Bloggers are becoming increasingly relevant in consumers' decisions, particularly travel decisions. This study has investigated the influence of bloggers across cultures and from different theoretical perspectives. Drawing upon source credibility, uses and gratification theory, and content engagement constructs, we propose an integrated model of bloggers' influence investigating the role of credibility, motivations and engagement in the information adoption process of travel blog readers. Results from a survey of Italian and American consumers show that blogger credibility positively influences hedonic and utilitarian motivations to read a blogger post, but it does not affect digital engagement. Further, hedonic and utilitarian motivations significantly affect blog engagement (utilitarian motivation's influence not significant in the Italian sample), which, in turn, positively influences both continued use and electronic word of mouth (eWOM). Moreover, continued use influences information adoption in both samples. The study contributes to knowledge about the interplay between source credibility, utilitarian and hedonic motivations, and engagement on consumers' intentions (i.e., information adoption, eWOM, continued use) in the context of blogging.

1 INTRODUCTION

Blogging has become a global phenomenon thanks to the persuasive role gained by a number of bloggers who have reached a high level of recognition and credibility (Johnson & Kaye, 2004). There are over 600 million active blogs on the Internet, and travel is among the most relevant blogging topics (Wix, 2021). Travelers increasingly use digital channels to search for information, but increasingly share their travel experiences (Filieri et al., 2021). The tourism product is a complex and a high involvement one; tourists have to collect information about many aspects before traveling from the choice of the destination to the attractions to visit at the destination (Smallman & Moore, 2010; Wong & Yeh, 2009). Furthermore, tourism is an intangible experiential product with different types of risk, including financial, security, social, and psychological risks.

Blogs are a type of user-generated content, which is perceived as more trustworthy than marketing communications (Filieri, 2016), can create expectations about tourism destinations (Narangajavana et al., 2017; Sánchez-Franco & Rey-Moreno, 2021), and helps consumers familiarize themselves with the products and services they want to buy (Filieri, 2015). Travel blogs have a strong impact on social media users, who can alter their destination choice if their friends share a negative opinion about it (Lozanov, 2018; Ortaleza & Mangali, 2021). Suggestions, tips, and advice from other travelers who have already experienced a specific tourist destination and can narrate their experience in a sincere and entertaining way can reduce information asymmetry, consumers' perceived risks, and improve the quality of their purchases (Zehrer et al., 2011).

The influential power of bloggers on consumers has captivated academics and triggered interest in understanding what makes a blogger influential. When blog creators have started monetizing their posting activity, the boundaries between commercial and noncommercial online content become blurred (Campbell & Evans, 2018), which have raised questions about the reliability and authenticity of blog posts. At present, both expert authors and novices to the blog world can express an opinion and spread it to global audiences with whom they can dialog online (Blaer et al., 2020). Accordingly, anybody can become a blogger, which means that travel blogs vary for content quality, credibility, and degree of engagement with their audience. Hence, the propagation and diversity of blogs, concurrently with the rising questions about their trustworthiness, increase the importance of their honesty and expertise to measure their influence.

Thus, credibility and engagement level can be considered two key constructs to measure bloggers' likelihood to influence consumers' intentions and decisions. Source credibility is particularly important because, in the bloggers' context (Chu & Kamal, 2008), the writer discloses much information about himself/herself and his/her personal life, enabling readers to assess his/her expertise and trustworthiness. Research has demonstrated that the impact of a blog post's content quality on brand attitude is higher when the blogger is perceived as trustworthy (Chu & Kamal, 2008; Hsu et al., 2013).

However, in this study, we argue source credibility alone may not explain behavioral outcomes; rather, its influence passes through the engagement with blogger's content, which is also determined by the gratification of hedonic and functional motives. Blogs primarily satisfy hedonic motives such as fun, entertainment, and enjoyment as well as functional motives like learning and improving knowledge about a topic or product. We argue that bloggers that are perceived as credible can exercise their influence on followers' digital engagement if they satisfy their hedonic and functional motives. Consumer digital engagement is a key construct in our framework. Digital engagement has been identified as one of the most relevant topics in digital marketing (Eigenraam et al., 2018; Lo Presti et al., 2021a, 2021b) and is defined as “a consumer's positively valenced brand-related cognitive, emotional (or affective) and behavioral activity during or related to focal consumer/brand interactions” (Hollebeek et al., 2014, p. 159). Digital customer engagement practices are behavioral manifestations of brand engagement that go beyond purchase (Eigenraam et al., 2018). Customer engagement is beneficial for a tourism business as it leads to positive outcomes such as self-brand connection and brand usage intention (Harrigan et al., 2018;, attachment (Li et al., 2020), corporate reputation (Dijkmans et al., 2015), customer trust, loyalty, and evaluations of tourism brands (So et al., 2016, 2020). Customer engagement is generally considered a fundamental metric of digital customer relationship management and a source of competitive advantage (Hao, 2020; Lo Presti et al., 2020). Marketing research has shown it affects consumers' electronic word of mouth (eWOM), attitude, intentions, and behaviors (Brodie et al., 2011; Chu et al., 2019; Giakoumaki & Krepapa, 2020; Hepola et al., 2020; Hollebeek et al., 2014; Levy & Gvili, 2020; Marino & Lo Presti, 2018; 2019).

