Factors affecting the actual use of social media by tourists for travel planning according to the importance of media

Due to the increasing use of social media, this study has sought to find the effect of perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, trust and perceived risk of social media on their actual use through behavioral intentions in travel planning and how these factors affect. The method of data collection is library resources for theoretical foundations of the subject and a questionnaire to test hypotheses. The statistical population of this research consists of tourists in Tehran. The final sample includes 420 completed questionnaires. To analyze the data, first a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the model was evaluated and then the hypothetical relationships between the structures were validated through the structural equation model (SEM). The results showed that perceived enjoyment and convenience of technology have a positive effect on perceived ease of use and perceived ease of use along with media richness and trust enhances the perceived usefulness of social networks. While perceived risk has a negative effect on the behavioral intent of using social media, this effect is offset by perceived trust, ease of use, and perceived usefulness. Ultimately, behavioral intent leads to the actual use of social media. In fact, this study by examining the relationships between the factors affecting the use of social media in travel planning in Iran can help to understand how different factors affect the use of social media for travel planning.