-part questionnaire
similar to Study 1 but updated with a manipulation check to verify the appropriate
communication of the companion relative ability of their companions (greater/comparable/
lower).
Results
Participants reported a range of monthly incomes, were evenly split based on gender
(50.2% male) and 60.9% indicated they had earned an associate or bachelor’s degree
(Table 1). Most of the participants (74.4%) indicated that the scenarios were realistic, the
manipulation of companion relative ability was successful (
x
2
[4] = 129.74, p<0.001) and
scales reliable (
a
satisfaction
=0.906;
a
subjective well-being
= 0.941). Deleting questionnaires from
participants who reported not having adventure tourism experiences, 215 valid
questionnaires were collected as follows: greater relative ability (n
female
= 35, n
male
= 40),
comparable relative ability (n
female
= 31, n
male
= 36), lower relative ability (n
female
= 41, n
male
= 32).
The main effect analysis
Controlling for the familiarity of adventure tourism activities, one-way ANCOVA findings
suggest statistically significant differences (p<0.001) for satisfaction [F
(2, 211)
= 11.70] and
subjective well-being [F
(2, 211)
= 10.17] between the relative ability groups. H3 and H4 are
supported (Figure 3). Conducting a post hoc analysis using a Bonferroni correction for
multiple comparisons confirms that satisfaction for the greater relative ability (M
greater
=
5.68, SD = 1.13, p<0.001) and comparable relative ability groups (M
comparable
=5.43,
SD = 1.17, p= 0.004) was significantly greater than for the lower relative ability group
(M
lower
= 4.79, SD = 1.14). There was no significant (p>0.1) difference between the
Figure 3 Study 2 companion relative ability, satisfaction and subjective well-being
5.68 5.53
5.43 5.31
4.79 4.68
0.00
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
Satisfaction Subjective well-being
Greater
Comparable
Lower
jTOURISM REVIEW j
satisfaction of the greater relative ability and comparable relative ability groups. Similarly,
the subjective well-being of the greater relative ability (M
greater
= 5.53, SD = 1.20, p<0.001)
and comparable relative ability groups (M
comparable
= 5.31, SD = 1.21, p= 0.005) was
significantly greater than for the lower relative ability group (M
lower
= 4.68, SD = 1.14). There
was no significant (p>0.1) difference between subjective well-being of the greater relative
ability and comparable relative ability groups.
The moderating effect analysis
A23 ANCOVA with companion relative ability and tourist gender as the independent
variables and the dependent variables of satisfaction/subjective well-being was used to
assess H5 and H6. A significant interaction [F
(2, 208)
= 3.36; p= 0.037] on satisfaction was
found, supporting H5 (Figure 4). A simple effect analysis was conducted to confirm the
moderating effect direction. The effect of companion relative ability on tourists’ satisfaction
was significant for the female tourists condition [F
(2, 208)
= 13.82, p<0.001]. More
specifically, greater relative ability (M = 5.83, SD = 1.03) was significantly higher than lower
relative ability [M = 4.49, SD = 0.84, p<0.001], comparable relative ability (M = 5.40, SD =
1.04) was significantly higher than lower relative ability (p= 0.003) and there were no
significant differences between greater relative ability and comparable relative ability
(p>0.1). In the condition of male tourists, the effect of companion relative ability on tourists’
satisfaction was not significant [F
(2, 208)
= 1.03, p>0.1]. There were no significant
differences between the greater (M = 5.56, SD = 1.21), comparable (M = 5.45, SD = 1.29)
and lower (M = 5.18, SD = 1.35) relative ability groups.
A marginally significant interaction effect (i.e. pfrom 0.05 to 0.1) on subjective well-being
was identified [F
(2, 208)
=2.53,p= 0.08] (Figure 5). A simple effect analysis was conducted
to verify the direction of the moderating effect. In the condition of female tourists, the
effect of the companion’s relative ability on tourists’ subjective well-being was significant
[F
(2, 208)
= 11.47, p<0.001]. More specifically, greater relative ability (M = 5.74, SD = 1.03)
was significantly higher than lower relative ability (M = 4.46, SD = 0.83, p<0.001),
comparable relative ability (M = 5.29, SD = 1.19) was significantly higher than lower relative
ability (p= 0.011), and there were no significant differences between greater relative ability
and comparable relative ability (p>0.1). In the condition of male tourists, the effect of
companion relative ability on tourists’ subjective well-being was not significant [F
(2, 208)
=
1.20, p>0.1]. There were no significant differences between the greater (M = 5.35 SD =
1.31), comparable (M = 5.32, SD = 1.24) and lower (M = 4.95, SD = 1.41) relative ability
groups.