Drawing upon source credibility theory (Hovland et al., 1953) and uses and gratification (U&G) theory (Katz et al., 1973), this study aims to shed light on the influence of travel bloggers, responding to a call for further empirical research on the topic (Blaer et al., 2020). Drawing upon the theoretical constructs of source expertise and trustworthiness (Hovland et al., 1953), utilitarian and hedonic motivations (Katz et al., 1973; Shao & Li, 2021), and digital engagement (Hollebeek et al., 2014), we have built a framework of the antecedents and consequences of engagement with a blog. We assess whether engagement with bloggers' content exerts influence on a variety of consumers' intentions, such as eWOM, continued intention, and information adoption, which have not been investigated in previous studies.

Furthermore, this study assesses this theoretical framework across cultures. Cultural differences, such as differences in national cultural values, may affect the impact of digital engagement (Thompson & Brouthers, 2021). For instance, marketing scholars have demonstrated that culture is not neutral; cultural differences clarify product evaluations (Christodoulides et al., 2012), perceived helpfulness of online consumer review (eWOM) (Filieri & Mariani, 2021), and review variance and average rating scores (Stamolampros et al., 2019). Although the high relevance of the role of culture in consumer research (Kim et al., 1998), there is a dearth of cross-cultural studies on the antecedents and consequences of digital engagement on consumers' intentions and behaviors (Thompson & Brouthers, 2021). Cultural differences may be particularly relevant in the the blogger context, where research has shown cultural differences in the way tourists use blogs (Volo, 2010). Starting from the above considerations, this study contributes to the knowledge of the cross-cultural impacts of blogger's credibility on hedonic and utilitarian motivations and engagement.

To test these hypotheses, an online survey was carried out with a sample of Italian and American travel blog followers. The choice of these two countries is motivated by two main reasons. First, the two countries show a strong dynamism with respect to the tourism industry by being among the 10 most visited countries in the world. The United States are in third place with 79.6 million visitors, and Italy fifth with 62.1 million visitors (Wordatlas, 2020). Second, both countries show a huge travel blogosphere animated by influential bloggers capable of becoming travel gurus for an increasing number of travelers (Expedia, 2020). However, the United States may be considered a sort of benchmark in terms of travel blogging due to the longevity of the phenomenon (Greenwald, 2019) and the international success reached by several travel bloggers (Travelpayouts, 2020). Italy, on the other hand, is distinguishing itself by a dynamic growth of the phenomenon. A comparison between countries that are dynamic in terms of tourism but with different development of the travel blogging phenomenon may be interesting for the objectives of the study.

From a managerial perspective, the results of the study provide information about the influence of bloggers on readers' travel decisions. The results should support both tourism operators and marketers in deciding which travel bloggers to collaborate with as they represent a strategic tool in influencing the traveler's decisions. In particular, understanding whether source credibility affects blog engagement helps practitioners to select travel bloggers who are more likely to engage readers and thus to ensure blog loyalty and positive word-of-mouth. At the same time, our findings suggest that travel bloggers need to be able to judge the trustfulness of the contents if they are to be considered reliable, alternative tour guides. Finally, understanding whether the hedonic and utilitarian motivations activate the reader engagement process helps marketers to improve the effectiveness of their corporate blogs when used as part of the promotional strategy (Schmalleger & Carson, 2008).

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Blogging and travel

A blog can be defined as “a personal form of online diary” (Schmalleger & Carson, 2008, p. 101). Most travel blogs are created by ordinary travelers who have decided to publish their most exciting travel experiences (Li & Wang, 2011), and share them with relatives and distant friends and leave a trace for future memory (Hsu & Lin, 2008). Blogs are rich stories that cover facts of experiences from several guests and deliver a great variety of practical information to the blog reader (Schmalleger & Carson, 2008). According to Cosenza et al. (2015), the diversity of blogs makes it impossible to study them in general. Therefore, they suggest focusing on a specific product category (i.e., wine) (Cosenza et al., 2015). In this study, we focus on blogs about travel and tourism products, and specifically about tourism destinations.

According to scholars, travel blogs embody an invaluable source of information and market intelligence about tourism destinations (Banyai, 2012; Banyai & Glover, 2012; Bosangit et al., 2012; Schmalleger & Carson, 2008), particularly useful in gathering multisensory place experiences (Buzova et al., 2020). Schmallenger and Carson's (2008) study of real cases of destination marketing organizations and other tourism companies using blogs as part of their communication strategy. The stories told in travel blog narratives have been found useful to analyze destination image (Alrawadieh et al., 2018; Mak, 2017) to understand the sources of customer delight (Magnini et al., 2011) and souvenir authenticity perception (Torabian & Arai, 2016), among others. Volo (2010) used content analysis to analyze 103 blogs of tourists visiting South Tyrol and found that blogs provide valuable market knowledge about customer experience and that Italian blogs contain more recommendations and revisit intention declarations than blogs written in English, highlighting cultural differences in the way people write blogs. Zehrer et al. (2011) exploratory study focuses on the analysis of consistency and inconsistency in the valence of various blog posts.

