A comparative analysis of the motivational factors of Chinese and non-Chinese tourists visiting Melbourne

This study is devoted to a comparison of motivational factors of travellers from China and non-Chinese countries visiting the same destination (Melbourne). Given the importance of the Chinese market to Australia, it seems important to explore this market in terms of motivational factors and understand its specifics and peculiarities. In addition, the topicality of such research was revealed through a content analysis of cross-cultural push/pull motivational studies in tourism relating to nationalities. Leiper’s model of tourist’s pre-trip psychological process (2004) was adapted and modified in terms of push and pull factors that combine not only needs and destination attributes, but also include a number of additional factors, such as information about recreation possibilities of visiting places, expectation about potential experiences during the trip, as well as means, namely money, time and absence of other constraints. The model enables an understanding of the linkages and relationships between the various motivational variables and their influence on destination choice. This study employs quantitative methods to examine and compare the motivational factors of two studied samples. Data were collected through an online survey, which was provided in two languages (English and Chinese). The data analysis was undertaken in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) - 26.0 software by the means of various descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Independent T-tests, Multiple regression analysis, and Canonical correlation analysis. In addition, the relationships between motivational variables in a proposed model were examined by using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). The present study revealed a number of differences in trip characteristics and tourist motivational factors between the Chinese and non-Chinese samples. The differences identified between the two target markets are closely related to traits of individualist and collectivist cultures. This conclusion verifies the findings of previous tourism research that culture influences travel behaviour. The knowledge of cultural differences in motivation is very important for enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of international tourism marketing. In addition, customising the services, products, and marketing programs for specific markets results in a high level of tourist satisfaction, and that in turn, leads to an increase in financial benefits associated with customer satisfaction and loyalty. This research has both theoretical and practical scientific significance. One significant contribution of this research is the development of a model of interrelated motivational factors in the travel decision-making process that enables the identification of the most influential motivational factors in travel decisions. The relationships between the push and pull factors, such as motivations, destination attributes, information sources, expectations and constraints, and their influence on destination choice, were examined. In the present study, a close positive relationship between personal motivations and destination attributes, as well as a significant influence of information sources on expectations and destination choice were found. Such results highlight the importance of properly developed advertising and promotion strategies with special attention to their contents, emphasising particular push and pull factors for particular tourist markets or segments. In addition, the current study identified possible product bundles of tourists’ motivations and destination attributes and segmentation of visitors to Melbourne that might present valuable information for destination practitioners and marketers, as successful matching of push and pull factors is a prerequisite for effective and successful actions on attraction and retention of visitors. Identified similarities and differences between Chinese and non-Chinese samples in terms of their demographic profiles, trip characteristics, motivations for travelling, preferences of destination attributes, information source usage, trip expectations, constraints for travelling, and their evaluation of destination choice criteria provided useful information for developing specifically customised tourist products and services, as well as promotion programs, that are tailored to each market. Moreover, from theoretical perspective, the present study adds new depth to understanding the nature of motivational factors, affecting the travel decision-making process, and causal relationships among them. Thus, the study contributes to advancing both tourist behaviour research as well as tourism decision-making literature. In addition, this research identifies and addresses the gap in empirical research investigating tourists' behaviour patterns across economically and culturally different countries. As comparative motivational research of tourists from China and non-Chinese countries travelling to Australia had yet to be undertaken, this study might be considered important because it provides valuable information for targeting the main source countries for Australia. Such research may be especially valuable in post-COVID times when international borders open up and carefully planned marketing will be needed.Doctor of Philosoph

Strategic planning report for the tourism innovation working group : Heyfield & District, 2024

Tourism is one of six innovation themes identified in the Heyfield and District Context Analysis1, which states the following regarding the opportunity to develop tourism in the area (p. 3): Heyfield’s location, nearby places of scenic beauty, Lake Glenmaggie, forested areas including tracks and trails, can support and add value to tourism ideas. Heyfield is known locally as a Gateway to the Southern Alps. The aim of the Heyfield and District Context Analysis was to “to investigate opportunities that will lead to long-term economic and social benefits, new jobs in sustainable industries, and to support the transition away from native timber harvesting”1. Following the context analysis, the next step for the tourism innovation theme was to identify specific opportunities to leverage the community assets to improve the local economy, employment opportunities and community wellbeing. Through the Heyfield and District’s Local Development Strategy (LDS), a draft for the Heyfield Adventure Hub (Appendix 5) was developed as part of a smart specialisation strategy. An aspect of smart specialisation is identifying where innovative efforts (and funding) should be concentrated. The draft strategy (Appendix 5) represents current efforts by the Heyfield Tourism and Traders Association (HTTA) and the Tourism Innovation Working Group (TIWG) to focus on leveraging natural assets and current businesses to provide a platform for an improved local visitor economy. These efforts are encouraged by current visitor activity through the holiday and long weekend periods and are aimed at developing year-round tourism activity. The proposed Adventure Hub is an adventure and nature-based activity concierge for the Heyfield Region, located in the Wetlands & Information Centre, which, according to the draft strategy, may conduct the following activities: 1. Promote the Heyfield Region and all it has to offer in adventure and nature-based activities and experiences to existing and potential visitors. 2. Link visitors to an adventure together with the relevant information. 3. Hiring out equipment such as mountain bikes or paddleboards to assist visitors experience, their adventure or attract others to deliver services. 4. Work alongside stakeholders to develop and implement new adventure activities fitting in with the Heyfield Region (Heyfield, Cowwarr, Tinamba, Glenmaggie, Coongulla and Licola). This research report represents a community-led study approach, capturing views on local tourism, along with stakeholder and expert views on how to improve the visitor economy, while preserving or enhancing the local culture and the liveability of the region. A brief literature review provides a snapshot of the experiences and lessons learned from towns and regions that have transitioned from extracting resources from nature to support the local economy, to leveraging natural assets for tourism