Figure 4 Study 2 the interaction effect of comparable relative ability and tourist gender on
satisfaction
5.56 5.45
5.18
5.83
5.40
4.49
4.25
4.50
4.75
5.00
5.25
5.50
5.75
6.00
Greater Comparable Lower
Male
Female
jTOURISM REVIEW j
The moderated mediation analysis
A moderated mediation test was performed by means of bootstrapping (Hayes, 2018)with
5,000 replications and a 95% confidence interval. In Hayes Model 8, tourist gender served
as the moderator for the effect of companion relative ability on subjective well-being and
satisfaction served as the mediator. The effect of the relative ability of a travel companion
on subjective well-being was mediated overall by satisfaction (b = 0.33, SE = 0.13;
95% CI: 0.60 to 0.09). Findings supported H7. Decomposing the mediation analysis
based on gender indicates a significant mediation for women (b = 0.46, standard error SE
= 0.09;
95% CI: 0.64 to 0.30), but not for men (b = 0.13, SE = 0.11; 95% CI: 0.34 to 0.08).
Study 3
Method
Study 3 used the same factorial between-subjects design as Study 2. The gender variable
was based on participants’ self-report, with relative ability again being manipulated in the
provided scenarios. In each scenario, the participant was told that they had taken a bungee
jumping trip a few days previously.
Potential participants (n= 360) were contacted using the online survey platform Credamo
and given one week to respond to the survey request. In total, 289 valid questionnaires
were collected from participants who reported having adventure tourism experiences for an
80.3% response rate. After reading the provided scenario, each respondent was asked to
complete a five-part questionnaire similar to Study 2 but updated with questions regarding
companion gender (i.e. What was the companion’s gender you imagined in the scenario?)
and bungee jumping experience (i.e. How many times have you experienced bungee
jumping? When was you last bungee jumping experience?). Respondents were randomly
assigned to one of the following three scenarios: greater relative ability (n
female
= 47, n
male
=
47), comparable relative ability (n
female
=52,n
male
= 46), lower relative ability (n
female
=46,
n
male
=51).
Results
Participants reported a range of monthly incomes, were evenly split based on gender
(50.2% female) and 84.8% indicated they had earned an associate or bachelor’s degree
(Table 1). Most of the participants (87.5%) indicated that the scenarios were realistic, the
Figure 5 Study 2 the interaction effect of comparable relative ability and tourist gender on
subjective well-being
5.35 5.32
4.95
5.74
5.29
4.46
4.25
4.50
4.75
5.00
5.25
5.50
5.75
6.00
Greater Comparable Lower
Male
Female
jTOURISM REVIEW j
manipulation of companion relative ability was successful (
x
2
[4] = 476.77, p<0.001) and
scales reliable (
a
satisfaction
= 0.923;
a
subjective well-being
= 0.902).
Controlling for the familiarity of adventure tourism activities (i.e. the last time and the
frequency of bungee jumping) and companion gender, one-way ANCOVA findings suggest
statistically significant differences (p<0.001) for satisfaction [F
(2, 283)
=23.19;M
greater
=
5.73, SD = 0.82; M
comparable
= 5.52, SD = 0.99; M
lower
= 4.47, SD = 1.62] and subjective
well-being [F
(2, 283)
=12.70;M
greater
= 5.56, SD = 0.95; M
comparable
=5.33,SD=1.06;M
lower
=
4.60, SD = 1.51] between the relative ability groups. H3 and H4 are again supported.
A23 ANCOVA with companion relative ability and tourist gender as the independent
variables and the dependent variables of satisfaction/subjective well-being was used to re-
assess H5 and H6. A significant interaction [F
(2, 280)
= 8.64; p<0.001] on satisfaction was
found, supporting H5. A simple effect analysis was conducted to confirm the moderating
effect direction. The effect of companion relative ability on tourists’ satisfaction was
significant for the female tourists condition [F
(2, 280)
= 28.71, p<0.001]. More specifically,
there were statistically significant (p<0.001) differences between each of the relative ability
levels (M
greater
= 5.97, SD = 0.59; M
comparable
= 5.71, SD = 0.74; M
lower
= 4.03, SD = 1.62).