Few studies have explored the influence of travel blogs on consumer intentions and decisions (Chen et al., 2014). Chen et al. (2014), using a small convenience sample, investigated the antecedents of hedonic motivation (i.e., enjoyment) and its influence on intention to visit a destination. Other studies focused on influencers (Magno & Cassia, 2018), a typology of blogger who has numerous followers and high reputation, which is not the focus of this study.

Hence, as it is possible to see from this review, there is a dearth of study about travel blogger's influence on consumers' intentions and decisions using source credibility, U&G, and digital engagement. Furthermore, there is limited research on the consequences of digital engagement with a blog.

2.2 Source credibility theory

The credibility of a blogger, interpreted through its components of trustworthiness and expertise (Hovland et al., 1953), is a crucial evaluation component in the blogosphere (Cosenza et al., 2015). Hovland et al. (1953) posited that who says it is as important as what is being said, developing the theoretical foundations for the source credibility theory. Further studies in the context of mass media proved that a credible source is more likely to influence audiences beliefs and behaviors. Source credibility theory assumes that information coming from expert and reliable sources have a stronger effect on consumers' behavior than non-reliable and credible sources (Wathen & Burkell, 2002). Credibility is a necessary, but not sufficient, component of any process aimed at altering knowledge, attitudes, or behavior (Hsieh & Li, 2020; Wathen & Burkell, 2002).

eWOM research revealed that sources expertise (and not trustworthiness) is likely to influence consumers' purchase decisions (Filieri et al., 2018). Research in the context of blogging shows that a blogger must be credible to exercise some form of influence on consumers' decisions (Balabanis & Chatzopoulou, 2019; Cosenza et al., 2015).

Past research has centered on opinion leaders in online communities (De Valck et al., 2009; Zhang & Dong, 2008) by deepening the role of source credibility and consumer engagement (Cosenza et al., 2015). The credibility of the blog and its information content is one of the determining factors of the intention to persevere in its use. Hsu and Tsou (2011) confirmed the significant impact of credibility on consumer purchase intentions. Further research measured the different perceptions of credibility between heavy and light blog users, and the results show that heavy blog users attach more credibility to blogs than light users (Johnson et al., 2008).

Compared to traditional sources of tourist information, the perceived credibility is certainly more relevant. This is also in view of the fact that the quality and advantages of tourist services cannot be evaluated at a prepurchase phase with traditional or offline channels. When the source of information is credible and content quality is high, a source is more persuasive and perceived more useful by online consumers (Chung et al., 2015; Filieri, 2015). Hence, the literature has investigated, in separate studies, blogger credibility, perceived enjoyment, and blog engagement as determinants of blogger success and reliability. However, except for a few studies (Hollebeek, 2013), the role played by credibility on engagement and consumers' behavioral intentions (information adoption, eWOM, continuance intention) in different cultural contexts have been scarcely researched. In general, studies have shown that credibility is among the factors that affect user engagement (Huang & Benyoucef, 2014). The more a source is credible, the more message contents inspire quality and belief with positive consequences on related user involvement. Nevertheless, while in the context of website, the relationship between credibility and engagement is tested (Huang & Benyoucef, 2014), research verifying this relation in the travel blog context seems still lacking.

2.3 U&G theory

U&G theory is one of the most influential and popular communication theories explaining consumer motivation to use various media and their behavior with them (i.e., usage) (Ruggiero, 2000). According to this theory, media viewers consume media activities (i.e., television, radio, internet) to gratify various sociopsychological benefits. U&G theory has been used to explain consumer online media usage behavior in different settings such as motivation to use user-generated content (Shao, 2009), social media engagement with luxury brands (Ashley & Tuten, 2015; Zollo et al., 2020), and virtual reality among the others (Raushnabel, 2018).

In the context of travel bloggers use, individuals satisfy two main types of needs: functional needs and hedonic needs. Consumers search for information that satisfy their functional needs in the prepurchase decision stage. In this stage, travelers seek information from multiple sources to reduce information asymmetries, reduce uncertainty, and make better purchase decisions about tourism products (i.e., travel destinations). Blogs are rich in narrative, detailed, and contain useful and reliable information, hence they are particularly effective in satisfying functional needs. Blogs enable learning and improving knowledge about a topic or product, which can be useful in assessing its quality (Filieri, 2015). Furthermore, blogs consumption also gratifies hedonic needs. Hedonic motives include fun, entertainment, and enjoyment.

