Antecedents of cultural connectedness in diaspora tourism: Perspectives from the Chinese diaspora

In the context of diaspora tourism, the complex causal relationship between perceived antecedents (e.g., perceived image and perceived value) and cultural connectedness has not been well studied in the literature. The clarification of this relationship will help destinations adopt management strategies tailored to respective local conditions. In this paper, we use a PLS-SEM/fsQCA approach to more accurately articulate the complex causal relationship and mechanisms of cultural connectedness in return trips of overseas Chinese (the Chinese diaspora), and to explain how the configurations of antecedent factors lead to the equivalent effect of cultural connectedness. The results reveal, first, that there is an influence mechanism between perceived antecedent configurations and the outcome variable of cultural connectedness, and identifies the antecedent factors of cultural connectedness, as well as the dimensions of the constructs involved in the cultural connectedness scenario related to diaspora tourism. Second, this study proposed four configured models of cultural connectedness and determined concurrent causality between antecedent constructs and outcome variables. Third, an equivalent pathway for multiple factors to concurrently produce cultural connectedness was discovered. Fourth, it explains that the presence or absence of antecedents have different impacts on the high and low levels of cultural connectedness in diaspora tourism. This paper also provides management insights for diaspora tourism practices based on the four grouping patterns of cultural connectedness.