Abstract
CouchSurfing is a free social-network-based online hospitality exchange network, aptly representing a new sharing economy phenomenon. Based on social capital theory and previous literature, this study attempts to answer why hosts help strangers without any expected economic benefit within online hospitality exchange networks. An empirical study based on a Web survey conducted with CouchSurfing hosts reveals that the most identified antecedents (enjoy helping, shared narratives, desire to make friends, and reciprocity) are significantly related to hosts’ intention to share accommodations. Interestingly, the overshadowing effect of trust in CouchSurfing on the intention to share accommodations is also found.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 16-31 |
Number of pages | 16 |
Journal | Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing |
Volume | 35 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2 Jan 2018 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Keywords
- CouchSurfing
- Intention to share accommodations
- online hospitality exchange networks
- sharing economy
- social capital theory
- trust