3 HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENT

3.1 Influence of credibility on hedonic and utilitarian motivations and engagement

Although the concept of credibility represents one of the most relevant concepts of the travel blog literature (Chu & Kamal, 2008; Cosenza et al., 2015), studies on the link between credibility and blog engagement are still limited. On the contrary, studies that verify the relationships between blogger credibility and utilitarian and hedonic motivations seem to be considerable. For example, past studies have highlighted that the credibility of the blog is positively correlated with the perceived enjoyment, which represents the main motivation for using a blog (Chen et al., 2014; Cosenza et al., 2015). Marketing research emphasize that showing knowledge and expertise of reviewed products and services affects consumers' purchase decisions (Filieri, 2015; Filieri et al., 2018). Moreover, some authors show that, in the blogosphere, source credibility also plays an important role in the development of the cognitive response (perception of utility) and not only of the emotional response (perception of fun) (Goldsmith et al., 2000; Liao et al., 2013). If a recommendation is made by celebrities or reliable experts, it can influence people's cognitive responses, and the perceived usefulness of the information received (Lo & Peng, 2021; Tran et al., 2019). Therefore, a blog's perception of reliability is directly related to the search for useful and reliable information and, to some extent, to its level of engagement.

Although these studies were some first attempts in considering the relationship between credibility and user engagement in a blog, they did not contemplate the three-fold dimensions of the engagement construct (affective, cognitive, and behavioral dimensions). Following this perspective, we hypothesize that blogger credibility will affect hedonic and utilitarian motivations and engagement (Hepola et al., 2020; Mainolfi et al., 2021; Parker & Wang, 2016). Therefore, it is assumed that:

H₁: Blogger credibility positively influences hedonic motivation (H_1a), utilitarian motivation (H_1b), and blog engagement (H_1c).

3.2 Influence of hedonic and utilitarian motivations on blog engagement

A hedonic motivation is defined as the extent to which the use of a blog is perceived to be enjoyable and pleasant (Hsu & Lin, 2008). In addition to utilitarian motivations, a significant role can also be played by hedonic motivation. Followers can be hedonically motivated and in search of funny, exciting, and enjoyable activities (Kim & Han, 2011). Hedonic motivation can be interpreted as the experience of spending time on the blog and having fun (Shiau & Luo, 2013). Therefore, the higher the hedonic motivation of the blog, the stronger the intention to be involved in the activities of the blog. Based on this reasoning, we hypothesize that the users' utilitarian and hedonic motivation affect the level of involvement in blog activities.

H₂: Hedonic motivation positively influences blog engagement.

Prevailing literature seems unanimous in pointing out that utilitarian motivation may exert a direct effect on engagement (Kim & Han, 2011). The search for information is one of the main reasons that motivate individuals to use a blog (Seltzer & Mitrook, 2007). Therefore, we hypothesized that:

H₃: Utilitarian motivation positively influences blog engagement.

3.3 Influence of blog engagement on continued use, information adoption, and e-WOM

According to Loureiro et al. (2017), previous studies on digital engagement with brands have focused on the antecedents of brand engagement rather than the outcomes (e.g., Bazi et al., 2020; Dessart et al., 2015; Van Doorn et al., 2010). Engagement is an antecedent of strong consumer–brand relationships (Hollebeek et al., 2014). This study argues that the stronger the engagement with a blogger, the stronger will be the bond between followers and blogger, facilitating approval and information adoption. If a blogger's followers approve its content, this indicates that they are probably more likely to continue the relationship with the blogger as their content provider. Scholars reveal that engagement leads to eWOM about brands through the mediation of brand love (Loureiro et al., 2017). Drawing upon this literature, this study speculates that if there is a high level of engagement, it is likely that users will continue to use the blog, follow the blogger's recommendations, and recommend the blogger to people in his/her social network. Moreover, Alhidari et al. (2015) demonstrated a positive association between social network sites engagement and eWOM. In fact, a user of a highly engaging blog would be more inclined to share information and ideas on his/her favorite brands. Based on the above-mentioned considerations, we hypothesize that blog engagement positively influences the intention to continue using the blog, the intention to follow blogger's suggestions and e-WOM.

H₄: Blog engagement positively influences continued use (H_4a), information adoption (H_4b), and eWOM (H_4c).

3.4 Influence of continued use on information adoption

Continued use indicates the user's intention to continue using a technology in the near future after initial adoption and use (Bhattacherjee, 2001; Yan et al., 2021). However, the perspective adopted by this study focuses on intended use, considered as an antecedent of the choice to follow the blogger's recommendations. According to the theory of reasoned action (TRA) (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB) (Ajzen, 1985), consumer attitudes will directly affect their behavioral intention, which in turn will impact purchase behavior. Thus, this study proposes that if readers are willing to continue using the travel blog, they will be more likely to form travel decisions based on the blogger's suggestions:

H₅: Continued use positively influences information adoption

3.5 Influence of information adoption on eWOM

In the online community context, a customer may promote products and services of the community because he/she perceives the greater value that the community may provide to participants. Therefore, consumers will react to this relevant value by spreading a positive word of mouth (Shih et al., 2013). Filieri, Alguezaui, et al. (2015) demonstrated that consumers who trust and share the goals of a travel community are more likely to share positive comments regarding this community with their friends. Lenhart and Fox (2006) have already emphasized that people use blogs to share knowledge derived from life experiences. Therefore, it is assumed that:

H₆: Information adoption positively influences eWOM about the travel blog.

