Subjective assessments of personal mobility: What makes the difference between a little and a lot?

Using survey data collected from 1358 commuting workers in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1998, this paper empirically explores the determinants of individuals’ subjective assessments of their mobility (measured on a five-point ordinal scale, for 10 different categories of travel). Linear regression was used to identify the relative importance of reported mobility in explaining the variance of the dependent variables. A variety of personal factors were also found to significantly influence such assessments: personality traits, travel-related attitudes, lifestyle characteristics, and affinity for travel. The study provides insight into the way individuals mentally process the amount of travel they do, which will increase our understanding of travel behavior and its motivations.     

The influence of personality traits on airport public transport access mode choice: A hybrid latent class choice modeling approach

Many objective and subjective factors affect individual tendencies. Such subjective factors include personality traits, attitudes, identities, perceptions, and feelings. The choice of transportation mode is an individual tendency that is considered important in policy-making decisions, and it can affect sustainable transportation, particularly in metropolitan areas. The present study’s main aim is to determine the impact of the Big Five Personality Factors on individual preferences toward public transportation modes. We use data from a survey conducted in January and February of 2015 at Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKIA). Passengers were asked to indicate their preferred mode of transportation to access the IKIA and to respond to questions on the NEO Five-Factor Inventory. Based on 557 valid responses, hybrid discrete latent class modeling was conducted to understand the heterogeneity in the respondents’ individual preferences regarding the Big Five Personality Factors and their preferences toward public modes of transportation. The results indicated that individuals who display neuroticism were more likely than the others to be concerned about carrying heavy luggage and about inclement weather conditions when using public transportation. In addition, interesting results indicated that conscientious individuals likely paid more attention to travel cost than to any other attribute of public transportation, and the model of the conscientious latent personality trait was a better fit to the data. Finally, this paper examined the taste heterogeneity of each personality trait and the results indicate the usefulness of considering personality traits in mode choice models for richer insights toward sustainable transportation.     

A Study of TV Drama Series,Cultural Proximity and Travel Motivation: Moderation Effect of Enduring Involvement

This paper empirically investigates the relationships of TV drama series, cultural proximity and travel motivation, especially examining the moderating effect of enduring involvement in this relationship. The findings reveal that only TV drama series, not cultural proximity, has positive effects on travel motivation. The viewer's enduring involvement with the drama shows its moderating effects on the drama–motivation relationship but only on the cultural proximity–motivation relationship for the high‐enduring‐involvement viewers. Overall, this study highlights a viewer's enduring involvement role in enhancing/changing the effects of TV dramas and cultural proximity on the viewer's travel motivation to the places depicted in the programs. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does personality predict tourism information search and feedback behaviour?

There is little research on how personality traits influence information search and feedback behaviour of tourism information consumers. Using various online and offline information and feedback sources, this study contributes to the literature by considering how personality influences Taiwanese view pre-trip and on-site information sources’ ability to provide desired information before and during the trip and whether post-trip feedback channels are suitable feedback instruments. Even though personality alone may not fully explain tourism information search behaviour, hierarchical regression analyses showed the usefulness of Big Five personality traits in this aspect. Openness to experience and conscientiousness traits particularly stood out. Openness to experience significantly affects perception of word-of-mouth-related sources and conscientiousness for less accessible sources. Extraversion and neuroticism negatively predict popular culture sources. These outcomes might be due to the attributes of information sources or feedback channels.     

Exploring the motivation of Chinese immigrants for homeland tourism

This study explored the travel motives of the Chinese immigrants who visit their homeland for vacation. A combination of qualitative interview and quantitative survey was undertaken to collect data. Five-hundred valid Chinese immigrants in Macao were surveyed. Three core travel motivation factors are revealed: attractiveness of the tourist resources, connection to the past, and socialising with family and friends. The travel motives reflect the emotional needs of the Chinese immigrants who visit their homeland for vacation and suggest that homeland tourism is likely to provide the Chinese immigrants with a chance to recollect their past memories and experiences with their homeland and lead them to some nostalgic feelings and thoughts about their personal life, which contribute to a memorable tourist experience. Moreover, the travel patterns of the Chinese immigrants were significantly correlated with their travel motives, suggesting that homeland tourists have their unique travel needs and behaviour and thus should be treated as a separate tourist segment. For future research, it is worthwhile to undertake a further investigation in the travel motives and behaviour of immigrants with different cultural and ethnical backgrounds in order to better understand homeland tourists.     

