DISCOVERING THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN EVENT IDENTITY, SATISFACTION, IMAGE, WoM, AND RE- PARTICIPATION INTENTION: THE CASE OF A REPEATED SMALL-SCALE DANCE EVENT

Abstract

Although small-scale dance events are popular as a postmodern socialization tool for modern people, little is known about participants' behavioral intentions in active small-scale dance events. This research examined the hierarchical relationship between event image, event satisfaction, event identity, and behavioral intentions, including re-participation intention and positive word-of-mouth (WoM) behavior, in a repeated small-scale dance event. A total of 412 participants of the Eskisehir Dance Festival (EDF), a repeated smallscale dance event, were reached by the convenience sampling method. Research data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). First, the model's compatibility with the data was evaluated by applying confirmatory factor analysis to the model, which includes all research structures. AVE, Cronbach alpha, and CR values were analyzed for all constructs. The conceptual model of the research was analyzed using the AMOS v22. Event image is an important predictor of both event satisfaction (13 =0.88; p <0.01) and event identity (13 =0.46; p <0.01). In addition, event satisfaction significantly impacted event identity (13 =0.76; p <0.01). Event identity is the predictor of re-participation intention (13 =0.24; p <0.01) and positive WoM behavior (13 =0.88; p <0.01). Finally, WoM behavior positively affected re-participation intention (13 =0.88; p <0,01). Research results made significant empirical contributions to the literature on repeated small-scale dance events. In addition, based on the research results, suggestions were presented to managers of small-scale dance events that they could use in their marketing strategies.