Evaluation of the New Wave Gippsland Capacity Building Project 2023/2024

Funded by the Australian Government National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) Information, Linkages and Capacity Building (ILC) grant, the New Wave Gippsland Capacity Building Project aimed to build capacity and develop skills, knowledge, and abilities of people with an intellectual disability, acquired brain injury (ABI) or complex communication in the Gippsland region. The key element of this project was the engagement, training, and support of Peer Educators in developing and delivering the Sexual Lives & Respectful Relationships (SL&RR) program and network in Gippsland. It also aimed to engage with community professionals from the sexual assault, community development and advocacy sectors to participate in violence and abuse prevention and respectful relationships education, training, and community work. SL&RR is an ecological model of violence and abuse prevention that has people with an intellectual disability at the centre. It utilises a community development approach that works from the individual out to society and systems that impact the experiences of safety and well-being in relationships and communities. The model has been co-developed by people with intellectual disabilities and is co-facilitated by people with intellectual disabilities in partnership with community professionals in the sexual assault sector. The SL&RR model provided the opportunity for GCASA to engage in dialogue with people with an intellectual disability, ABI, or complex communication, who are impacted significantly by sexual violence to contribute to the knowledge of people with intellectual disabilities around their rights to relationships which are free from violence. To coordinate the SL&RR program and support New Wave Gippsland (NWG), a Project Coordinator and a Program Developer were appointed. To deliver the program, employment opportunities for self-advocates to deliver education and build community capacity in relation to disability awareness were provided. The program aimed to undertake the following activities: • Build the capacity of the Gippsland SL&RR network to engage with people with an intellectual disability, ABI, LGBTIQA+ people with disability, community health and sexual assault professionals and services across a wider scope in Gippsland. • Deliver the SL&RR program including the new ABI and LGBTIQ+ programs, in Central and East Gippsland • Promote the Gippsland SL&RR network through free information / professional development sessions for the health, community, and disability sectors. Conduct sessions and engage Peer Educators as co-presenters. • Increase social and economic participation by Peer Educators/self-advocates employed through NWG and include paid work for up to 12 Peer Educators. Project Coordinators, counsellors and Peer Educators provided a robust team to support the SL&RR network and implementation of the model across Gippsland

A content analysis of cross-cultural motivational studies in tourism relating to nationalities

The importance of outbound markets to a host country has increased scholars' interest in understanding motivational factors. Motivation is a basic determinant of tourists' behaviour and has a fundamental role in tourism. The awareness of motivational differences among tourists from main generating markets is a prerequisite for effective and successful destination marketing programs. However, cross-cultural motivation comparisons of tourists from different cultural backgrounds has received relatively little research attention. In addition, there has not been a content analysis undertaken on this topic. Therefore, the aim of this research was to examine and synthesise previous studies on cross-cultural tourist motivation comparison, reveal the gaps in the literature and indicate the future research trends. A review of 71 publications covering a period of 30 years, from 1988 to 2017, was conducted. This study focuses on both subject areas and research methods used. The findings of this content analysis identified a recent growth in cross-cultural comparison studies. The analysis also revealed an increase in more advanced analysis including multiple variables such as motivations, satisfaction, segmentation of visitors, intention behaviours, and information search behaviour. The analysis of nationalities compared in the reviewed studies indicated the shift of research interest towards Asian countries. In the case of research methods, quantitative design is more common for cross-cultural motivation studies

Push/pull factors in cross-cultural motivational studies : a content analysis

The importance of outbound markets to a host country has increased scholars' interest in understanding motivational factors. The awareness of motivational differences among tourists from main generating markets is a prerequisite for effective and successful destination marketing programs. However, cross-cultural motivation comparisons of tourists from different cultural backgrounds has received relatively little research attention. In addition, there has not been a content analysis undertaken on this topic. Therefore, the aim of this research was to examine and synthesise previous studies on cross-cultural tourist motivation comparison, reveal the gaps in the literature and indicate the future research trends. A review of 71 publications covering a period of 30 years, from 1988 to 2017, was conducted. This study focuses on both subject areas and research methods used. The general push/pull model was extended and the conceptual model for understanding factors influencing travel decision-making process has been introduced and justified

