Faith-Based Tourists’ Emotional Solidarity in an Anticipated Travel Setting

Tourists often travel in anticipation of affective bonds or emotional solidarity that comes from their relationships with other tourists. Studies on pilgrimage tourists (Kaell, 2014), heritage tourists (Caton & Santos, 2007), or volunteer tourists (Zahra & McIntosh, 2007) have commented on the influential role that emotional solidarity plays in shaping tourists’ expectations and experiences. Nevertheless, the studies to date have mostly relied on qualitative research methods in examining the topic, leaving limited possibility for explaining what makes tourists anticipate emotional solidarity with other tourists or how the resulting emotional solidarity guides their behavior. To address this literature gap, this study undertook mixed methods research of potential faith-based tourists in the United States by using the emotional solidarity theory (Durkheim, 1912/1995) and the interaction ritual theory (Collins, 1990; 1993) as the guiding theories. It was considered that the two theories were in a complementary relationship where the emotional solidarity theory specified the predictors (i.e. shared beliefs, shared behavior, and propensity to interact) of emotional solidarity while the interaction ritual theory supported the relationship between emotional solidarity and travel intention. The mixed methods research included three phases: a) content analysis of archival data to develop preliminary scales for the predictors of emotional solidarity, b) exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of pilot survey data (N = 124) to purify the preliminary scales, and c) structural equation modelling (SEM) of main survey data (N = 439) to test the psychometric properties of the purified scales and the hypothesized relationships between the constructs. Unlike other studies on tourists’ or residents’ emotional solidarity, this study posited two different types of shared beliefs and shared behavior: one specific to faith-based tourists’ iii anticipated trip and the other addressing their religion. Consequentially, scales were developed for five constructs (i.e., shared beliefs regarding the trip, shared beliefs regarding religion, shared behavior regarding the trip, shared beliefs regarding religion, and propensity to interact) that predict emotional solidarity. The scales were then proven sound in their validity and reliability in measuring their respective constructs. Structural models showed that potential faith-based tourists’ shared beliefs regarding the trip (b = 0.232), shared behavior regarding the trip (b = 0.211), and propensity to interact (b = 0.418) with other faith-based tourists positively influenced the formers’ emotional solidarity with the latter (R2 = 0.778). This in turn increased the former’s travel intention to the destination (R2 = 0.387). However, shared beliefs regarding religion and shared behavior regarding religion were not effective in predicting emotional solidarity. Furthermore, emotional solidarity fully mediated the influence of shared beliefs regarding the trip, shared behavior regarding the trip, and propensity to interact on emotional solidarity. Theoretically, the findings of this study can extend the scope of the emotional solidarity theory to include tourists’ intergroup relationship and anticipated travel settings. More importantly, they support a positive association between tourists’ social emotion and their economic behavior. In a practical sense, the findings of this study can help market diverse forms of tourism (e.g., nature tourism, fair-trade tourism, or sport tourism) where emotional solidarity among tourists makes up a significant part of their experiences. Some limitations of this study and suggestions for future research are also discussed in the final chapter

FAIR TRADE TOURISM: CONCEPTUAL EVOLUTION AND POTENTIAL MARKET PROJECTION

Fair trade tourism commonly refers to any attempts to ensure and maximize the benefits from tourism for stakeholders in destination areas (Tourism Concern, online; FTTa, online). It is drawing recent attention as a means of reducing associated economic and social costs that undermine the validity of tourism as a development tool, and to make tourism more sustainable. To achieve these goals, the principles of the commodity-based fair trade movement (a set of well-established efforts designed to result in a more equitable distribution in product markets) are introduced to tourism. However, both the nature of tourism - as intangible and destination-oriented products - and the large potential scale of tourism impact prevent unaltered adoption of commodity-based fair trade principles. Thus, a tailored approach is needed that can reflect the natures of tourism while retaining the essential elements of the fair trade movement. Seeing fair trade tourism as a type of sustainable tourism especially focusing on community-wise fairness and benefits can provide a framework to better understand the concept and distinguish it from other similar concepts. A survey of 191 fair trade consumers confirmed the following set of hypothesis: 1) there exists a positive correlation between attitudes toward commodity-based fair trade and willingness to participate in fair trade tourism, 2) economic and social sustainability possess higher priority than cultural and ecological sustainability, though all four sustainability domains are considered important, 3) consumers of fair trade products are willing to pay a premium for a fair trade tourism experience, and 4) willingness to pay for such premium is affected by enthusiasm toward and experience with the commodity-based fair trade movement. Based on the findings, it is suggested that promoting fair trade tourism on a domestic level can be advantageous for visitors, host communities, and fair trade organizations as it can lower barriers to participate in fair trade tourism and utilize unexplored business opportunities

Emotional Solidarity and Destination Loyalty Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparison of Two Scales

This study examined the role that tourists\u27 emotional solidarity with residents serves in explaining their loyalty to the destination they have visited since the COVID-19 pandemic, between May and August of 2020. In so doing, the original Emotional Solidarity Scale (ESS) and the modified ESS were utilized, where their dimensions were considered as predictors of destination loyalty. All ESS dimensions were significant predictors, but the original ESS dimensions explained greater variance in destination loyalty (36.4%) than those of the modified ESS (22.0%), and the difference was statistically meaningful. The results attest to the importance of emotional solidarity to destinations\u27 success amid the pandemic

Explaining minority residents’ attitudes of ethnic enclave tourism from general perceptions of tourism impacts

This study examined how Brazilian and Korean residents in two Japanese towns differed in their views of tourism in general and ethnic neighborhood tourism (ENT) focused on their own culture and if their perceptions of tourism in general translate into their corresponding attitudes about ENT. A series of MANOVAs revealed that Brazilian residents held more positive views toward tourism in general and ENT than their Korean counterparts. Although the two groups differed in their perception of community benefits from tourism in general, they demonstrated a similar mix of hopes and worries regarding ENT. Results from multiple regression analyses also revealed that minority residents’ perceptions of tourism in general can be a significant predictor of their attitudes toward ENT explaining 4–40% of variance in the Brazilian sample and 4–12% in the Korean sample. These findings imply that perceptions of general tourism are precursors to perceptions of specific, niche forms of tourism. In a practical sense, this study underscores the importance of inviting residents’ opinion into the tourism planning process, especially in ENT contexts. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed at the close of the paper