@misc{9235563,
  abstract     = {{This study explores the pre-trip expectations and post-trip perceptions of Chinese tourists regarding the tourism symbols of Northern Europe. Based on destination branding theory, the cognitive-affective-conative framework, and Peirce's triadic semiotic model, the study examines whether there is a gap between expectation and perception for Chinese tourists regarding the tourism symbols of Northern Europe and how these gaps are formed.
This research employs a mixed-method approach, including document analysis, netnography, questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal that, at the overall statistical level, there is no significant difference between the pre-trip expectations and post-trip perceptions of Chinese tourists about the tourism symbols of Nordic countries. However, individual differences exist across different symbols. Cognitive symbols such as natural landscapes are usually easily confirmed during actual travel, while affective symbols such as healing, tranquility, slow living, and romantic atmosphere are more easily influenced by weather, transportation, prices, and personal experiences.
This study argues that Chinese tourists do not passively accept the tourism image of Nordic destinations but actively interpret and reconstruct the tourism symbols under the influence of their own cultural background, emotional needs, and embodied travel experiences.}},
  author       = {{Yin, Yuanyuan and Li, Shenglin}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Exploring Chinese Tourists' Expectations and Post-trip Perceptions of Nordic Tourism Symbols}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}