Examining the efficacy of self-classification approach in segmenting special-interest tourists: food tourism case

Self-classification is used as an a priori approach to tourist typology and market segmentation. However, skepticism still surrounds its ability to incorporate the multidimensionality of tourist behavior. This study seeks to empirically verify the efficacy of a single-item self-classification approach. The robustness of this self-classification measure is examined by comparing it to a data-driven multidimensional psychographic approach in terms of its ability to predict the behaviors of tourists toward food-related destination consumption. Results suggest that the single-item self-classification approach performs equally well as the psychographic approach in segmenting food-related consumption behaviors. The implications and limitations of this study are also discussed.     

Tourism Brochures: Usefulness and Image

Tourist information has been shown to have an important influence on the choice of vacation destinations. This article studies brochures, their significance as image generators, and their influence on the selection of destinations. The study sought to discover which features in this medium are more relevant in image generation and destination choice using logistic regression analysis. The analysis is based on data collected from tourists in Madrid, Spain. The results establish a model of usefulness of brochures in order to propose recommendations for their design and content. Implications pertain to the development of theoretical understandings about the influence of the information sources on destination image, destination choice, and satisfying tourist needs.     

美国休闲游客对中国作为国际旅游目的地的评价:基于IPA方法

运用IPA分析法对美国休闲游客对中国作为国际旅游目的地的评价进行实证研究,并通过统计分析探讨了到访美国游客与未到访美国游客对中国绩效性评价方面的差异。研究结果明确了中国今后在继续保持、表现过度、毋须优先和改善重点方面应关注的要素,并提出了具体的应对措施。     

Transport infrastructure and tourism development

This paper investigates the significance of transport infrastructure as a factor in destination development, showing it to be part of the classical demand for international tourism functions. An application involving the island of Mauritius is presented, whereby total tourist arrivals are modeled. The findings show that tourists from Europe/America and Asia are particularly sensitive to the island’s transport infrastructure. Those from Europe/America are also sensitive to its nontransport infrastructure. Both types of infrastructure, as well as income of tourists, distance, and relative prices are important ingredients in their own respect in the tourism demand equation. Mauritius is an expanding destination, with the European and American markets being most promising.     

Tourists and retailers' perceptions of services

This paper describes a study which measures tourist and retailers' perceptions of service levels in a tourism destination. A service quality model was used to develop survey items and interpret the results. The service dimensions used to evaluate a tourism experience included reliability, responsive, assurance, and access. The results indicate tourists evaluate tourism services based on “who” delivers as opposed to the nature of the services (as outlined in the Service Quality model). This has implications for those who create and service tourism destinations, such as city planners and leaders, tourism convention and visitor bureaus, and retailers.     

Measuring tourist judgment on service quality

This study measures tourist judgments on service quality in alpine ski resorts. An attribute based method was employed in order to estimate weighting schemes both for quality judgments across different tourism activity domains and different quality dimensions within winter resorts and to quantify an overall quality measure. A linear regression and Sirgy's congruity model of customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction were adopted. The results indicate that there exists a linear relationship between the overall quality measure and the partial judgments of each domain/dimension. This allows deciphering the relevance of different domains of tourism activity and quality dimensions within the process of making quality judgments.     

Measuring novelty seeking in tourism

The purposes of the study were to define the construct of novelty in the context of tourism, to conceptualize its role in the destination choice process, and to develop an instrument to measure novelty. The novelty construct was comprised of four interrelated but distinctive dimensions: thrill, change from routine, boredom alleviation, and surprise. A 21 item instrument was developed to measure the construct and its dimensions. The scale was judged to have content validity by an initial panel of experts. It was demonstrated to have convergent, theoretical, discriminant, and criterion validity in terms of its expected correlations with other measures. Items measuring the dimensions were internally consistent, and both test-retest and split-half reliability were satisfactory.     

International leisure tourists’ involvement profile

The involvement construct has received a great deal of attention in recent years. However, the majority of research on this topic has focused on internal tourists, recreational activities participants, or associated services and products. Using survey data collected from European leisure tourists at an international destination, this study examined the underlying dimensions of their involvement. Scale unidimensionality is first revealed by an exploratory factor analysis and validated by a confirmatory factor analysis. The data suggested that this is a three dimensional construct: pleasure/interest, risk probability, and risk importance. Construct validity, including discriminant, convergent and nomological validity, and reliability are also satisfactorily established.     

