The dominant paradigm on tourist behaviors depicts a sequential relationship among image, quality, satisfaction, and post-purchase behavior while the alternative view argues that consumer behaviors are better understood through perceived value. Using Nepal as a case, we tested a synthetic model of tourist behaviors and applied the Fombrun-RI Country Reputation Index (CRI) that was developed in the field of nation branding to measure destination image, an elusive concept in tourism literature since long. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) shows that the data largely supported the model, and national image has impacts on tourist behaviors. However, service quality is not a significant predictor of tourist behaviors. This corroborates the argument that perceived value is a better way to analyze tourist behaviors. The research has practical implications for nation branding programs in the less-developed nations.

游客行为的主要范例描述了图像，质量，满意度和购买后行为之间的顺序关系，而另一种观点则认为，通过感知价值可以更好地理解消费者的行为。我们以尼泊尔为例，测试了游客行为的综合模型，并应用了在国家品牌领域开发的Fombrun-RI国家声誉指数（CRI）来衡量目的地形象，这是旅游文献中长期以来难以捉摸的概念。结构方程模型（SEM）表明，数据在很大程度上支持了该模型，而国家形象对游客的行为也有影响。但是，服务质量并不是游客行为的重要指标。这证实了认为价值是分析游客行为的更好方法的论点。