The conceptual model and hypotheses are depicted in Figure 1.

Details are in the caption following the image — **Figure 1**
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Research model and hypotheses

4 METHODOLOGY

4.1 Data collection and procedure

To test the research model, we carried out an online survey on a sample of Italian and American people. Interviewees (558, Italy; 588, USA) were selected online through a post on social networking pages (Facebook and Instagram) for the Italian sample and through Amazon's Mechanical Turk (MTurk) for the American sample. MTurk is a relatively new digital platform to conduct research based on an integrated participant payment system. Past studies have confirmed that MTurk online panels are equivalent to other methodologies of recruiting survey participants (Clifford et al., 2015; Goodman et al., 2012). Thanks to a filter question, only respondents who had consulted a travel blog or the social network accounts of a travel blogger were included in the study, thus lessening the sample size to 378 (Italy) and 551 (USA). The questionnaire was composed of questions about sociodemographics (gender, age, town of residence, nationality, and education), involvement with travel blogs, travel blog credibility, continued use, intention to buy travel services promoted by the blogger, and propensity to share a positive word-of-mouth about the blogger. Concerning face validity, two experts (an Italian marketing academic and an American culture expert) judged the clarity and, above all, the fitness of the questions. The two experts first assessed the American English version and then the Italian one. Following this procedure, the questionnaire was revised, with some items removed and others modified to improve the correct translation of meanings. The process was finalized by back-translations. After deleting missing data, the number of valid responses was 348 for the Italian sample and 531 for the American sample. A descriptive analysis of the samples can be found in Table 1. The size of samples well exceeds the minimum of 200 observations suggested by Hair et al. (2006) for structural equation modeling (SEM) research.

Table 1. Profiles of respondents

Measure	Items	USA	Italy
		Percentage
Gender	Female	51.9	69.5
Gender	Male	48.1	30.5
Age	17–24	7.3	23.3
	25–34	47.3	43.3
	35–44	24.3	15.8
	45–64	19.1	17.2
	>64	2.0	0.6
Education	Primary school	0.5	0.8
	High school	12.9	9.5
	College	41.2	34.1
	University	24.2	47.5
	Postgraduate specialization	21.2	8.1
Travel blogs/travel bloggers social networking profiles (frequency of reading)	Every hour of the day	3.2	5.5
	Every 3–4 h a day	10.6	8.6
	At least once a day	19.6	24.7
	At least once a week	32.6	33.6
	At least once a month	20.9	14.9
	Less than once a month	13.1	12.7

4.2 Measures

The theoretical constructs were measured using measures that have been well validated in the literature. Blogger credibility was assessed through the Cosenza et al. (2015) 4-item scale, adapted for travel blogs. Hedonic motivation was obtained from the hedonic beliefs construct developed by Hsu and Lin (2008) and was measured by four items. Utilitarian motivation was assessed through four items derived from the study by Kim et al. (2013). The level of engagement within the travel blog was assessed through the Shiau and Luo 4-item scale (2013). Continued use was assessed through the items proposed by Suh and Han (2003). Information adoption was analyzed through the 4-item scale proposed by Riquelme and Saeid (2014). Finally, e-WOM was assessed with five items derived from studies by Alhidari et al. (2015) and Goyette et al. (2010), with some adjustments. All statements were assessed using a seven-point anchored scale (from “completely disagree” to “completely agree”) (see Table 2).

Table 2. Measurement scales reliability and validity

Sample size		Overall (879)	Italy (348)	USA (531)
Blogger credibility (Cosenza et al., 2015)
I think this travel blogger is informed about travel I perceive the blogger to have a sincere interest in travel and tourism This travel blog respects my evaluations I think the blogger is trustworthy	CR	0.82	0.85	0.78
	AVE	0.58	0.59	0.61
	Cronbach's α	0.85	0.91	0.87
Hedonic motivation (Hsu & Lin, 2008)
I enjoy following this blog Using the travel blog is pleasant I have fun with this travel blog This blog allows me to use my imagination	CR	0.88	0.84	0.82
	AVE	0.62	0.54	0.55
	Cronbach's α	0.90	0.92	0.89
Utilitarian motivation (Kim et al., 2013)
By consulting the blog, I keep myself informed and updated on the most popular tourist destinations On the blog, I can improve my knowledge The blog helps me to better organize time for travel	CR	0.80	0.71	0.75
	AVE	0.58	0.52	0.52
	Cronbach's α	0.81	0.81	0.82
Blog engagement (Shiao & Luo, 2013)
I spend a lot of time on this blog I am proud to follow this blog I am very attached to this blog This blog is precious to me	CR	0.78	0.80	0.80
	AVE	0.53	0.51	0.58
	Cronbach's α	0.88	0.89	0.85
Continued use (Suh & Han, 2003)
In the future, I would like to continue to consult the travel blog I'd like to interact more on the blog I will continue to use blogs in the future to plan my trips Travel blogs are a good way to buy online travel services	CR	0.79	0.78	0.80
	AVE	0.53	0.52	0.58
	Cronbach's α	0.80	0.86	0.95
Information adoption (Riquelme & Saeid, 2014)
In the future, I will visit the tourist destinations suggested by the blogger I would like to buy one or more tourist packages for sale on the travel blog My future trips will be based on the information I found in the blog Travel blogs are a good way to buy online travel services	CR	0.77	0.78	0.77
	AVE	0.53	0.53	0.61
	Cronbach's α	0.84	0.85	0.86
E-WOM (Alhidari et al., 2015; Goyette et al., 2010)
I like to make positive comments on the blog to the contacts in my social accounts I often speak well of the blog to family and friends I like to share with my friends the blog reviews about their favorite products I am pleased to share travel blog content on my social media pages In the future, I will recommend the travel blog to my personal contacts	CR	0.85	0.83	0.78
	AVE	0.56	0.53	0.52
	Cronbach's α	0.92	0.92	0.91