Tourist Motives and Destination Competitiveness: A Gap Analysis Perspective

This study explores the use of gap analysis in examining the demand-side and supply-side perceptions of international tourists’ motives for visiting Botswana, along with Botswana’s competitiveness as a tourist destination. Statistically significant negative gaps between tourists and tourism providers’ perceptions mean that further understanding of tourists by providers is necessary to enhance the destination’s competitiveness. The analysis of findings was based on 14 “pull” motivations adapted from Kozak (2002) and 104 destination competitiveness measures, some of which were adapted from Omerzel (2006). Factor analysis, reliability analysis, and a series of independent t-tests were used to analyze the data. Study results indicate that tourists visit Botswana mainly for pleasure seeking rather than culture. The study further reveals that Botswana’s competitiveness as a destination is average. Furthermore, the study found statistically significant differences between tourists and tourism providers on all of the “push” factors and nine of the 15 destination competitiveness factors. In order for Botswana to be globally competitive, there is need for further improvement with a view to match international tourists’ expectations. Particular attention should be directed at improving the way the destination is managed. Further developments should be made on created resources, safety, demand conditions, historical and cultural heritage resources, organized excursions, and cleanliness.     

Multicity trip patterns: Tourists to the United States

This study examines international tourists’ multicity trip patterns within the United States. Actual and perceived distance from the country of origin to the destination is assumed to affect the likelihood of multicity tourism behavior. In addition, higher opportunity costs for first-time tourists are expected to lead to increased multicity patterns. An analysis of the trips of international tourists to US metropolitan areas confirmed that multicity patterns differ for groups of tourists with different origins and varying levels of familiarity with the destination. Differences lie in the directionality of flows as well as the extent and nature of multicity tourism behavior.     

基于地方情感的旅游目的地选择模型建构研究

旅游目的地选择模型建构的研究多数以微观经济学、认知心理学与市场营销学等为基础理论,较少从个体与地方感情连结的视角探讨游客旅游目的地选择决策行为。文章以旅游目的地选择为研究主轴概念,结合地方情感概念中的旅游目的地意象和地方依恋,根据研究文献梳理结果、基础理论界定模型建构的路径变量与逻辑框架,进而提出基于地方情感的旅游目的地选择模型及模型过程步骤。文章建构模型表明,游客旅游目的地选择始于旅游目的地意象的形成,随着整体认知意象的深化,游客对旅游目的地将产生地方认同感,再通过选择决策行为选择意向的旅游目的地从事旅游活动,通过对旅游目的地旅游体验的功能满足产生依赖感,最终形成对旅游目的地的地方依恋感。研究成果对于旅游目的地选择具有交叉研究的创新价值,对于旅游目的地市场战略规划实践活动而言具有参照价值。     

旅游地社会责任、声誉、认同与旅游者忠诚关系

文章构建了旅游地社会责任、旅游地声誉、旅游地认同与旅游者忠诚关系的整合模型,以厦门市旅游者为研究对象,采用结构方程模型( SEM)方法,对整合模型进行实证检验,发现:(1)旅游者社会责任直接正向影响旅游地声誉和旅游地认同,并通过旅游地声誉对旅游地认同产生间接影响,通过旅游地声誉和旅游地认同对重游倾向和口碑宣传产生间接影响;(2)旅游地声誉正向影响旅游地认同、重游倾向和口碑宣传,并通过旅游地认同对口碑宣传产生间接影响;(3)旅游地认同直接影响口碑宣传;(4)重游倾向和口碑宣传之间存在递进关系.最后,文章对研究结论进行了讨论,并指出了研究局限和未来研究方向.     

Tourism and crime in the Caribbean

This study reviews the general literature on tourism and crime and the recent history of violent and property crime in several Caribbean destinations. It highlights the failure of most previous research to discriminate crimes against tourists vs. residents. Annual crime data for Barbados for 1989–93 are analyzed and reveal that overall guest victimization rates are higher than host rates. Residents are significantly more likely to be victimized by violent crime while tourists are significantly more likely to experience property crime and robbery. Monthly data on guest victimization for 1990–93 show similar patterns. The paper concludes with a number of measures to enhance tourist safety.     

Asian and Western Cultural Differences

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to develop a theoretical structural equation model using LISREL to determine whether cultural differences between international Asian tourists and their Australian hosts are predictors of tourist satisfaction. The study examines the way in which cultural values, rules of social behavior and perceptions of service providers influence tourist preferences for social interaction and satisfaction with tourist-host contact.

The comparison of the cultural differences goes beyond merely helping to answer the question of whether there are cultural differences and to what extent these differences vary. The paper determines the dimensions of cultural differences between these two populations. A LISREL model is used to identify the strength of the relationships between the cultural dimensions and their key indicators. Further, the study identifies the nature of the causal relationships between the cultural dimensions. The results indicate that differences in cultural values and rules of social behavior between Asian tourists and Australian hosts directly influence tourist satisfaction, and differences in perceptions of service providers directly influence tourist social interaction. Perceptions of service providers only indirectly determine satisfaction, through the mediating effect of interaction. Implications of the study results for marketers and directions for future research are discussed.     

