Social media engagement and fear of travel: a premium hotel case study

1. Dataset Description This dataset contains the anonymized survey responses used in the empirical study examining the influence of social media engagement on hotel booking intention under different levels of perceived travel risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. The dataset includes 1,279 valid responses collected in Spain through an online consumer panel. Participants were exposed to an experimental social media post from a premium hotel before completing the questionnaire. All data are fully anonymized. No personal identifiers are included. 2. Study Purpose This dataset supports an empirical study investigating how consumers' engagement with hotel social media content influences their attitude toward the hotel and their booking intention under varying levels of perceived travel risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study also examines the moderating role of perceived travel risk in the relationship between social media engagement and consumer responses. 3. Research Design Country: Spain Sample size: 1,279 respondents Method: Online survey with an experimental design Screening Conditions Participants were required to: Be active users of social media. Have previous experience staying in hotels. Meet the sampling criteria established by the online panel provider. 4. Measurement The main constructs were measured using previously validated multi-item scales. All construct items were measured using a 5-point Likert scale: 1 = Strongly disagree 2 = Disagree 3 = Neutral 4 = Agree 5 = Strongly agree The dataset includes measures of: Social media engagement Brand attitude Booking intention Perceived travel risk 5. File Structure The Excel file contains two worksheets. Sheet 1 – Dataset Respondent_ID (anonymous identifier) Sociodemographic variables Social media usage variables Experimental condition variables Risk perception variables Construct measurement items: ENG1–ENG4 (Social Media Engagement) ATT1–ATT3 (Brand Attitude) BI1–BI3 (Booking Intention) Composite variables used in the empirical analysis Sheet 2 – Codebook Variable name Description Construct (if applicable) Exact item wording (for survey items) Measurement scale Coding Source reference 6. Variable Naming Convention Construct items follow the structure: ENG = Social Media Engagement ATT = Brand Attitude BI = Booking Intention Composite variables correspond to the constructs analyzed in the structural model. Demographic variables have been standardized in English. No reverse-coded items are included. 7. Ethical Statement Data were collected exclusively for academic research purposes. All responses are anonymous. No personal identifying information is included. The dataset has been anonymized and prepared for public dissemination in accordance with good research data management and open science practices.