An Empirical Study on the Experiential Structure of Existential Authenticity in Camping Tourism

Purpose - Focusing on camping tourism, this study conceptualized the experiential structure of existential authenticity and examined the structural relationship between camping conditions, perceived escape, and existential authenticity experience.Design, data, and methodology -To develop measurements, we extensively reviewed previuos studies on key concepts and conducted in-depth interviews with 15 camping tourists. 300 questionnaires were collected from camping tourists and analyzed by factor analysis and multiple regression.Result - First, it is confirmed that the experiential structure of existential authenticity in camping tourism consisted of camping conditions, perceived escape, and existential authenticity experience. Second, camping conditions included place, psychological, and location conditions all of which significantly influenced perceived escape. Third, in the context of camping tourism, it is confirmed that existential authenticity experience can be divided into intra-personal and inter-personal dimensions and is a distinguished from perceived escape.Conclusions - The findings of this study were theoretically meaningful because it empirically showed the experiential structure of existential authenticity and provided practical implications for camping industries which want to create existential experiences.