Social Aspects of Tourism: Tourism Concepts and Practices

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Tourism

concepts and Practices

Chapter 10
Social Aspects of
Tourism

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now
• International tourism
– Became a major modern mass
phenomenon after 1945
• Came to embrace practically all social
classes in industrialized Western societies
• Made possible by rising standards of living
and shortening of the work year

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• International tourism
– Tourism is the spatial separation
between “home” and “away” and travel
between

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• Social aspects of tourism:
– Motivations
– Roles and social relations of tourists
– Structure and dynamics of the tourism
system and of touristic institutions
– Nature of attractions and their
representations
– Impact of tourism on host societies

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• Sociocultural impacts of tourism
– Different but overlapping viewpoints:
• Tourism impact studies
• Host–guest interactions
• Tourist systems
• Tourists and their behavior

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• Social and cultural aspects of tourism
– Relationships between society,
institutions, tourists, and host
communities

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• Social and cultural aspects of tourism
– Some are tangible
• Varies according to destination and
community
• Popular destinations may become
overcrowded during season
– Results in very tangible and often negative
outcomes

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• United Nations Millennium Summit
– Issued a declaration
• Key features emphasized caring for
vulnerable and enabling participation by all
citizens
– First time world leaders committed to a
time-bound series of targets and
benchmarks by 2015

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourists Then and Now (cont’d)
• United Nations World Tourism
Organization (UNWTO)
– Issued a declaration
• Harnessing Tourism for Millennium
Development Goals
– Recognized economic benefits of tourism as well
as its potential to be destructive

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Typologies of Tourists
• Tourist typologies:
– Reflect diversity of individual
motivations, styles, interests, and
values of tourists
• Cohen introduced typologies based on age
and the economy
• Smith described demographic aspects of
tourism and defined destination interests
and motivations

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourist-Host Interactions
• Harmony between guests, hosts, and
communities
– Can be destroyed if unprepared
• Common behavior and body language may
be rude and unacceptable elsewhere
• If hosts do not deliver the expected
services, disappointment may set in

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourist-Host Interactions
• Harmony between guests, hosts, and
communities
– Doxey’s index of tourist irritation
• Describes how communities react to
increasing levels of tourism

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Figure 10–1 Doxey’s Irridex of Tourist Irritation
Source: Adapted from Doxey GV

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Interactions (cont’d)
• United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
– Four characteristics of tourist–host
relationships:
• Its transitory nature
• Temporal and spatial constraints
• Lack of spontaneity
• Unequal and unbalanced experiences

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Interactions (cont’d)
• Inskeep suggests the scope and
depth of the encounters include:
– Basic value and logic system
– Religious beliefs, traditions, and
customs
– Lifestyles and behavioral patterns
– Dress codes
– Sense of time budgeting
– Attitude toward strangers

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Too Much Tourism?
• Example of too much tourism:
– Peru’s Inca citadel of Machu Picchu
• Threatened by unregulated growth
– Hotel and restaurant construction is contributing
to destabilization of the structures
• UNESCO may add it to its list of endangered
World Heritage sites

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourism and Social Change
• Tourism brings change
– Welcomed by some segments of society
• Causing debates among others

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourism and Social Change
(cont’d)
• Tourism brings change
– Different observers may see the same
tourist attraction differently
• Commercialization forces change
– Public ritual in Fuenterrabia was originally a
statement of the courage and equality of all
people
– Was promoted and now has lost its authenticity
and meaning for the people

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Figure 10–2 Some Costs
and Benefits of Tourism to a
Community

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Change (cont’d)
• Demonstration effect
– Phenomenon of local residents adopting
visiting tourists styles and manners
(e.g., blue jeans and Scotch whisky)
• Tourism is not always to blame for
diluting of culture
– Mass communications have greatly
contributed to it

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Change (cont’d)
• Is quality of life reduced by tourism?
– Yes, if the destination is not prepared
– Highly subjective matter
– Negatives: traffic congestion, increased
crime, noise, etc.
– Positives: employment creation, income
redistribution, and poverty alleviation

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Change (cont’d)
• Social impacts may include:
– Revival of art, dance, and crafts
• When arts and crafts are made outside the
host community, this results in job and
revenue loss
– Tourism can encourage crime

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Change (cont’d)
• Social impacts may include:
– Tourists can slow residents’ way of life
– Tourists unduly influence the host
community culture
– Host community may resent tourists

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Change (cont’d)
• Tourists also change
– May or may not be interested in the
host history or culture
– Study assessing British tourists to
Greece and others visiting Morocco
• Attitudes toward the host peoples changed
as a result of the two- to three-week tours

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism
• Extremely diverse and complex
phenomenon
– Meaning varies depending on time
periods and countries under discussion
• Usually defined in terms of objectives
pursued, methods employed for achieving
them, and outcomes of participation

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Social tourism implies government
supplies a partial subsidy for travel
or experience
– Government-owned and –operated
tourist businesses in former communist
countries
– Europe, subsidized vacations

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Social tourism in France
– Pierre Combes, former mayor of Nyons
• Long been active in promotion of “social
tourism”
• Headed VAL, a nonprofit organization
– Combats desertification in rural areas
– Promotes social policies to create tourism
infrastructures
• Active in National Open-Air Tourism

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Tourism Concern
– Independent charity in the United
Kingdom
• Goal is to fight tourism exploitation

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Tourism Concern
– Based on:
• Independence
• Listening
• Shared values and vision
• Inclusivity
• Ethical practices

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Pro-Poor Tourism Partnership
– Collaborative research project
• Approach to tourism that results in
increased net benefits for poor people
– Strategies include:
• Increasing economic benefits
• Enhancing noneconomic benefits
• Policy reform

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Social tourism in the U.S.
– It does exist (e.g., state and federal
parks, YMCA, YWCA, church camps)
• Is it desirable in the U.S.?
– Considerations:
• Rationing use
• Controlling the environment
• Avoiding pollution

Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.


John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Social Tourism (cont’d)
• Most of the federal parks are located
in western states
– Represents social tourism for those who
can afford to travel considerable
distances
• State resort parks offer affordable
recreational experiences
– Could be made available at reduced
rates for the less affluent
Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.
John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved
Tourism: Concepts and Practices Copyright © 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.
John Walker | Josielyn T. Walker All Rights Reserved

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