Analysis of tourism information sources using a Mokken Scale perspective

This study contributes to the analysis of information sources as a determinant of the travel decision-making process. It focuses on the use of Mokken Scale Analysis (MSA) as a new methodological approach to detect unidimensional hierarchical scale in the analysis of information sources. The paper shows how MSA can be applied in the tourism field. Findings reveal two different scales (active and passive information search scales) for classifying information sources in tourism. Variations in the scales are revealed, taking socio-demographic and travel behavioural variables into consideration. The conclusions clearly explain the implications for tourism marketers and make recommendations for future research. •Mokken Scale Analysis (MSA) was used to evaluate scalability of information sources.•A sample of 594 questionnaires is used to evaluate information search effort.•Scalability of information sources was demonstrated, identifying two different scales.•Results indicate some variations into scales considering socio-demographic and travel behavioural variables.