A DISCRIMINANT ANALYSIS OF THAI TOURISTS’ INTENTION TO ENGAGE IN GASTRONOMY TOURISM: THE ROLE OF MOTIVATION, PERSONALITY, AND LIFESTYLE

Abstract

This research aimed to analyze the factors capable of discriminating Thai tourists’ intention to engage in gastronomy tourism in Thailand. A quantitative research design was employed, with a target population comprising Thai tourists who had previously participated in cultural or food-related tourism. Data were collected from 1,800 tourists across 17 provinces using a questionnaire and purposive sampling method. Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and Discriminant Analysis. The findings revealed that, overall, motivational factors yielded the highest mean score ( = 3.88, S.D. = .543), followed by lifestyle ( = 3.85, S.D. = .608). Furthermore, Thai tourists with a deliberate intention to engage in gastronomy tourism scored significantly higher on travel motivation, personality traits, and lifestyle dimensions than those without such intention. The discriminant analysis indicated that the classification of Thai tourists into intentional and non-intentional gastronomy tourists was primarily determined by cultural motivation, novelty and excitement motivation, interpersonal motivation, and related factors. The model achieved an overall classification accuracy of 78.28%, with a prediction accuracy of 82.60% for intentional gastronomy tourists and 72.50% for non-intentional tourists. The model explained 60.30% of the variance in gastronomy tourism intention. Group centroids for intentional and non-intentional gastronomy tourists were .652 and -.879, respectively. Based on these findings, it is recommended that tourism operators and relevant organizations develop differentiated marketing strategies for both tourist groups. For intentional gastronomy tourists, marketing communications should emphasize cultural identity, health-conscious offerings, and experiential activities. For non-intentional tourists, on-site stimuli - such as food events and digital media engagement - should be implemented.