Virtual reality tourism : the new frontier or the end of the journey?

Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, the tourism industry was a mega-industry. Although virtual reality (VR) is a relatively new development in tourism, due to COVID-19 it has literally transformed and improved the industry, particularly in the fields of marketing, sustainability and virtual worlds. VR is held to provide tourists with the “ultimate” tourist experience. The reason is that tourists no longer have to experience any of the negative aspects associated with conventional tourism. Despite the benefits and popularity of VR, a key question arises: will VR be the end of conventional tourism or can it be considered as a new tourism frontier? Therefore, the main purpose of the study is to address this question by focusing on the role of VR in tourism, especially in the context of South Africa. In addition, the study provides a detailed background of VR in general and in terms of tourism; types of VR tourism; the benefits and drawbacks of VR in tourism; and finally, the study compares conventional tourism models with VR in order to highlight the similarities. It concludes that VR does not in essence substitute conventional tourism, but rather it can be considered as a tourism niche in its own right, even if only as a futuristic prospect. For this to actualise, there are three major concerns that need to be addressed in the future; physical interaction; a full sensorial experience and the question of revenue.Thesis (PhD (Heritage and Cultural Tourism))--University of Pretoria, 2021.Post grad UP fundingHistorical and Heritage StudiesPhD (Heritage and Cultural Tourism)Unrestricte

A study of passengers' anxiety on the London Underground to help design its information environment

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonProvision of information has been used as a strategy to relive travel-related anxiety. This study is motivated by the successful attempts for reducing the anxiety. Although, passengers’ anxiety about using public transport (PT) has already been discussed, the London Underground passengers’ anxiety has rarely been a target of investigation in the academic literature. Anxiety associated with the Underground use is reported to be greater than other PT modes. Although the existing studies discussing PT passengers’ anxiety have attempted to provide solutions for anxiety reduction, few endeavours have been made to offer them based on the investigated causality between determinants of anxiety and its arousal. Thus, this study fills the gap by identifying antecedents, and verifying their effects on anxiety about the Underground use. This, in turn, furnishes theoretical grounds for designing content of information with an aim to relieve the anxiety in the circumstance that little data exists, which can be utilised for developing information for the purpose. To achieve the goal, two sets of phases have been engaged. First, a questionnaire (N=81) was conducted to identify anxiety triggers. The results revealed that they were other people’s anti-social behaviour, overcrowding, noise, and late-night travel. An expert group interview was carried out to investigate what efforts are made to support passengers in the anxiety inducing situations. Second, examination was performed to understand about the passengers’ anxiety based on theoretical knowledge about anxiety, and to determine its antecedents. A research model was formulated including six factors, perceived invulnerability, perceived physical ability, trust in other passengers (informal social control), confidence in the authorities, safety knowledge, and perceived uncontrollability. The effects were assessed through structural equation modelling, using questionnaire data (N=269). The results uncovered that perceived invulnerability, perceived physical ability, and confidence in the authorities have negative indirect effects on anxiety through perceived uncontrollability, and safety knowledge has a negative direct effect on anxiety. The confirmed anxiety buffering effects of the factors will be suggested to be used for developing content of information to help relieve the arousal. The study contributes to knowledge by identifying the determinants of the passengers’ anxiety, and testing their effects on anxiety, and to produce theoretical support to create service information environment which helps relieve the anxiety