| Historical and cultural districts,as carriers of a nation’s and ethnic group’s history and culture,not only reflect the unique charm of a locale but also bear witness to the developmental trajectory of a nation and its people.These areas,imbued with invaluable historical memories,ethnic cultures,and local traditions,offer researchers and tourists a wealth of study materials and unparalleled cultural experiences.With the growing societal emphasis on history and culture,these districts have increasingly garnered the attention of both tourists and scholars,especially within the context of the convergence of culture and tourism.In recent years,propelled by digitalization and social media and coupled with a reevaluation of their value by national and local governments,their influence and recognition have significantly escalated.Yet,the challenge remains in striking a balance between preserving tradition and pursuing modernization,between conservation and innovation.Hence,there’s a pressing need to delve deeper into tourists’ behavioral patterns,psychological motivations,and how contemporary technologies can be harnessed to offer them a richer and more immersive experience.Such insights will not only facilitate the effective management of cultural heritage but also provide theoretical underpinnings for the sustainable development of cultural tourism.With the deepening of the experience economy,consumers’ pursuits have transcended traditional products or services,shifting towards seeking more profound and memorable experiences.This transition has positioned experience as the pivotal criterion for assessing consumer satisfaction.Against this backdrop,the introduction of the "experience-scape"concept further unveils the intricate interactions among consumers,service providers,and other stakeholders.Historical and cultural districts,as vessels of culture and history,present consumers with an ideal experiential venue.The scene theory offers researchers a framework to delve into tourist experiences within these districts,emphasizing multifaceted interactions.Moreover,the service-dominant logic accentuates the central role of consumers in value creation,particularly in a digital context,where value emerges co-creatively through interactions between providers and consumers,rather than as a unilateral output.Concurrently,tourists’ online congruence behavior,the emotional and cognitive connections established with destinations via digital platforms,has emerged as a novel focal point in tourism research.This behavior not only reveals the profound ties between tourists and destinations but also furnishes academia with a fresh perspective on tourist behavior and market strategies.On social media and other digital platforms,tourists’ online interactions with historical and cultural districts enrich and diversify their experiences,thereby deepening their congruence with the destination.These theoretical underpinnings not only provide a robust academic foundation for the management strategies and sustainable development of historical and cultural districts but also underscore the pivotal role of continuous interaction and co-participation in ensuring the districts’ cultural preservation and vitality.Hence,to gain a deeper understanding of the implications and potential value of these theories in practical applications,this paper will further explore core research questions pertinent to this context.Although the imagery,landscape,and spatial design of historical and cultural districts have become the focus of research,their exploration as a unique experiencescape remains a relatively untapped field.Firstly,most existing studies are limited to specific cases of historical and cultural districts,leading to a lack of systematic analysis of the characteristics and construction mechanisms of the experiencescape.This gives rise to the first research question:What are the characteristic dimensions and elements of the experiencescape in historical and cultural districts?Secondly,with the proliferation of digital technology and social media,tourists’ online interactive behaviors have become a key component of destination marketing.This leads to the second research question:What is the specific relationship between the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts and tourists’online engagement,and the potential mechanisms of co-creation in this process?Lastly,in the face of the continuous evolution of tourist demands and expectations,and the increasing emphasis on individual tourist motivations,how do tourists’ sense of place identity and knowledge mastery respectively influence the relationship between the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts and tourists’ online engagement?This becomes the third research question.In addressing the first research question,this study employed a mixed-methodological strategy to explore the characteristic dimensions of experiencescape in historical and cultural districts.Combining the theoretical framework from literature reviews,and through in-depth interviews and online tourist reviews,this study further employed qualitative analysis methods and text mining techniques.Additionally,quantitative methods were used to validate the scales.Firstly,the research unveiled a historical scene dimension,encompassing tourists’sense of historical immersion in the district,experiences of local culture,and cognitive evaluations of architectural styles.This dimension underscores the district’s core value as a bearer of history and culture.Secondly,the landscape aesthetics dimension primarily focuses on the integration of public space design and natural environment in the district.This not only offers tourists a comfortable resting space but also emphasizes the harmonious coexistence between historical culture and the environment.Lastly,the consumption experience dimension covers gastronomic experiences,choices of culture-related souvenirs,and the hospitable atmosphere presented by the district.This dimension,from