Social representations and community attitudes towards spring breakers

Social representations theory has been adopted for explaining tourism impacts and local attitudes. However, its usefulness in segmenting local population in terms of their attitudes towards specific types of tourists has not been tested. This study identifies the attitudes of local people towards spring break, a North American young tourist phenomenon in the context of the Mexican beach resort of Acapulco. Although residents perceive an increase in alcohol consumption, drug use, noise and litter during the spring break season, they largely recognise economic benefits and are thus generally supportive for the phenomenon. Based on these attitudes, three clusters were identified: spring break supporters (identified by their high appreciation of spring break benefits), ambivalents (who are uncertain about both benefits and costs) and realistics (characterised by recognising both benefits and costs). The main contribution of this study lies in the confirmation of the usefulness of social representations theory in explaining residents’ attitudes towards a very specific type of tourists whose hedonist behaviours are a common characteristic

Social representations and community attitudes towards spring breakers

Social representations theory has been adopted for explaining tourism impacts and local attitudes. However, its usefulness in segmenting local population in terms of their attitudes towards specific types of tourists has not been tested. This study identifies the attitudes of local people towards spring break, a North American young tourist phenomenon in the context of the Mexican beach resort of Acapulco. Although residents perceive an increase in alcohol consumption, drug use, noise and litter during the spring break season, they largely recognise economic benefits and are thus generally supportive for the phenomenon. Based on these attitudes, three clusters were identified: spring break supporters (identified by their high appreciation of spring break benefits), ambivalents (who are uncertain about both benefits and costs) and realistics (characterised by recognising both benefits and costs). The main contribution of this study lies in the confirmation of the usefulness of social representations theory in explaining residents’ attitudes towards a very specific type of tourists whose hedonist behaviours are a common characteristic

The nude beach as a liminal homoerotic place

As a socially, culturally and sexually constructed space, the nude beach has been the focus of academic research. Some studies have analysed the nude beach as a place where erotic relations and meanings among men are performed, constructed, negotiated and transformed. These studies however have seldom acknowledged the multiple dimensions of sexualised practices and subjectivities taking place at the nude beach among men. By adopting a homoerotic framework, this study analyses a number of sexualised practices and subjectivities among men in the context of a nude beach in Mexico. Through ethnographic fieldwork and the adoption of photographs as a supplementary research tool, this study reveals that the nude beach becomes a setting for the performance of multiple sexual identities –often culturally determined- that go beyond the traditional notion of "gay". It also suggests that the nude beach becomes a scenario for different social and sexual practices that define how the beach is constructed as a leisure and liminal space. The study concludes that the nude beach is an amalgamation of several social practices and subjectivities that are widely sexualised, and suggests that the concept of "gay nude beach", which is frequently used in the literature, is simplistic when attempting to understand the complex dimensions of the several homoerotic relations among males

Destination image and crime in Mexico: An analysis of foreign government travel advice

Destination image has been recognised as an influential component of travel decision processes. Although organic sources of information play an important role in shaping destination image, researchers have often ignored the types of sources and the information they deliver. In particular, official websites where government travel advice is given, especially in relation to crime, have been widely excluded from scholarly research. This paper analyses the relationship between crime-related travel advice given by foreign governments and Mexico’s destination image. Qualitative content analysis of official websites from the US, Canada, the UK and Spain reveals that the travel advice given relates largely to the violence and insecurity that Mexico is currently experiencing. “No advisory in effect”, “Exercise caution” and “Defer non-essential travel” are messages commonly found in the governments’ travel advice about Mexico

Identity and Sex: Concurent Aspects of Gay Tourism

The present article aims to contribute to the recognition of two relevant aspects in gay travel; identity and sex. The paper explores the existing published work related to the relationships between tourism, gay men and identity. It concludes that the issue of identity commonly plays a crucial role as a travel reason in gay tourism. Also, it analyses the research evidence to suggest that sex is a frequently-present phenomenon in gay travel. By critically analysing the available research, the paper presents evidence to suggest that both aspects are relevant in the gay tourism spectrum

