There is literature detailing the effects of travel motivation, risks perceptions, and travel constraints on the destination image and travel behaviour of individuals. However, literature explaining these factors in the context of prospective young women travellers is scarce. This study empirically tests a comprehensive model of prospective young women’s travel behaviour, based on cognitive and affective perceptions about destination, travel motivations, perceived risks, and travel constraints. A quantitative study was performed on 370 young university women in Malaysia. The results revealed that the travel motivation of young women has positive effects on the cognitive and affective image, whereas the dimensions of perceived travel risks and travel constraints have negative effects on cognitive and affective destination images. The results also found that cognitive and affective images positively influence the visit intention of prospective young women travellers.

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the moderating effect of travel motivation on the relationship between perceived risks, travel constraints and visit intention of young women travelers. Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative study was performed, and data were collected from 416 female university students using convenience sampling. Structural equation modeling with partial least square approach was used to test the research hypotheses. Findings: The findings revealed that travel motivation has a moderating effect by weakening the negative relationships between physical risk, structural constraints and visit intention. Practical implications: The findings of this study provide useful insights for destination managers about the influence of travel motivation on the behavioral intention of young women travelers in the case of higher perceptions of travel risks and constraints. Originality/value: Literature has discussed the intervening role of travel motivations in different contexts. However, studies are scarce in examining the effect of travel motivation in weakening the negative influence of high perceptions of risks and constraints on intention to visit.

Several studies explain the direct effect of travel motivation, perceived risks, and travel constraints on visit intention. However, there are relatively limited investigations on the combined effect of these factors on visit intention. This study empirically tests a comprehensive model of visit intention based on travel motivation, perceived risks, and travel constraints. A quantitative study was performed on 316 university students in Malaysia. The results of the study found that travel motivation had a positive influence on visit intention. For perceived travel risks, performance risk and time risk had negative effects on visit intention. Physical risk, financial risk, and socio-psychological risk did not affect visit intention. Among travel constraints, interpersonal and intrapersonal constraints were negatively related to visit intention. The study also found that the effect size ( f²) of statistically significant relationship was low in a few cases. The findings provide useful insight to destination managers in terms of integrating the influential factors in promotional strategies to develop intentions to visit India among potential market segment. The study also suggested future researchers to test the research framework at different levels of decision-making and contexts to prove its usability.

Perceived risks, travel motivations, and destination cognitive and affective image have been extensively studied in tourism literature, yet literature related to these variables in medical tourism literature is sparse. The concept argued in this article is founded on the decision-making models used in tourism literature and drawing on work of prominent scholars in tourism. Findings of the literature review suggest that Medical Tourists’ perceived risks about destination and travel motivations will have impact on the image of medical tourism destinations.

In medical travel, previous studies have investigated the factors that influence medical travellers to receive treatment outside the country. However, most of these studies are limited to travel motivations and perceptions of medical services at destinations. The main objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between medical travellers’ perceived risks, travel constraints, and destination image based on medical and non-medical attributes. This is a quantitative study whereby the data was collected from 306 sub-Saharan African medical travellers, who visited India for the treatment. The study found that physical-health risk has a significant negative influence on destination image based on medical attributes. The service quality risk has a negative effect on destination image based on both medical and non-medical attributes, and destination risk has a negative effect on destination image based on medical attributes. The study also found that travel constraints have a negative influence on both medical and non-medical destination image.

Role of Travel Motivations, Perceived Risks and Travel Constraints on Destination Image and Visit Intention in Medical Tourism: Theoretical model