a consumer perspective,delves into how the district meets the diversified needs of tourists.These three dimensions collectively construct the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts,offering tourists a multidimensional and rich experiential platform.These findings not only provide a theoretical foundation for the management and optimization of historical and cultural districts but also lay the groundwork for subsequent studies in related fields.In relation to the second research question,based on the service-dominant logic,the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts offers tourists an immersive interactive experience,allowing them to deeply engage with the district’s history and culture.This profound co-creation experience not only strengthens the emotional bond between tourists and the district but also leaves a lasting impression.Such impressions further drive tourists to share their feelings and experiences on digital platforms,leading to a series of online congruence behaviors.While the landscape aesthetics and consumption experiences within the experiencescape might not directly trigger online congruence behaviors,under the mediation of co-creation experiences,they can positively influence such behaviors.Thus,the experiencescape and co-creation experiences together construct a potent influence mechanism,turning tourists into not just experiencers of the district but also active participants in its cultural dissemination.Addressing the third research question,inspired by the Self-Determination Theory,the study particularly emphasizes the impact of local identity and knowledge mastery on tourists’online engagement behaviors.When tourists form a profound local identity with the district,their behaviors are more likely driven by intrinsic motivations,further amplifying their emotional resonance,making the experience deeper and more enduring.This emotional connection encourages tourists to share their experiences on social media,strengthening their bond with the district.Concurrently,tourists’ degree of knowledge about the district plays a pivotal role.In-depth understanding fosters tourists’ autonomous participation,leading to richer experiences.Therefore,local identity and knowledge mastery act as moderators between the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts and tourists’ online engagement behaviors and have a mediating effect on the mediating variable of co-creation experience.To further optimize the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts,district managers should prioritize fostering tourists’ local identity and providing ample cultural and historical information,thereby promoting their online engagement behaviors,bringing broader attention and recognition to the district.From the foregoing,this paper’s theoretical contribution primarily delves into the application and impact of experiencescape in historical and cultural districts.The concept of experiencescape,a cross-disciplinary research notion,has garnered widespread attention.While its theoretical foundation has been acknowledged,empirical research on model development remains scant,and existing literature lacks coherence in theory and methodology.To bridge this gap,this study employs a mixed-method approach,deeply conceptualizing the experiencescape of historical and cultural districts,and constructing a comprehensive research system through text mining and qualitative coding.This innovative research methodology not only provides a robust theoretical foundation for experiencescape literature but also offers fresh perspectives and directions for future research in the domain of cultural heritage.Based on the service-dominant logic,this study constructed a macrotheoretical framework,focusing on the integration of experiencescape,co-creation behavior,and tourists’ online engagement.By combining co-creation theory,customer engagement,and self-determination theory,this framework deepened the understanding of tourists’ cocreation behaviors and their intrinsic motivations within historical and cultural districts.Online engagement,as a specific dimension of customer engagement,offers new insights into the operation of service-dominant logic in a digital context.Overall,this comprehensive theoretical framework not only provides a solid academic foundation for the management and sustainable development of historical and cultural districts but also emphasizes the key role of continuous tourist interaction and collaborative participation in maintaining the district’s cultural integrity and vitality.The practical significance of this paper emphasizes that historical and cultural districts,as carriers of urban cultural heritage,are repositories of rich cultural resources and historical values.To fully tap into these latent values,managers should collaborate deeply with local communities and cultural institutions,systematically investigating,researching,and preserving the cultural stories and historical backgrounds within the districts.By integrating modern arts and the creative industry,innovative cultural tourism products can be developed,such as designing interactive experiences around intangible cultural heritage,and concurrently developing cultural products closely tied to the district’s history.The application of digital technology and social media offers tourists a more immersive cultural experience,simultaneously presenting new opportunities for district branding and promotion.To ensure widespread societal support for the protection and development strategies of the district,managers should prioritize and amplify community participation,establishing dedicated participation mechanisms to ensure the community’s voices and needs are duly considered.By integrating modern technology,training,and education on cultural heritage protection can be provided to the community,further enhancing their sense of identity,and belonging to the historical and cultural districts. |
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