Linking self-congruity and functional congruity to tourists' loyalty in theme parks: involvement as a moderator

Introduction In the highly competitive theme park industry, fostering tourist loyalty is paramount. While self-congruity (SC) and functional congruity (FC) are established antecedents of loyalty in tourism, their specific interplay within the immersive context of theme parks remains underexplored. This study aims to investigate an integrated model to determine whether FC mediates the SC-Loyalty relationship, and if tourist involvement (TI) moderates this mechanism. Methods An integrated model was tested using data collected from 370 visitors to major theme parks in Wuxi, China. The data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and regression-based moderation analysis to assess the proposed relationships. Results The findings indicate that SC does not directly affect loyalty but exerts a significant positive influence on FC. FC, in turn, fully mediates the relationship between SC and loyalty and is a strong direct predictor of loyalty. Furthermore, TI strengthens the positive effect of SC on FC, revealing a significant moderated mediation effect. Discussion Theoretically, this study refines self-congruity theory by delineating a novel moderated mediation pathway within the theme park context. Managerially, the findings guide theme park marketers in segmenting tourists and designing personalized marketing strategies and experiences based on their level of involvement, thereby effectively converting self-concept alignment into lasting loyalty.