Book Reviews

European American ethnic festivals play an important role in the maintenance of folk traditions and ethnic identity in America. Many of these festivals were established during a mid-twentieth-century period of diminishing Old World identity among second and third generation immigrants. The celebrations sought not only to revive ethnic identification by highlighting customs such as cuisine, music and dance, but also to boost the local economy by tapping into a burgeoning tourism destination market. Wilber, Nebraska, home to a large population of Czech Americans, resurrected such a festival in 1962 that had not been celebrated since 1937, and this paper explores a number of geographical, historical, cultural and political factors contributing to its initial and continued popularity as a regional ethnic festival. Also discussed are the commodified cultural items, including food, polka music, craftwork and traditional clothing that provide Czech Americans a means to engage in and maintain a satisfying level of ethnic identity without exerting significant amounts of money and time. The Czech Festival continues to benefit Wilber economically with tens of thousands of tourist visits each year, and surveys indicate that the maintenance of ethnic customs and identity in the community is increasingly becoming dependent on the festival.     

Book Reviews

The Economic Impact of Holiday Villages: A Report for the Rural Development Commission. PA Cambridge Economic Consultants. Salisbury: Rural Development Commission, 1991. Pp. 3–35. ISBN 1-869964-19-5 (paper). Reviewed by Jonathan Murdoch

Beyond the Green Horizon: A Discussion Paper on Principles for Sustainable Tourism. Shirley Eber. UK: WWF, 1992. Pp. vi+54. ISBN 0-947613-0 (pbk): free. Reviewed by Peter Ashcroft     

Book Reviews

John Tribe's paper 'Education for Ethical Tourism Action' (10 (4), 2002) proposes an action-oriented ethical tourism curriculum based on Aristotle's notion of phronesis, aimed at developing a disposition towards 'good' action rather than 'correct' action. This paper investigates the implications of Tribe's paper for the pedagogy and practice of sustainable tourism. Drawing upon Aristotle, it is argued that principles are an important guide to developing and exercising phronesis (practical wisdom) for living a good life, and for the practice of sustainable tourism. The paper also examines issues related to theoretical or scientific knowledge (episteme) and skill development (techne), and argues for a praxis-oriented curriculum that incorporates: (1) knowledge of sustainable-tourism principles, and (2) practice in which learned principles and phronesis (practical wisdom) constitutively guide tourism action and good conduct. The study also suggests that scholars and practitioners need to be more proactive and cognisant of the telos (purpose) and good of various tourism activities and curricula, for the individual and for the destination. Especially lacking in the study of sustainable tourism is discussion of the development of virtues and character for a good life in and through tourism. Virtue ethics offers potential for supplementing existing theories of rightness and obligation in sustainable tourism, and for conceptualising the meaning of 'good tourism'.     

Energy use and leisure consumption in Norway: an analysis and reduction strategy

This article discusses the environmental impacts of leisure activities. Calculations are presented for the time-use, money expenditure and energy use involved in leisure services and goods consumed by Norwegians in 2001. The paper draws upon a two-year project financed by the Research Council of Norway. Leisure consumption represented around 23% of the total energy use within private and public consumption in Norway. The energy intensity of leisure consumption, measured in energy use per amount of expenditure, was 20% lower than that of everyday household consumption but 380% times higher than that of public consumption. Surveys show that around half of Norwegian leisure time is spent at home, with considerable use of electronic goods, but that the major energy users are holidays, outdoor recreation and second homes. Growing mobility in leisure patterns is a dominating problem. Leisure consumption is growing rapidly and energy-intensive forms of leisure consumption are growing fastest. A 10-point strategy for reducing the environmental impacts of leisure consumption is presented, including strategies for changing leisure production, changing patterns of leisure consumption, changing the volume of leisure consumption and utilising leisure as an educational arena.     

国内有关旅游对接待地社会文化影响的研究述评

旅游对接待地的社会文化影响是近年来旅游学界研究的热点问题之一。本文在回顾国内研究进展的基础上．对旅游对接待地社会文化影响的基础理论和主要内容作了重点而详尽的介绍，并就我国目前研究中存在的问题提出了一些看法。     

Residents' perceptions of tourism development in Benalmádena (Spain)

This study examines the residents' perceptions of the impact of tourism in Benalmádena and the profiles of the residents according to socio-demographic characteristics. A questionnaire assessed how these characteristics influence the residents' perceptions towards the environment, economy, and socio-cultural aspects. The survey was administered to a stratified sample of 770 residents in Benalmádena. Results show a significant effect of socio-demographic variables on perception of tourism impact. The educational background, place of birth and how long respondents had been living in the community explain a significant amount of the variance in overall attitudes. Interaction analyses revealed that place of birth moderated the relationship between the tourism dimensions and the years of residence. For instance, the respondents with less than five years of residence showed more positive attitude towards the impact of tourism. We offer a profile of these residents according to their perceptions of the impact of tourism in their community.     

