Examining the consequences of sponsorship disclosures on travel influencer-social media user relationships: A journey of expectancy violation

Abstract

This study aims to examine the effects of social media influencers’ sponsorship disclosure on social media users’ behavioral outcomes (i.e., influencer avoidance and destination avoidance) and whether social media users’ expectancy violation mediates these relationships. One factor, two conditions, and between subjects experimental design is employed across three studies. Study 1 was conducted with a fictitious influencer, and Study 2 and Study 3 corroborated the results with a real influencer in cross-cultural contexts. Study 1 found that explicit sponsorship disclosures about promoting a tourism destination by travel influencers increased influencer and destination avoidance. Study 2 and Study 3 revalidated these relationships. All studies show that users’ expectancy violation mediated the relationships. Thus, this research extends the discussion from consumer marketing to the tourism domain by illuminating social media users’ negative behavioral outcomes (i.e., influencer avoidance and destination avoidance) toward travel influencers’ brand-paid promotions through the expectancy violation lens. Furthermore, this study contributes by examining the effect of influencer-destination brand sponsorship, presenting a novel amalgamation of consumer psychology and the tourism domain.