4.3 Analytical procedure

First, we conducted a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to assess the convergent and discriminant validity of the measurement scales. Second, the hypothesized relationships were analyzed concurrently for the Italian and American groups of interviewees. Third, to examine the moderating role of culture, we estimated configural, metric, and scalar invariances to detect the baseline model against which the theoretical model can be compared. Finally, the hypothesized moderating effect was tested by constraining the relevant structural parameters so as to be equivalent in both groups.

CFA and the analysis of the structural models were carried out through SEM with the maximum likelihood method. Data analysis was conducted through Lisrel 8.80. The fit of the models was assessed based on a series of indices: the χ² value, the degree of freedom (df), the comparative fit index (CFI), the non-normed fit index (NNFI), the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), and the standardized root mean square residual (SRMR). A χ²/df value less than 4 was judged as a good satisfactory fit (Field, 2000). Values greater or equal to 0.90 were considered acceptable for CFI and NNFI (Hooper et al., 2008; Hu & Bentler, 1995). Values equal to or lower than 0.08 were considered satisfactory for the RMSEA and SRMR (Bollen, 1989; Browne & Cudeck, 1993).

4.4 CFA

Convergent and discriminant validity of the measures were assessed through a CFA using the total sample as well as the Italian and the American data distinctly. The fit statistics indicated that the measurement models fit the data well (total sample: χ² = 1532.645, df = 356, p = 0.000, CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.08, NNFI = 0.98, SRMR = 0.07; Italian sample: χ² = 1011.78, df = 356, p = 0.000, CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.08, NNFI = 0.97, SRMR = 0.07; American sample: χ² = 1165.48, df = 356, p = 0.000, CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.08, NNFI = 0.98, SRMR = 0.07). Convergent validity was assessed by checking that all items considerably and significantly loaded onto the expected latent construct (Anderson & Gerbing, 1988). All constructs also revealed acceptable values of composite reliability and average variance extracted, surpassing the recommended thresholds for the acceptability of 0.70 and 0.50, respectively (Fornell & Larcker, 1981; Steenkamp & Van Trijp, 1991). Finally, Fornell and Larcker's (1981) criterion was used to evaluate discriminant validity. The average variance explained by each latent variable was higher than any of the squared correlations concerning the variable, implying that discriminant validity had been attained. Cronbach's α's were also employed to check the reliability of the scales. All constructs were greater than the cut-off point of 0.70 (Nunnally, 1978). Table 2 shows the reliability and validity indexes for each construct.

4.5 Common method bias evaluation

Finally, to assess possible common method variance, we employed both procedural (preliminary) remedies and a post hoc test. First, regarding the questionnaire design phase, respondents were reassured of anonymity and research confidentiality through an introductive message (Chang et al., 2010). Second, the order of the questions was randomized so that respondents could not recognize the detailed matter of each construct (Chang et al., 2010). Third, the questionnaire items were carefully structured to support clarity and improve the interviewees' understanding (Podsakoff et al., 2003). Ex post, we also performed Harman's (1967) single-factor test. The unrotated confirmative factor analysis showed that one factor explained 37% of the variance (threshold value <50%), indicating that the findings are not subject to a bias caused by CMV.

4.6 Tests of the structural model

Results showed that the model fits the data well for both groups (Italian sample: χ² = 1346.47, df = 363, p = 0.000, CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.08, NNFI = 0.97, SRMR = 0.07; American sample: χ² = 1526.52, df = 363, p = 0.000, CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.07, NNFI = 0.97, SRMR = 0.08) (see Table 3). The analysis indicated that H1 is partially supported in both groups. While the travel blogger credibility positively influences both hedonic motivation (γ_Italy = 0.409, p < 0.01; γ_USA = 0.536, p < 0.01) and the utilitarian motivation (γ_Italy = 0.874, p < 0.01; γ_USA = 0.936, p < 0.01), it does not increase the engagement within the blog (H1c; p > 0.05). Conversely, H2 was fully supported in both samples. The hedonic motivation increases the level of engagement with the blog (γ_Italy = 0.691, p < 0.01; γ_USA = 0.867, p < 0.01). Turning to H3, it is partially supported. Only for the American sample, the data show that utilitarian motivation exerts a positive and significant influence on engagement with a blog (γ_USA = 0.602, p < 0.01). With respect to H4, both samples show similar results. Blog engagement positively influences both continued use and eWOM, but it doesn't impact on information adotion. However, continued use translates into a stronger intention to follow the blogger's recommendation for Italian and American followers (information adoption) (H5, γ_Italy = 1.031, p < 0.01; γ_USA = 1.236, p < 0.01). Finally, information adoption influences eWOM (γ_IItaly = 0.959, p < 0.01; γ_IUSA = 0.892, p < 0.01), thus supporting H6.