人格特质理论视角下东南亚国家对中国旅游形象感知差异研究

国家旅游目的地性格是影响国家旅游形象和国际游客旅游决策的关键因素,对入境旅游市场营销具有指导意义。本文运用内容分析法、扎根理论研究法,对东南亚3个国家的中文主播网络视频、在华留学生及其亲属的访谈内容进行分析,以探究东南亚国家人们对中国旅游目的地性格维度感知强度和差异。研究表明：根据感知强度大小,东南亚国家对中国旅游目的地性格维度感知依次是能力、真诚、魅力、友善和侠义。东南亚国家对中国旅游目的地性格维度感知存在国别差异,其中,越南人和缅甸人的感知总体呈正面,感知维度分别是“友善”“魅力”和“侠义”“斯文”;老挝人感知相对负面,感知维度为“随性”“自我”。据此建议中国加强与东南亚国家的文化交流,区别不同国家人们的感知特点,进一步强化正面性格感知,调整和优化针对负面性格感知的宣传策略。     

Are neighbour tourists more sensitive to crowding? The impact of distance on the crowding-out effect in tourism

The concept of the crowding-out effect has been employed in the tourism literature to analyse complex phenomena. However, there is limited insight into the crowding-out effect on tourists by tourists, and even less into the impact of distance on the crowding-out of tourists. This paper examines the relationship between crowding perceptions, tourists' attitudes toward crowding and the consequences of being crowded out. Results from a sample of 729 international tourists in Hong Kong suggest that there is a crowding-out effect on tourists by tourists, but this has only a marginal influence on the majority. The limited crowding-out effect is induced by tourists in general rather than by a single segment. The study also investigates the effect of distance on tourist crowding. The findings reveal a decaying effect of distance on tourists’ crowding perceptions, as neighbour tourists are more susceptible to tourist crowding than tourists from long-haul markets.     

Scale development for tourist trust toward a tourism destination

The increasing occurrence of tourist trust crises in various destinations in recent years has made tourism researchers and practitioners aware of the important role of trust. However, the previous literature has not provided a generally recognized scale for measuring tourist trust toward tourism destinations. In the current study, a qualitative analysis of social media posts and a quantitative examination of destination visitors were used to measure and validate tourist trust in a destination. The results revealed that tourist trust in a destination consists of five dimensions involving multiple stakeholders, including authorities, tourists, residents, employees, and the agency, which demonstrated that each party in the overall ecosystem of tourism destination plays a critical role in building positive tourist trust. Evidence from about 1100 tourists' responses at multiple destinations indicated that tourist trust has a significant positive impact on destination image. The study findings have many theoretical and practical implications.     

Shopping destinations and trust – Tourist attitudes: Scale development and validation

Shopping is one of the oldest tourist activities and commonly accounts for the majority of travel budgets. However, tourists have expressed concerns regarding the risks they face in shopping destinations. Scholars have suggested that trust is a mechanism for reducing the complexity of human behavior in a situation that involves uncertainty. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the trust of tourists toward shopping destinations. Specifically, the study attempts to develop and validate the measurement properties of a scale, which measures shopping destination trust. The target sample comprised shopping tourists. Via convenience sampling, 708 usable samples were collected in Hong Kong. Subsequently, purification of the measurement scale, assessment of the latent structure, and scale validation were conducted. Results reveal that shopping destination trust consists of nine dimensions. The present research is expected to shed light on potential research topics in the field of shopping tourism.     

Research on Foreign Tourists’ Satisfaction with the 2010 Shanghai World Expo: Based on the Blogs at a Travel Website

By applying the methods of content analysis and importance-performance analysis to the blogs on http://www.travelblog.org, a popular international website for travel bloggers, this study identifies that foreign tourists’ satisfaction with the 2010 Shanghai World Expo mainly depended on three dimensions: The urban environment, the quality of tourists’ visit to the Expo, and the tourists’ own status. Based on fuzzy evaluation and importance-performance analysis, the study concludes that foreign tourists’ overall degree of satisfaction with the Shanghai World Expo is 6.15 on a 10-point scale and suggests that the quality of exhibits, the touring environment, staff training, and tourist behavior are key elements in the on-site management of major events.     

Mature vs. youth travelers: The Korean market

An important consideration in understanding and predicting tourist behavior concerns the underlying motivation governing the choice of tourist destinations, and the tourists” evaluation and level of satisfaction with the actual experiences (Pearce, 1991). Motivation is a fundamental element in helping to explain tourist behavior. Unfortunately, the research on motivation has only received moderate attention, both conceptually and empirically. A new theoretical framework employed in sociology and social psychology has recently been proposed by Pearce to explain tourism motivation. It is known as the “Travel Career Ladder” (TCL). This paper attempts to reveal comprehensive information on the travel motivations of Korean tourists with regards to overseas trips by employing the concepts predicated in the TCL model. The implications of this research are discussed in terms of the potential of the TCL model, and to what end it can be used to predict tourist behavior and improve the level of cross‐cultural understanding of international tourists.