国外关于旅游地水供需矛盾的研究

旅游业是地表水和地下水的主要使用者之一。随着旅游业的不断发展，对水资源的影响日益凸现，水供需矛盾已成为全球旅游可持续发展的主要制约因素之一。本文在阐述国外水供需矛盾旅游地主要区域特征的基础上．从系统角度深入分析了国外旅游地水供需矛盾及其主要影响因素，并从管理、技术、经济和教育等方面总结了国外水供需矛盾的主要调控措施与实施情况．以期丰富旅游水环境的研究视角，为我国旅游地水供需管理提供帮助。     

山岳型旅游地水环境管理比较与模式构建

论文以牯牛降风景区(观音堂核心景区)、普陀山风景区、黄山风景区3个不同发展阶段的山岳型旅游地为案例,对水环境管理现状、水环境管理驱动力和管理方法进行了比较研究,发现山岳型旅游地水环境管理都不同程度地受到外界控制、道德规范、经济限制等驱动力的影响.在此基础上,从管理的角度提出了以道德影响为主,外部控制和经济限制影响为辅,形成意识管理、政策管理和技术管理三者齐头并进的山岳型水环境管理模式.     

Phantasmal destination: A Post-modernist Perspective

The research outlined in this paper began as a study to explore the meaning attached to the creation of a new type of destination from a postmodernist perspective. The concept of the “phantasmal destination” was derived from the observation of several destinations favored by tourists primarily because of a myth associated with them, generally with no basis in historical reality. Shangri-La in Yunnan, China, was selected for this investigation due to its unique qualities containing all of the elements of this tourism phenomenon. This qualitative study applied the Grounded Theory Method, and uncovered other issues related to the perception of “other,” the effect images created by the media, and commercial considerations on development decisions leading to the distortion of cultures.     

中国国际级旅游目的地建设的重新审视——基于国外旅行商视角

全国各地旅游资源评价中被评为国际级的旅游资源数不胜数,以国际级旅游目的地或旅游城市建设为目标的地方也数量甚众.而真正在国外,特别是西方民众心目中有印象和影响的中国知名旅游品牌则非常有限.本研究通过分析境外5家大型旅游经营商所涉及的中国旅游线路来重新审视中国国际级旅游目的地问题.分析发现,现有旅游资源评价体系并不能全面衡量目的地吸引力.在国内一般人看来很有名的地方,在国外旅行商的营销系统中却没有涉及.因此,以国际视角来看待并开发我国的旅游资源,并从营销方法上适当结合国际已有的认知,提高针对性和方略性可能会是一个有效的途径.     

Destination Images Penetrated by Mega-events: A Behaviorist Study of the 2008 Beijing Olympics

While the penetration effect of mega-events on the hosts' destination images is important, its research has rather been insufficient. This study aims to fill the gap by initiating an in-depth investigation of this effect. Guided by behaviorism rather than introspectionism and psychometrics adopted by previous researchers, the study interviewed 66 tourists visiting Beijing city – the host of the 2008 Summer Olympics – before, during and after the event. The results showed that: (1) elements of the Olympics had penetrated into the core and semi-core of Beijing's destination image; (2) the penetration did vary according to different event elements and event stages; and (3) the penetration was jointly determined by the stimuli the tourists received during the surveys and their complex mental mechanisms (i.e. cognitive matching and attitudinal preference). This research has strengthened the evidence for the penetration effect, explained it systematically and expanded the methodological choices in studying similar topics.     

Influence of Casino Impact Perception on Sense of Place: A Study on Casino-Liberalized Macao,China

Although the casino impact perception (CIP) of residents may influence their sense of place (SOP) and therefore the prosperity of casino destinations, little research has been conducted on such influence. The present study aimed to close the knowledge gap by investigating the presence of such influence in Macao, an important casino place in China and a leading casino center in the world. A structured questionnaire survey was administered to 500 Macao residents. The following results were obtained: (1) both SOP and its sub-dimensions were affected by CIP factors, (2) positive CIP factors had a stronger influence on SOP than did the negative ones, and (3) CIP factors were more important than the five socio-demographics (i.e. age, marital status, income, education, and occupation) as controlled variables in predicting SOP. This study contributes to the knowledge of the influence of CIP on SOP and provides useful policy implications for casino place management.     

