The growing importance of regional culture and tourism has positioned local festivals as core tourism resources that attract visitors, enhance regional image, and contribute to the revitalization of local economies. Festivals not only serve as an effe...
The growing importance of regional culture and tourism has positioned local festivals as core tourism resources that attract visitors, enhance regional image, and contribute to the revitalization of local economies. Festivals not only serve as an effective medium to showcase a region’s unique culture and characteristics but also provide distinctive experiences that shape visitors’ perceptions of the destination. Among these factors, the service quality experienced by visitors plays a critical role in influencing festival satisfaction, evaluation, brand equity formation, emotional attachment to the place, and future behavioral intentions. Therefore, identifying how festival service quality is linked to brand equity, place attachment, and behavioral intention is essential for strengthening festival competitiveness and establishing sustainable management strategies.
The purpose of this study is to empirically examine the effects of festival service quality on festival brand equity, place attachment, and behavioral intention. By doing so, the study aims to present a theoretical framework explaining the structural relationships among these variables and provide practical insights that can inform future festival development strategies.
To achieve this objective, a literature review and an empirical analysis were conducted. Survey data were collected from visitors at the Iksan Seodong Festival (May 4–6, 2025) and the Namwon Heungbu Festival (October 18, 2025). The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 29.0 for Windows, employing frequency analysis, reliability analysis, validity analysis, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. In this study, festival service quality consisted of four factors, festival brand equity of two factors, place attachment of two factors, and behavioral intention of a single factor. All measurement items demonstrated acceptable reliability and validity.
The results of the study are as follows.
First, the service quality factors of accessibility, tangibility, content, and responsiveness influenced brand value in the order of content, responsiveness, tangibility, and accessibility. For brand awareness, content, accessibility, and tangibility had significant effects, whereas responsiveness did not.
Second, accessibility, tangibility, and content significantly affected place dependence, while responsiveness did not. For place identity, only accessibility and content showed significant effects.
Third, content, tangibility, and accessibility positively influenced behavioral intention, whereas responsiveness did not.
Fourth, both brand value and brand awareness significantly affected place dependence, while only brand value influenced place identity.
Fifth, both brand awareness and brand value had significant effects on behavioral intention.
Sixth, both dimensions of place attachment—place dependence and place identity—significantly affected behavioral intention.
This study contributes by identifying the key service quality factors that enhance festival competitiveness and by empirically verifying the relationships among festival service quality, brand equity, place attachment, and behavioral intention. The findings provide valuable implications for establishing strategic directions for future festival development and highlight the importance of effective festival management.