Personality,Risk Perception,Benefit Sought and Terrorism Effect

Risk perception can affect travel decision‐making. It is subjective and variable among different people. The purposes of this study are threefold: it examines the relationship between personality and risk perception, risk perception and benefit sought and finally tests to see whether willingness to travel alters after a terrorist attack and how this differs across different personalities. To do this, a random sample of 475 British households was selected to facilitate the analysis. The findings show that there are differences in terms of people's personality and risk perception. Benefit sought and risk perceptions are partially related, but not in the context of terrorism attacks in seaside resorts, where terrorism creates an atmosphere of uncertainty that leave the door open for fear, and the lack of ability to control the risk stops even the most confident traveller. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Travelling with a Purpose: Understanding the Motives and Benefits of Volunteer Vacationers

With the growing trend of volunteer vacations, research has been warranted in regard to understanding the motivational factors of individuals who participate in such endeavors. With this understanding, the goal is to increase these travel offerings in the industry, which will bring better understanding between cultures. This study examines different travel motivation factors for someone who chooses to use part of their vacation participating in volunteer or humanitarian activities. Considering that ‘mission’ often has connotations of a religious purpose, the phrase ‘travelling with a purpose’ brings on even more significance as this concept expands. To understand travel motivation in general, a variety of scales and theories have been researched. Maslow, Dann, Iso-Ahola, Plog and Pearce are some included in the Literature Review. A qualitative focus group and semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted. The analysis of the data revealed that four main themes for why people traveled with a purpose emerged. Cultural immersion was a strong objective; the desire to give back; the camaraderie that occurs on volunteer vacations; and the fourth theme focused on family. Non-verbal communication and bonding occurs at several levels with the local people and family members. This is a good example of cultivating peace through tourism.     

Development of a cruise motivation scale for emerging markets in Asia

Cruise travel has attracted the attention of researchers because of its rapid development. However, the literature lacks a reliable and valid measurement tool for constructing cruise motivation. The only available scale developed in the North American context, where the cruise industry is considerably mature, may be inapplicable to emerging markets due to cultural and experiential differences. To address this research gap, a measurement scale for cruise motivation in emerging markets, with Mainland China and Hong Kong as samples, was developed by following rigorous procedures that used both qualitative and quantitative methods. This study offers both academic and operational implications.     

Cultural tourism as tourist segment for reducing seasonality in a coastal area: the case study of Andalusia

The present paper analyses the seasonal concentration on the Andalusian coastline, a Spanish Mediterranean coastal destination characterised by its high seasonality in the summer months. The analyses were conducted by separating tourists according to their main travel motivation, and distinguishing sun and sand tourists from cultural and other segments tourists, based on their place of origin and on the coast they visited. The quantitative tools applied included the additive decomposition of the Gini index and the calculation of the relative marginal effects. The proposed methodology serves as a useful tool for tourism managers and administrators interested in reducing seasonality, since it facilitates the identification of tourists segments that can effectively contribute to the reduction of seasonal concentration. Among the main results for the studied area, it was found that given the heterogeneity of the groups of tourists (both domestic and foreign), it was much more effective to separate tourist segments by their main travel motivation. The cultural segment was the most favourable for deseasonalisation, especially within domestic tourists, since with foreigners the same deseasonalising effect was not present in all the coasts analysed.     

