Lifestyle entrepreneurs and their identity construction: A study of the tourism industry

The present study takes issue with the uniform conceptualization of lifestyle entrepreneurs in previous research by drawing on identity theory and life-story interviews with lifestyle entrepreneurs in Norway. This article aims to show how lifestyle entrepreneurs create their entrepreneurial identity and how this identity informs both their entrepreneurial actions in different ways and how they manage the enterprise. On the basis of a narrative understanding of identity this article differentiates between two dimensions of identity construction: (1) socially and culturally embedded versus independent, and (2) flexible versus stable. The main contribution of this study is that embedded or independent and also flexible or stable identity constructions dominate the identity-construction process for individual lifestyle entrepreneurs. On the basis of the latter this article reports four narrative types of lifestyle-entrepreneur identity construction: (1) the modern, (2) the loyal, (3) the freedom-seeking, (4) and the post-modern lifestyle entrepreneur.     

Seasonal concentration of tourism demand: Decomposition analysis and marketing implications

This paper analyzes seasonality in the United Kingdom, specifically the English regions in relation to tourists' place of origin and main travel motivation. The method used is a decomposition of the Gini index, which provides relative marginal effects that facilitate the identification of market segments open to counter-seasonal marketing efforts. This method has been combined with a graphical multivariate technique (biplot), which groups segments according to their seasonality characteristics. Seasonal patterns associated with particular segments differ significantly when studied on a disaggregated basis. Therefore, an adequate level of disaggregation is essential in the design of counter-seasonal strategies. Although this study focuses on British destinations, this methodology could be used as a control and monitoring measure in the regional analysis of any destination, facilitating regular adjustment of regional tourism marketing campaigns to minimize seasonality effects, specifically by targeting the types of tourists less prone to seasonality.     

Boat-based tourism and bottlenose dolphins in Doubtful Sound,New Zealand: The role of management in decreasing dolphin-boat interactions

Indirect non-lethal effects of wildlife tourism have the potential to compromise the long-term health of animal populations. While appropriate management of impacts is clearly necessary, such management is rarely reported to be effective. Doubtful Sound (New Zealand) has boat-based scenic cruises running year-round. This fjord is also home to an endangered population of bottlenose dolphins, a natural asset for the local tourism industry. A voluntary code of management (COM) was implemented in 2008 to alleviate vessel impacts, establishing guidelines to leave dolphin encounters to chance and restricting vessel traffic in areas of critical habitat. The frequency and duration of interactions decreased substantially since the implementation of the COM. This evidence shows that a science-based voluntary agreement has the potential to mitigate tourism impacts. Nevertheless, due to the small size of the population and its history of low calf survival, a precautionary approach is necessary to further reduce current anthropogenic impacts.     

A two-way causal chain between tourism development and quality of life in a small island destination: an empirical analysis

This study postulates that tourism development (TD) and residents' quality of life (QoL) may have an intrinsically reciprocal relationship. The possible connection between TD and QoL is investigated in the island of Aruba, with economic development as a mediating variable. This investigation contributes to the literature by emphasizing the active role of QoL in the relationship with TD through a subjective well-being approach, and by expanding our understanding of the development concept. The study also advances the scope of tourism theory by presenting new propositions. The methodology consists of applying exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses combined with structural equations modeling. The results suggest that TD has a direct and indirect impact on QoL, and that QoL has an indirect effect on TD, via economic development. These findings provide new insights on the dimensions that shape the link between TD and QoL.     

Reducing tourism's threats to biodiversity: effects of a voluntary sustainability standard and training program on 106 Latin American hotels,lodges and guesthouses

The tourism industry can negatively affect wildlife, plants and natural ecosystems through habitat destruction, pollution, over-exploitation of natural resources and visitor impacts to sensitive ecosystems. One approach to mitigate such threats is the application of voluntary sustainability standards, supported by training of tourism enterprises and verified by external audits. The Rainforest Alliance standard defines 78 criteria (requirements) for sustainable environmental, social and business practices, and has been adopted by over 600 tourism enterprises – including hotels, lodges and tour boats – in 12 countries. We examined the performance of 106 hotels in six Latin American countries against 29 of the sustainable tourism criteria most directly related to biodiversity conservation. Independent audits were used to assess hotel performance at baseline followed by a repeat assessment after training, about two years later. Mean conformance with the 29 biodiversity criteria increased significantly during this interval, from 44% to 58%. Improvements were greatest for businesses in the lowest third of performance at baseline (laggards) and smallest for hotels in the highest third (leaders). The results indicate that a voluntary sustainability standard and training program can serve both to recognize existing good actors and to drive incremental improvement in enterprises that were previously less sustainable.     

