A Study on the Effects of Public Space Quality on Tourists’ Loyalty with the Moderating Role of Gender

As important tourist destinations, public spaces play a significant role in the sustainable development of tourism. The main purpose of the research is to evaluate the effects of public space qualities on tourists’ loyalty. The historical contexts of Ghasabeh and Riab Village in Gonabad County were chosen as the research setting due to their unique tourist attractions. A cross-sectional survey and a questionnaire tool were used to conduct the research. The initial reliability and validity of the questionnaire were confirmed by Cronbach's alpha coefficient (α = 0.96) and experts, respectively. The sample size was obtained using GPower software with a power of 85%. Exploratory factor analysis and partial least squares structural equation modeling were conducted for data analysis. Among the components of public space, including opportunities for recreation and relaxation, access to facilities, security and maintenance, and social quality, only security and maintenance had a direct impact on tourists' loyalty (β = 0.208, p-value = 0.02). Access to facilities (β = 0.051) and social quality (β = 0.069) also indirectly affected loyalty with the full mediation of satisfaction and attachment (p-value < 0.05). In total, recreation and relaxation opportunities had the greatest significant overall effect on loyalty (β = 0.301), security and maintenance (β = 0.294), and access to facilities (β = 0.214) came after that in order. Besides, gender had a moderating role in the effect of security and maintenance on loyalty. Strategies have been proposed such as increasing recreational land uses and parks by using native plants.