Study abroad motivations,destination selection and pre‐trip attitude formation

This study examines the role of motivations, prior travel experience, social ties and destination choice in pre‐trip attitude formation. The sample for this study is composed of a group of university students who recently participated in study abroad programs to the South Pacific or Europe. The results revealed that academic motivations and social ties influence students' destination selection for the study aboard program. Social motivation emerged as the most important factor that influences attitude toward the destinations prior to the trip. Further analysis found that the destination intended to visit mediates the effect of social motivation on pre‐trip attitude formation. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Exploring heterogeneity in travel time expenditure of aging populations in the Netherlands: results of a CHAID analysis

The aim of this paper is to contribute to the increasing literature on travel behavior and time use of the elderly. The Dutch National Travel Survey, administered in 2009, was used as a data source. First, various facets of activity-travel patterns of the elderly were compared against overall sample averages. Results indicate that the new generation of elderly people do not differ that much from other age groups in terms of their activity-travel behavior. Differences in behavior can be largely understood in terms of constraints acting on agendas. Moreover, travel patterns of elderly are affected by socio-demographic variables. Second, to further qualify the average findings, the Chi-square automatic interaction detection (CHAID) method was applied to explore heterogeneity among the elderly in terms of travel time expenditure. It is analyzed how differences in travel time co-vary with socio-demographics, in addition to activity type, activity duration and travel aspects. The results suggest that the aging population can be systematically broken down into several homogeneous cohort segments. Travel time of elderly groups depends significantly on transport modes, travel motivation, and seven socio-demographic variables (gender, age, living environment, personal net-income, household size and season). Moreover, there is less heterogeneity in travel time of elderly who are older than 75 years old. However, for younger elderly people, especially the group aged from 65 to 74 years old, heterogeneity affects their travel.     

The tourist experience of domestic VFR travellers: the case of Hungary

Visiting friends and relatives (VFR) is the main driver of domestic travel in many countries. This study is one of the first to analyse VFR travel from a perspective of tourist experience. This study aims to investigate the complex dynamics behind VFR-related travel, especially in aspects of trip activities and tourist experience formation. Based on a survey (N?=?879) examining domestic VFR travellers’ trip activities in Hungary, the paper discusses the formation of a tourist experience in context of short-haul domestic VFR travel, especially the role of influencing factors. The results reveal differences between the segments with trip motivation of visiting friends (VF) and visiting relatives (VR) – the two main types of VFR tourists. It was found that independent variables such as VF, staying for longer and participating in leisure and tourism-type activities have a positive effect on tourist experience evolvement; however, factors such as VR, being rather passive during such a visit and focusing on social acts and bonding negatively affect the formulation of a tourist experience. The paper’s novelty and uniqueness lies in applying a new perspective of analysing and discussing VFR travel: the theoretical concept of tourist experience formation.     

Non‐participation of Domestic Tourism: Analyzing the Influence of Discouraging Factors

This study analyzes the factors that discourage non‐tourists' participation in domestic tourism. Data were collected in 15 cities in China and analyzed using a comparative analysis and non‐parametric ridit analysis. The findings indicate that (i) non‐tourists have low internal travel motivation and attitude and are more likely to be under 25 or above 55 years old, less educated, less healthy, with small child(ren) and lower income; (ii) non‐tourists consider less on destination environment and attraction, but focus on price and travel expenses when making a travel decision and destination choice; and (iii) economic and leisure time are their main situational travel constrains. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Imagining the Scottish nation: tourism and homeland nationalism in Scotland

Genealogical tourism is one of the fastest growing sub-segments of heritage tourism. The travel motivation for genealogical visit stems from the search for familiarisation and identification with ‘the native other’ through which tourists seek to reaffirm their cultural affinity and commonness. The purpose of this article is to see how renewed cultural affinity with the homeland constructs a form of nationalism. Qualitative data collected through field surveys, interviews and questionnaires with genealogical tourists showed that such travel bestows a renewed sense of self-identity, enhances cultural affinity to their ‘homeland’ nation and plays a role in articulating ‘homeland’ nationalism. The article contributes in understanding the articulation of root, identity and ancestral belonging in the context of genealogical tourism and the way it can be linked with the ‘Nationalist’ sentiment in Scotland.     