Tequila at Sunrise: Spring Break Travel Motivations and Risk Behaviors of American Students in Acapulco, Mexico

Little research has been completed regarding spring break motivations and behaviors of American students in foreign destinations, specifically in Mexico. This paper looks at push and pull motivations in relation to drug and alcohol consumption and findings indicate greater drug and alcohol use among those who selected “party reputation” and “to go wild” as travel motivations. Binge drinking, sexual activity, and drug use among students on spring break in Acapulco, Mexico were also analyzed and compared to past findings within the United States. Results suggest that students are involved in heavy alcohol consumption and significant drug use. Additionally, high rates of sexual activity occur on spring break and results suggest low condom use, placing students at higher risks for the contraction of sexually transmitted infections

"Aproximación a la lengua del “Libro decimosesto” de los Comentarios de erudición, de Bartolomé Jiménez Patón: aspectos generales, grafías, fonética y morfología"

El hallazgo de un tomo de los Comentarios de erudición de B. Jiménez Patón (1569-1640) nos ha permitido estudiar la lengua del manuscrito del “Libro decimosesto”, incluido en el tomo IV. Se entrecruzan en el texto dos tendencias: la tradicional, que extiende el periodo medieval, representada sobre todo por un vocalismo átono inestable, el mantenimiento de ciertas formas verbales medievales, una sintaxis latinizante y la elección usual de arcaísmos; y la más moderna, que se advierte en el mantenimiento –vacilante– de los grupos cultos y en ciertos aspectos léxicos como la adopción de cultismos, la frecuente hispanización de ese mismo léxico latino, el uso de coloquialismos y refranes, y el recurso a voces apreciativas y a formaciones neológicas internas del castellano

Spring Break travel: Motivations and behaviour in a Mexican destination

Spring break travel is a growing market and has become a relevant research object. Specifically, binge drinking, illicit drug use and high-risk sexual behaviour have become the focus of academic attention. Identifying such behaviour is relevant in designing policies for tourism management, particularly for the reduction of negative implications of such behaviours. This descriptive study aimed to identify the motivations, alcohol consumption, drug use and sexual behavioural patterns of spring break travellers in Acapulco, Mexico. Based on a quantitative approach, a total of 173 male and 112 female North American students were surveyed during spring break 2010. The study revealed that the party reputation of a destination is one of the main reasons for spring break travel. Binge drinking and the use of illegal drugs were reported by a significant number of students. Furthermore, high-risk sexual behaviour and the students’ self recognition of being at high risk of acquiring STDs appeared as relevant issues during the study

Looking At Residents’ Attitudes towards Spring Break Tourism in Texas through the Lens of Community Attachment

The growth of spring break tourism in many destinations has become problematic, predominantly due to the excessive behaviour of college students. This paper examines residents’ attitudes toward spring break tourism in South Padre Island (located in Texas, USA) through the lens of community attachment. By understanding the attitudes of residents of the host communities, tourism planners and policy-makers can create policies to shape the character of tourism according to the residents’ needs. The findings suggest that, at this point in time, community residents perceive that the benefits of spring break tourism benefits exceed its’ costs. Also, the short and intense season of spring break tourism allows residents to better deal with social costs

Packaging of a small urban vehicle

Tato bakalářská práce se zabývá navrhem pakagu malého městského elektrického automobilu kategorie L7e, vhodný pro používání v carsahringu. Automobil je založen na modifikovaném TABBY EVO open source platformě . V této bakalářské práci jsme rozvinuli sazení řidiče, zkontrolovali viditelnost z místa řidiče, udělali změny v platformě v CATIA V5. Kromě toho, my jsme prozkoumali konstrunkci karoserie, aerodinamiku, baterie a trh automobilů kategorie L7e.This thesis reviews development of packaging of a small urban electric vehicle L7e cathegory, apropriate for using in carsharing. Car is based on modified TABBY EVO open source platform. In this thesis we developed driving position, controled visibility of driver, made necessary changes of platform in CATIA V5. Beside this, we discuss body structure of car, aerodynamic, battery pack and market of L7e cathegory cars