Attitudes and language identities in Ocean Park Hong Kong online reviews

Abstract

Social media plays a major role in providing information to people all around the world; tourists can easily obtain all kinds of reviews, or even post about their own experiences, with ease, and evidence suggests that the number of reviews has vastly increased. Generally, local and non-local visitors have some common ground, such as the desire to escape from their reality and become relaxed and immersed in a fun and enjoyable theme park environment. In the present study, we aim to explore the attitudes and language identities of local and non-local visitors through an analysis of online customer reviews of Ocean Park Hong Kong. An investigation into feedback from visitors was conducted, with reviews sourced from online platforms, focusing mainly on the similarities and differences between local and non-local visitors on the subjects of their experiences, attitudes, and identities. The collected data were based on authentic reviews collected for Ocean Park Hong Kong gathered from online travel guide platforms. In this study, we use the systemic functional linguistics (SFL) framework and the appraisal theory as systems of interpersonal meaning in order to analyse the attitudinal meanings and language identities within the reviews. In total, 1057 reviews, made from 2012 to 2024 and comprising 100,558 words, were examined, using the log-likelihood ratio for raw frequency and relative frequency of appraisal resources between local and non-local visitors by using the log-likelihood ratio. Through this study, we hope to contribute in both theoretical and practical aspects, such as providing understanding of the lexicogrammatical realizations and underlying reasons for different reviews, as well as providing useful insights for the theme park tourism industry to enhance tourist experiences.