Travelling to the Ancestral Homelands: The Aspirations and Experiences of a UK Caribbean Community

This paper is based on an ethnographic study of the Caribbean community of Moss Side, Manchester (UK). Its aim is to reveal, interpret and analyse the personal meanings which members of the community attach to visiting the ancestral homeland in the Caribbean. This form of travel is defined in terms of 'ethnic reunion', which involves travelling for the purpose of visiting friends and relatives and/or searching for one's cultural roots. The study, which is based on an interpretive analysis of a range of ethnographic material, initially examines the reasons why first- and second-generation Caribbeans wish to participate in the 'homeland experience', and then illustrates ways in which they reconstruct an identity of themselves through their travel perceptions and experiences. The latter part of the paper discusses how people's travel encounters serve to illustrate how ethnic differences and boundaries between groups are constructed and/or reconstructed. It is argued that established perspectives of tourism motivation and behaviour do not fully account for the role of ethnicity as a significant variable in influencing specific forms of travel. The conclusion asserts that ethnic reunion should be conceptually viewed as a distinct form of 'travel', socioculturally dissimilar to conventional forms of 'tourism'.     

To go or stay home and watch: exploring the balance between motives and perceived constraints for major events: a case study of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games

The current study offers insight into the role of motivation and constraints on behavioural intentions prior to a mega event. The Psychological Continuum Model framework was used to integrate motivation and leisure constraints theory to examine attraction towards the 2008 Olympic Games. Semi‐structured interviews (N = 47) and a questionnaire (N = 235) distributed in Australia and the USA were used to identify and measure three motivational themes: cultural learning, cultural experience and olympic event interest, and three perceived constraints: structural, interpersonal and intrapersonal. Structural Equation Modelling revealed that motives were positively related to behavioural intentions while constraints were negatively related. Analysis further revealed the interaction between motives and perceived constraints led to two different forms of behavioural intentions; intentions to travel and attend the event vs. stay home to watch the event on TV. Policy and marketing implications are discussed that illustrate the benefits of understanding both motives and perceived constraints for tourism travel. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.     

Travel behaviour among inbound medical tourists in Kuala Lumpur

Despite recording the highest growth among tourism sub-sectors [Dhesi, D. (2009, March 25). Medical tourism rises in Malaysia despite economic downturn. The Star Online. Retrieved from http://www.malaysiahealthcare.com/; Leonard, T. (2009, July 24). Medical tourists to bring in RM 540 million by 2010. Retrieved from http://www.malaysiahealthcare.com/; Tourism Malaysia. (2008). Profile of tourist by selected markets 2008. Kuala Lumpur: Tourism Malaysia], little is known empirically with regard to travel behaviour among inbound medical tourists in Malaysia. This study examined the demographic profile, travel motivation, healthcare consumption, and expenditure behaviour among them in Kuala Lumpur. Using the combination of purposeful and convenience sampling, a total of 138 questionnaires were completed, returned, and analysed. The majority of the respondents were female, middle aged, travelling with two others and Indonesians. Their main travel motivation factors were ‘value for money’, ‘excellent medical services’, ‘supporting services’, ‘cultural similarity’, and ‘religious factor’ in descending order of importance. Medical treatment, cosmetic procedure, surgical procedure, and medical check-up were important healthcare services sought after by the respondents. On average, medical tourists spent MYR 26,844.19 per visit, with females and tourists of European descent contributing significantly more. Tourists from ASEAN had stronger motivation of ‘cultural similarity’ compared with other tourists. This paper is unique in providing the empirical evidence of the city's unique selling points (pull factors) in attracting inbound medical tourists. It also highlights the potential economic contribution and some managerial implications in terms of marketing and product development.     

Different but Similar: Social Comparison of Travel Motives Among Tourists

Although previous research suggests that people prefer to think of themselves as being authentic (or individualistic) travellers rather than stereotyped tourists, there have been few studies investigating the external validity of such claim. This paper addresses this research gap by investigating tendencies to dissociate the self from typical tourists in terms of travel motivation. Findings suggest that people perceive their own travel motives to be different from those who they perceive as typical tourists and that these tendencies generalize across people involved in different forms of tourism. This paper discusses the results from a social psychological perspective and provides implications for future research and destination management alike. © 2014 The Authors. International Journal of Tourism Research published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.