Table 3. Hypothesized relationships and structural coefficients

	Hypothesized relationships	USA	Italy
H_1a	CRED → HM	0.536**	0.409**
H_1b	CRED → UM	0.936**	0.874**
H_1c	CRED → BE	n.s.	n.s.
H₂	HM → ENG	0.867**	0.691**
H₃	UM → ENG	0.946**	n.s.
H_4a	BE → CU	0.469**	0.458**
H_4b	BE → IA	n.s.	n.s.
H_4c	BE → WOM	0.360**	0.476**
H₅	CU → IA	1.236**	1.031**
H₆	IA → WOM	0.892**	0.959**

** p < 0.01.

4.7 Mediation analysis

We further examined indirect effects in the research model to achieve in-depth insights into blogger credibility, motivations, and engagement. We verified whether hedonic and utilitarian motivations mediate the effect of blogger credibility on engagement. Following MacKinnon et al. (2002) recommendation, we tested the indirect effect of the exogenous variable, using the technique developed by Sobel (1982) (Table 4). Mediation analysis was carried out through the software PRODCLIN (MacKinnon et al., 2007) by means of the weighted unstandardized coefficients. PRODCLIN delivers unstandardized mediated path coefficients using MacKinnon's (2008) asymmetric distribution of product test. Indirect paths were verified for mediation, without considering the significance of the direct effect, taking into account that the effects of predictors on outcomes can be fully indirect (MacKinnon, 2008). Results show that hedonic and utilitarian motivations fully mediate the effect of blogger credibility on engagement in reference to the American sample (Table 4a). The direct effect is not significant (Table 3), while the indirect effect is significant, consistent with MacKinnon's ab product distribution test (MacKinnon et al., 2007) p < 0.05. Moreover, with respect to the Italian sample, instead, credibility has only an indirect effect on blog engagement through hedonic motivation (Table 4b). These results show that both hedonic and utilitarian motivations fully explain the association between credibility and engagement for the American sample. In the case of the Italian sample, instead, we can observe that only hedonic motivation fully mediates the effect of blogger credibility on engagement.

Table 4. Summary of results concerning indirect effect tests

Model pathways	β	SE	LLCI	ULCI
			MacKinnon PRODCLIN
(a) USA
CRE → HM → BE	0.268a	0.135	0.26	0.68
CRE → UM → BE	0.651a	0.107	0.59	0.89
(b) Italy
CRE → HM → BE	0.223a	0.059	0.12	0.45

^a Empirical 95% confidence interval does not overlap with zero.

4.8 Moderation analysis

The hypothetical moderating role of the country has been investigated through invariance tests to detect the reference model with respect to which to compare the theoretical model. After checking that configural and metric invariance was supported, the relevant factor loadings were constrained so as to be equal across the two groups to test each moderator hypothesis. In the next phase (scalar invariance), the indicator intercepts were constrained to be equal across the two groups. The χ² difference test denoted a significant worsening in the fit of the constrained model. Consequently, scalar invariance was not supported and comparisons between the means of the latent variables were not performed. The Δχ² tests between the constrained models and the benchmark model were not significant for each pair of parameters. Thus, no significant differences arose in the hypothesized relationships between the two countries. Despite the fact that the two countries under investigation are characterized by different levels of “digitalization” (La Fratta & Sabatini, 2019), United States and Italian populations denote similar ways of employing travel blogs as a source of information and as influential in purchasing decision-making process.

5 CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

Blogs are a prominent and popular communication platform in social media marketing and bloggers are increasingly promoting products and services. The fields of travel, tourism, and hospitality constitute one of the most popular topics across blog (Marine-Roig et al., 2019). As a consequence of the growing popularity of blogging, travelers increasingly use the opinions and experiences of travel bloggers to guide their choices. However, the propagation and diversity of blogs—often associated with a lack of real expertise—has made credibility a key feature in establishing the effectiveness of blogger communication. Indeed, the number of followers is no longer a valid metric to measure the effectiveness and level of persuasion achieved by the blog (De Veirman et al., 2017). In light of the above-mentioned reflections, the study has analyzed how credibility and hedonic and utilitarian motivations impact consumer engagement and, consequently, consumers intentions, i.e., continued use, information adoption, and eWOM). From a theoretical point of view, the study contributes to the literature on the role of travel blogs in the consumer decision-making process by suggesting an original theoretical framework of the antecedents and consequences of digital engagement that integrates uses & gratification and source credibility theories.