In the condition of male tourists, the effect of companion relative ability on tourists’
satisfaction was not significant [F
(2, 280)
= 2.26, p>0.1]. There were no statistically
significant differences between the greater (M = 5.49, SD = 0.94), comparable (M = 5.32,
SD = 1.18) and lower (M = 4.86, SD = 1.53) relative ability groups.
A significant interaction effect on subjective well-being was identified [F
(2, 280)
= 5.19, p=
0.006]. A simple effect analysis was conducted to verify the direction of the moderating
effect. In the condition of female tourists, the effect of companion relative ability on tourists’
subjective well-being was significant [F
(2, 280)
= 15.37, p<0.001]. More specifically, greater
relative ability (M = 5.70, SD = 0.85) and comparable relative ability (M = 5.54, SD = 0.88)
were significantly higher (p<0.001), than lower relative ability (M = 4.28, SD = 1.51). There
were no significant differences between greater relative ability and comparable relative
ability (p>0.1). In the condition of male tourists, the effect of companion relative ability on
tourists’ subjective well-being was not significant [F
(2, 280)
= 1.66, p>0.1]. There were no
significant differences between the greater (M = 5.39 SD = 1.02), comparable (M = 5.09,
SD = 1.21) and lower (M = 4.90, SD = 1.48) relative ability groups. The findings provide
additional support for H6.
A moderated mediation test was performed by means of bootstrapping (Hayes, 2018) with
5,000 replications and a 95% confidence interval. In Hayes Model 8, tourist gender served
as the moderator for the effect of companion relative ability on subjective well-being and
satisfaction served as the mediator. The effect of the relative ability of a travel companion
on subjective well-being was mediated overall by satisfaction (b = 0.49, SE = 0.15;
95% CI: 0.78 to 0.20). Findings again supported H7.
Discussion
Study 1 findings suggest that adventure tourists traveling with a companion may experience
greater satisfaction and subjective well-being (i.e. the companion effect does exist in
adventure tourism). Prior adventure tourism research has examined travel companions
simply as a descriptive variable (Ponte et al.,2021) or deduced the companion’s symbolic
supportive function qualitatively (Buckley and Westaway, 2020). Considering the inherent
physical and/or psychological challenges in adventure tourism, this study focused on the
social support provided by a travel companion based on the stress-buffering model. Study
1 findings provide empirical evidence for the companion effect in adventure tourism.
Whether travel companions can provide support is related to their relative ability. Study 2
and Study 3 results imply that a companion with greater or comparable relative ability
positively impacts tourists’ satisfaction and subjective well-being. These results further
jTOURISM REVIEW j
deepen our knowledge of the companion effect in adventure tourism by exploring
companion attributes as suggested by Porter and Usher (2018). The perceived risks
associated with adventure tourism can increase the importance of psychological resources
or knowledge support from a travel companion (Wang et al., 2019;Yang and Tung, 2018).
Our findings suggest that travel companions with comparable relative ability are favored, in
line with social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954) and existing studies (Morey and
Kritzberg, 2012;Porter and Usher, 2018). However, we also found that a companion with
greater relative ability will improve tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being. This may
be due to tourists achieving greater self-expansion through their companions’ resources.
Furthermore, Study 2 and Study 3 findings also suggest that the impact of companion
relative ability on female tourists’ satisfaction and subjective well-being is greater. The
mechanism that ties companion relative ability and tourist’s subjective well-being through
satisfaction is validated to be greater for female tourists, even when controlling for
companion gender, disclosing a boundary condition of companion effect in adventure
tourism. The reported findings in this research provide empirical evidence to Buckley and
Westaway’s (2020) contention that companions can provide psychological rescue. As such,
a travel companion who provides resources lacking in the other travel participant will drive
satisfaction, which then spills over to greater subjective well-being for women.