中国旅游热点居民生活质量感知评价关联度的实证研究

本文从旅游目的地居民角度出发,以中国历史文化名镇第一水乡周庄为例,首先研究了旅游目的地居民对旅游业发展影响的感知评价,其次考察了发展旅游业之后旅游目的地居民对生活质量的感知评价,再次研究了居民生活质量与旅游影响感知之间的关系,指出了居民对目的地发展旅游业的支持态度,本研究的最终目的是为政府调动旅游目的地居民参与旅游开发的积极性提供科学依据.     

Book Review

The Global Nomad: Backpacker Travel in Theory and Practice. G. Richards and J. Wilson (eds). Clevedon: Channel View Publications, 2004. 1-873150-76-8     

Understanding the denial of abuses of human rights connected to sports mega-events*

Abstract

Academics debate the positive and negative consequences of hosting sports mega-events, and although there is a general recognition that doing so cannot be a panacea for solving other social issues, who wins and who loses tends to be the same. This article considers why mega-events are not more regularly resisted given the routinization of harm to local populations that they tend to invoke. It develops ideas derived from the late sociologist and criminologist Stanley Cohen concerning the relationships between, and the politics of, denial and acknowledgement, with specific attention to the role of academics, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the media. The article illustrates the difficulties in exposing, contesting and transforming these human rights abuses, but suggests that there are grounds for optimism as new strategies for communicating human rights abuses in connection with sports mega-events are developed.     

An Extended Gravity Model: Applying Destination Competitiveness

Due to the substantial growth of tourism, various studies have employed different forms of gravity models. However, previous models had limitations in terms of generalizing their results. This is primarily due to their focus on specific regions or variables for special events or components of tourism. Thus, the primary objective of this study was to present an extended gravity model that can more generally explain tourism flows. This study adopted components of destination competitiveness as complementary variables and a panel data framework to include the cross-sectional and time effects in the model. The result showed that the proposed model had greater explanatory power than traditional gravity models. Additionally, along with gravity variables, destination competitiveness components, such as natural and cultural resources, general and tourism infrastructure, price competitiveness, and openness, had significant effects on tourism flows. Further discussion and implications are provided in the main body of this paper.     

A Case Study: Enhancing Laos' Tourism Sector Performance Through Destination Human Resource Development

Tourism in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos) is a relatively new phenomenon that commenced in earnest in the late 1990s. A decade later, the country's tourism portfolio is dominated by regional visitors originating from neighbouring China, Thailand and Vietnam who generally tend to come in large numbers, are relatively low spenders and register short average length of stays. In order to reap the fiscal benefits of tourism and sustain the nation's fragile cultural and ecological makeup, the Government of Laos is being challenged to establish ways to shift the balance of its tourism demand to more profitable and lower impact market segments. A human resource development strategy published by the Lao National Tourism Administration in collaboration with Luxembourg Development Cooperation suggests that a sustained investment in people will improve tourism sector service quality, which in turn will result in increased industry profitability. This paper explores the existing human resource environment in Laos' tourism sector and outlines the required actions by various stakeholders to achieve improved sector performance and stewardship of the country's fragile culture and environment.     

基于实验人文地理学的旅游目的地选择行为研究

文章基于实验经济学和计算机实验人文地理学的方法思想,以旅游目的地选择行为研究为案例。首先设定研究目标,进而提出了实验的前提假设。采用地理信息科学和网络服务技术,构建旅游目的地选择行为实验平台,展开实例研究,研究结果表明:(1)进行大尺度旅游目的地选择时,被试者表现出不断追求旅游效益最大化这一目标,且与旅游目的地的资源类型无关。(2)被试者经过一定实验学习后,总体上呈现出不断追求个人收益最大化的趋势。然而,有些情况下,也可能出现决策失误。案例研究的成功进一步表明,实验人文地理学思想方法和研究手段对于典型人文地理学问题进行研究是可行的。文章为正在发展的实验人文地理学发展提供了案例指导。     

高等教育创新:优化人力资源的必然选择

抓住世纪初的重要战略机遇 ,深入推进高等教育的改革、发展和创新 ,为全面建设小康社会提供优质的智力支持 ,已成为高等教育的光荣使命。文章较全面地分析了高等教育创新对优化人力资源的意义 ,并提出高等教育创新应解决的主要问题。