The Korean Wave in the Minds of Pakistani Students in Korea

Being a part of a government strategy, South Korea’s cultural diplomacy in terms of the Korean Wave promotes South Korean culture around the world. Taking into consideration the popularity of the Korean Wave and the dearth of empirical evidence on the influence of Korean Wave among the Pakistani community, this study analyzes the perceptions of Pakistani students/alumni to understand the widespread popularity of the Korean Wave among them and its influence on them. This study aims to examine the role of service quality by analyzing empirical evidence on the relationships among the Korean Wave, destination image, and behavioral intentions. For this purpose, a quantitative approach was used to collect data from (N = 403) Pakistani students/alumni in Korea. To measure the data, multi-variate techniques were used including reliability, multiple regression, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modeling (SEM). The findings showed a positive relationship among all constructs, namely behavioral intentions, the Korean Wave (including cultural products, K-pop, K-dramas, K-sports, tourism and heritage), service quality, and destination image. Indirect effects indicated that service quality mediated the relationship between destination image and the Korean Wave. This study proposes that service quality varies depending upon the involvement of cultural products, K-pop, K-dramas, K-sports, tourism and heritage, and these in turn, influence the behavioral intentions to visit in the future or recommend Korea to others.