A Study on the Impact of Cultural Inheritance and Innovative Practices on Tourist Behavior in Industrial Heritage-Themed Districts: A Case Study of Xi’an

This study identifies and refines the dimensions of cultural inheritance and innovative practices in industrial heritage-themed districts and develops a corresponding questionnaire scale. Based on the ABC model of attitudes, a conceptual model is constructed to examine the impact of cultural inheritance and innovation on tourist behavior, which is then empirically tested using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The findings reveal that the influence and mechanism of cultural inheritance and innovative practices on tourist behavior follow a continuous process in the sequence of cognition–affect–behavior tendency. All four dimensions of cultural inheritance and innovation exert a significant positive effect on tourist loyalty. Moreover, the affective component serves as a mediating factor within the chain reaction. This study constructs a new theoretical framework to explore how cultural inheritance and innovation jointly influence the formation of tourist loyalty and the underlying mechanisms, enriching the theoretical system of industrial heritage tourism and cultural management. It also provides practical theoretical support for district planning, design, and management.