The results showed that the perceived level of expertise and trustworthiness of a blogger (blogger credibility) increased hedonic and utilitarian motivations to read/use a blog. However, it is important to point out that the empirical findings of this study do not support the influence of credibility on blog engagement in the two groups (Italy and USA). This result disconfirms some past empirical evidence (Jiménez-Castillo & Sánchez-Fernández, 2019), but it sheds light on the role of source credibility in the context of travel blogs. Blogger credibility appears capable of exerting only an indirect effect on engagement. Specifically, both hedonic and utilitarian motivations fully mediate the influence of credibility on blog engagement with respect to the American sample. Regarding the Italian sample, instead, the effect of credibility on engagement is mediated only by hedonic motivation. In the Italian context, consumers appear to be more sensitive to the enjoyment and pleasure they can obtain from the use of a travel blog than to its functional qualities. This result might be explained by the greater novelty of the travel blogosphere compared to the American context.

The results regarding blog engagement strengthen past empirical evidence about its impact on behavioral intentions (Hepola et al., 2020). Study findings supported the positive influence of engagement on both future intentions to use the blog and the willingness to share positive WOM about the travel blogger. Nevertheless, the present study reveals that engagement is not a significant predictor of information adoption in the context of travel blogs (Cheng et al., 2020). Although engagement towards blog activities is found to be an antecedent of intention to follow the blogger's suggestions, the current study showed that even when the travel blog provoked an intense engagement on the part of readers, it may still not directly influence recommendation adoption. However, it may act in an indirect way through continued use (Kim et al., 2013), which shows a significant influence on information adoption. Moreover, findings show that recommendation adoption exerts a significant influence on e-WOM, thus showing that once consumers adopt blogger's recommendations and follow their advice, they are more willing to share these recommendations also with their connections.

The present study contributes to prior research on blog engagement literature in different directions. First, it was one of the few empirical research to provide a comprehensive framework aiming to analyze, on the one hand, the relationship between credibility, motivations, and engagement and, on the other hand, the relationship between engagement and behavioral consequences of readers. These aspects have been investigated by previous research in a too narrowed perspective without assessing the effects of the coexistence between complex dimensions, such as credibility, motivations, engagement, and information adoption. Second, while results from this study confirmed the existence of a significant role of motivations towards blog engagement, as stated by previous studies (Hepola et al., 2020), the present study was one of the few to empirically test and find a positive relationship between source credibility and hedonic and utilitarian motivations.

Third, by adopting a cross-national perspective, the current study also extends prior research on readers' behavior in the travel blogosphere (Wang, 2012), highlighting the importance and consequences of reader empowerment through engagement, continued use and e-WOM in two important travel markets (the USA and Italy).

5.1 Managerial implications

From a managerial point of view, these results provide strategic suggestions to both tourism operators and marketers aspiring to create fruitful partnerships with travel bloggers and bloggers who have managed to turn their blog into an entrepreneurial activity. The collaboration with a blogger, who is considered sincere, expert, and trustworthy, may represent a driver of persuasion in the travelers' decision-making process. Moreover, using travel blogs, tourism and hospitality operators may benefit from a more practical way of monitoring the visitor/guest sentiment, thus obtaining precious indications of the development strategies to be pursued. Furthermore, as travel blogs are considered an alternative and reliable guide to traditional tourism promotion media, travel bloggers should carefully select the contents that are published on the blog as they are strategic for blog engagement. Specifically, the contents should focus on pleasant and useful information as this seems to be a relevant factor for the involvement of followers. The mediating role of hedonic and utilitarian motivations (the latter only in the American sample) in the relationship between credibility and engagement demonstrates the centrality of the reader within blog activities. For this reason, since the motivations for blog usage are decisive for the effectiveness of credibility on the involvement of followers, travel bloggers should take action to establish long-lasting relationships through the adoption of tactics that, starting from the credibility, increasingly motivate the reader to use the travel blog to gratify hedonic and utilitarian needs.

5.2 Limitations and future research

Although this study expands the knowledge of the persuasive role played by the travel blog, it must be tempered with certain limitations. First, according to Zhang and Prybutok (2005), individual differences affect consumer behavior and attitude. For example, the frequency and types of traveling experiences might have different effects on the followers' attitudes towards travel blogs. Moreover, regarding digital consumer behavior, the study does not take into account the level of personal innovativeness and involvement with the Internet that may explain the intent to follow the blogger's recommendations.

This study involves respondents from two advanced countries. Further research might also involve emerging countries with different travel blogospheres in terms of relevance and typologies. Enlarging the cross-cultural perspective of the research would certainly contribute to increasing the external validity of the proposed framework. Moreover, only intentions were measured, not actual behaviors. Therefore, new empirical research should be undertaken to investigate whether the intention to follow the blogger's recommendations translates to behavior.

Open Research

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

Research data are not shared.

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Citing Literature

Volume39, Issue5

May 2022

Pages 1022-1034

“YOU POST, I TRAVEL.” Bloggers' credibility, digital engagement, and travelers' behavioral intention: The mediating role of hedonic and utilitarian motivations

Abstract

1 INTRODUCTION