基于《旅游学刊》关键词计量分析的旅游学科创新力及知识体系构建

既有研究有少量以关键词为研究对象来探讨旅游学科相关信息，然鲜见对学科创新力及知识体系演变与构建的研究。文章以《旅游学刊》2000—2014年载文的书写关键词为研究对象，运用文献计量可视化软件CiteSpace进行数据统计分析，结合内容分析，创新性地将学科创新力测评及知识体系演变结合研究。结果显示：（1）学科创新潜力、创新活力和创新保持力分呈变异V形和倒V形，除2000—2004年的创新潜力和创新活力变化稍大外，2000—2004年的创新保持力、2005—2009年及2010—2014年的各项创新力较为稳定；（2）学科知识体系演变由学科内容及方法的演变来展现，内容为数量-质量-精神层次的演变，方法为质性方法-量化方法-质与量结合的演变；（3）构建由研究内容、方法及目的3大部分组成的旅游学科知识体系框架。文章探讨以《旅游学刊》单一期刊为研究对象，理论建构依据的是“分析性归纳”，强调的是“典型性”，反映的是“高水准旅游学术刊物”这一同质化范围内。     

情感乡村模式与璧山县乡村旅游实践研究

＂快乐经济＂、＂幸福经济＂等可统称为＂情感经济＂,它为我们提供了＂可触摸＂情感的思维。在对情感经济回顾和＂情感乡村＂概念界定基础上,认为情感经济可用于乡村旅游实践。在璧山县＂情感乡村＂旅游发展实践中,通过挖掘＂情感乡村＂旅游元素、分析＂情感乡村＂旅游市场,提出快乐乡村、幸福乡村、浪漫乡村以及和谐乡村的乡村旅游项目设计理念,得出＂情感旅游＂是乡村旅游发展重要方向的结论。     

Web users’ behavioural patterns of tourism information search: From online to offline

This paper presents a conceptual framework of Web users’ engagement in tourism information search for a comprehensive understanding of their integrated online and offline search behaviour. The information search experiences are characterised as a process constituting some common elements: prior knowledge and searching experiences, online searching strategies, processing and recording information, barriers to online searching, reasons for ending an online search, summarising information, exchanging information and searching for more information through other sources. Such behaviour goes beyond the scope of information searching and captures the other activities, including information processing, utilising and disseminating. The grounded theory research method is employed as an inductive investigative process in which the authors construct the framework by systematically collecting and analysing data. The aim of this research method is to build a theory. The data sets consist of both semi-structured in-depth interviews with subjects and their field observations based on online searching. A theoretical model incorporating 10 propositions is proposed for future testing.     

Hawker centres as tourist attractions: The case of Singapore

Cooked food hawkers are a sometimes neglected part of the tourism and hospitality industries, yet can play a significant role as a visitor attraction which offers both inexpensive food and insights into the contemporary society and heritage of the destination. Hawking is ubiquitous in much of South East Asia where it is integral to the life of local residents and this includes Singapore, the focus of the paper which also comments on the relationship between food and tourism in general. The cooked food hawker sector in the city state is described and the results of a survey of tourists about their experiences of dining at hawker centres are presented. Responses appear favourable on the whole, but some concerns are identified. It seems that hawkers may have unrealised potential as an amenity for tourists, although widening their appeal and use is a challenging task compounded by the threat to the survival of hawker centres from urban development pressures.     

The impacts of international tourism demand on economic growth of small economies dependent on tourism

This paper studies the impacts on economic growth of a small tourism-driven economy caused by an increase in the growth rate of international tourism demand. We present a formal model and empirical evidence. The ingredients of the dynamic model are a large population of intertemporally optimizing agents and an AK technology representing tourism production. The model shows that an increase in the growth of tourism demand leads to transitional dynamics with gradually increasing economic growth and increasing terms of trade. In our empirical application, an econometric methodology is applied to annual data of Antigua and Barbuda from 1970 to 2008. We perform a cointegration analysis to look for the existence of a long-run relationship among variables of economic growth, international tourism earnings and the real exchange rate. The exercise confirms the theoretical findings.