International Journal of

ADVANCED AND APPLIED SCIENCES

EISSN: 2313-3724, Print ISSN: 2313-626X

Frequency: 12
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 Volume 12, Issue 5 (May 2025), Pages: 36-45

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 Original Research Paper

The influence of perceived cultural distance on Chinese tourists’ travel intention to Malaysia: The mediating roles of perceived risk and personality traits

 Author(s): 

 Yanan Cai, Ahmad Azmi Mohd. Ariffin *

 Affiliation(s):

 UKM-Graduate School of Business, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Malaysia

 Full text

    Full Text - PDF

 * Corresponding Author. 

   Corresponding author's ORCID profile:  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6204-8304

 Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2025.05.005

 Abstract

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has enhanced Malaysia-China cooperation, boosting trade and tourism, yet limited research examines the factors influencing Chinese tourists’ travel intentions toward Malaysia, particularly from a perceived cultural distance (PCD) perspective. This study integrates the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) theory and Self-Determination Theory (SDT) to propose a novel model analyzing how perceived cultural distance (PCD), perceived risk (PR), and personality traits shape travel intention (TI). Focusing on Chinese tourists’ willingness to visit Malaysia, the study employs PLS-SEM to analyze survey data, aiming to (1) establish a new theoretical framework in travel intention research, (2) pioneer the combined application of S-O-R and SDT theories, and (3) offer practical insights to strengthen Sino-Malaysian tourism.

 © 2025 The Authors. Published by IASE.

 This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

 Keywords

 Belt and road initiative, Travel intention, Perceived cultural distance, Tourism development, China-Malaysia relations

 Article history

 Received 21 November 2024, Received in revised form 7 April 2025, Accepted 28 April 2025

 Acknowledgment

No Acknowledgment.

  Compliance with ethical standards

  Ethical considerations

This study was conducted in accordance with established ethical standards for research involving human participants. All participants were fully informed about the purpose of the study, their right to withdraw at any time, and the anonymity of their responses. Informed consent was obtained prior to participation. The survey data were collected and analyzed in a manner that safeguarded confidentiality and respected the privacy of all participants.

  Conflict of interest: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

 Citation:

 Cai Y and  Ariffin AAM (2025). The influence of perceived cultural distance on Chinese tourists’ travel intention to Malaysia: The mediating roles of perceived risk and personality traits. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 12(5): 36-45

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 Figures

  Fig. 1 

 Tables

  Table 1 

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