Conclusions
From a theoretical perspective, the current research validates a positive, but not negative,
companion effect on adventure tourists’ satisfaction and subjective well-being grounded in
the stress-buffering model. An additional contribution of this study is the investigation into
the influence of the relative ability of a companion based on the self-expansion model. The
findings enrich our understanding of important antecedents to tourism satisfaction and
further propels the research on tourist subjective well-being, contributing to greater
knowledge on the companion effect in adventure tourism, as well as providing empirical
support for the stress-buffering and self-expansion models. Finally, tourist gender was
investigated as a boundary condition and the mediating role of satisfaction was also
explored. This is the first study we are aware of to examine the moderating function of tourist
gender on the influence of companion relative ability on tourist satisfaction and subjective
well-being, which adds to the theoretical work on social companionship in adventure
tourism.
From a practical perspective, this study suggests strategies for promoting adventure
tourism products within a fiercely competitive market. Managers of adventure tourism
products should consider strategically encouraging potential tourists to travel with a
companion by, for instance, offering reduced rates for paired bookings or offering
additional perks such as private or customized experiences. Meanwhile, as differences in
travel companion ability will impact tourist satisfaction and subjective well-being,
destinations should not only identify the ability levels of paired tourists but also provide
supportive resources if needed through activity ability training. To cater to the varying skill
levels of tourists, managers should consider providing a variety of activities and/or
educational/training approaches based on an individual’s ability. An improved
understanding of the variety of required abilities when engaging in adventure tourism is
needed. Additionally, gender can serve as an important segmentation variable for
adventure-based tourist destinations as demonstrated by the significant differences
identified in this research.
This study, despite its contributions, used relatively small samples of Chinese adventure
tourists. Researchers might consider larger sample sizes that include respondents from
countries outside of Asia to better identify the generalizability of the findings and/or detect
possible cultural differences. Furthermore, although this research used scenarios to obtain
data effectively and efficiently from participants with adventure tourism experience, it needs
jTOURISM REVIEW j
to be recognized that engaging in an adventure tourism-based activity may be experienced
differently than when imagining it (Viglia and Dolnicar, 2020). An investigation of the findings
in this research regarding differences between an emergency situation, in which the traveler
may be incapable of handling themselves, and the more common occurrence of having the
presence of a companion to ease some of the difficult tasks when engaged in adventure
tourism would also be interesting. In addition, the tourist-to-companion interaction is
dependent not only on companion ability (although of significant importance) but also on
additional companion attributes which could be explored. There is a need to examine the
investigated relationships from a gender perspective, and in particular, more research is
needed regarding the growing number of solo female travelers and the impact of security
concerns (i.e. safety risk). In addition, companion relative ability as defined in this study
suggests a companion possesses useful resources but not whether they are willing to use
those resources. It is also important to consider that a tie between a tourist and a
companion might cause both positive and negative effects and might not necessarily have
something to do with relative ability. Ability is one important consideration, but the
communication/social component between a tourist and a companion is something very
different and might cause very different effects. Moreover, familiarity within a travel group
formed by tourists and their companions could be an interesting avenue to investigate in
future studies.
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pp. 507-516, available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2017.1363685
Zhu, M., Gao, J., Zhang, L. and Jin, S. (2020), “Exploring tourists’ stress and coping strategies in leisure
travel”, Tourism Management, Vol. 81, available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2020.104167
Further reading
Sirgy, M.J. (2019), “Promoting quality-of-life and well-being research in hospitality and tourism”, Journal
of Travel & Tourism Marketing, Vol. 36 No. 1, pp. 1-13, available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/
10548408.2018.1526757
About the authors
Lujun Su holds a PhD in Tourism Management from Xiamen University and is Associate
Professor of Marketing in the Business School Central South University; Collaborative
Innovation Center of Resource-conserving and Environment-friendly Society and Ecological
Civilization). His research interests are related to tourist loyalty behavior, destination
marketing and destination management.
Jin Cheng is a PhD candidate of marketing at the Business School Central South University.
Her current research interests are consumer behavior and destination marketing.
Scott Swanson (PhD, University of Kentucky) is a Professor of Marketing at the University of
Wisconsin-Eau Claire. His research interests include sports and hospitality/tourism
marketing, service recovery issues and pedagogy. Scott Swanson is the corresponding
author and can be contacted at: swansosr@uwec.edu
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