Trans-border territories in tourism in 2020 : new perspectives

This paper examines the field of trans-border territories in tourism. Whilst countriessuch as New Zealand andAustralia do not need to focus on trans-border territories, the matter is highly relevant on a global scale. Interms of the globalisation process, trans-border territories require a significant amount of attention especiallyin tourism industries, because there are prerequisites for the establishment of a special zone of intense inter-regional and international economic, social and cultural ties. Border areas play an important role in tourism;under favorable conditions they stimulate the development of international tourism in neighbouring coun-tries. Successful cross-border cooperation between countries will help them to more effectively attract foreigntourists and develop their tourism industries. The criteria for the distinction of trans-border territories areidentified and reasonably distinguished and separated into four main groups: unity, additions, contrast, anduniqueness of different factors such as natural, historical, cultural, and social. This paper explores several ex-amples of international cooperation within trans-border tourist territories through a review of literature in thefield. Trans-border cooperation for many countries is essential for achieving any measurable success. The im-plementation of such interaction is a significant factor for the increasing of competitive advantages of touristregions; that can bring about the rise of multiple effects and benefits thanks to the concentration of tourist ser-vices within trans-border territories, in addition to the diversification of services by using natural, historical,cultural and economic conditions to draw attention to a particular are

An examination of tourists' pre-trip motivational model using push–pull theory: Melbourne as a case study

Purpose – To succeed in a competitive tourist market and attract more foreign tourists, it is essential to have a clear understanding of what travellers are seeking and endeavour to meet those needs, as well as key influential factors in their travel decision-making process. The purpose of the study is to develop and examine tourists’ pre-trip motivational model using the push–pull theory. Design/methodology/approach – A tourists' pre-trip motivational model was developed and then tested based on a sample of 320 Chinese and non-Chinese visitors to Melbourne, Australia, to assess the suitability of the new model. Data were analysed by descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, such as principal component analysis and independent T-tests. Findings – The analysis revealed statistically significant differences between studied samples in terms of the push and pull factors. In comparison with non-Chinese tourists, Chinese visitors to Melbourne assigned higher importance to resting and relaxing opportunities, family-oriented activities, as well as safety and a high level of service. The identified differences should be reflected in marketing and promotional activities provided to Chinese and non-Chinese travellers. Practical implications – The study provides useful information for Destination Marketing Organisations in tourism cities wanting to develop specifically customised tourist products, services and promotion programs tailored to each market. Originality/value – The proposed extended push–pull model represents a holistic and complex model of the travel decision-makong process with the multiple linkages between motivations for travelling, preferences of destination attributes, information source usage, trip expectations, possible constraints for travelling and evaluation of destination choice criteria. Understanding all these factors, their relationship and their influence on the final destination choice is a prerequisite for effective and successful actions on attraction and retention of visitors for all tourist destinations. The developed tourists’ pre-trip motivational model may be used as a conceptual framework to guide subsequent motivational studies in tourism

Evaluation of the nature based community recovery project - extended 2023

The Australian bushfire season of 2019-20 was unprecedented in its intensity with fires burning vast areas across Victoria. The impact on the environment, communities and businesses was devastating. Zoos Victoria, ARI (DELWP) partnered with Bushfire Recovery Victoria (BRV) to work with local communities in east Gippsland to support people’s recovery through experiencing, supporting and witnessing nature’s recovery. The nature-based community projects were diverse and varied such as community gardens, fencing, planting of native plants and the establishment of a fire-resistant garden to be used for educational purposes. In Phase 1 of this project, evaluation of projects that received grants of up to $5,000 that were made available to community organisations and social enterprises was undertaken. Evaluated projects were those that would benefit the environment, wildlife and habitats and actively support the recovery of fire-affected communities. Phase 2 of this project aimed to investigate how the broader communities in East Gippsland interacted with nature whilst healing personally and as a community from the Black Summer bushfires. Investigation into how communities in East Gippsland interact with nature could provide insight into future recovery projects and ensure that sustainable nature-based recovery solutions for bushfire-impacted communities could be established. The Collaborative Evaluation and Research Centre (CERC) were commissioned to explore how nature had improved the recovery of remote and rural communities affected by bushfires. Data were collected from June 2023 - September 2023 through a nature-based community recovery project survey and community interviews

Effects of Genotype and Culture Conditions on Microspore Embryogenesis and Plant Regeneration in Brassica Rapa ssp. Rapa L.

Turnip is a biennial crop and, consequently, the creation of pure lines for breeding is a time-consuming process. The production of pure turnip lines using doubled haploids produced in isolated microspore culture has not been sufficiently developed. The aim of the present work was to determine some key factors inducing embryogenesis in the isolated microspore culture of turnip, as well as investigating the manners of embryo development. It was shown that the acidity of the medium is an important factor in embryo production; different optimal pH levels ranging from 6.2 to 6.6 corresponded to individual genotypes. Such factors as the cold treatment of buds and the addition of activated charcoal to the nutrient medium increased the responsiveness of all genotypes studied. The turnip variety ‘Ronde witte roodkop herfst’ demonstrated a genetic disorder in the development of microspores; namely, non-separation of some microspores from tetrads. In the in vitro culture, each of the daughter microspores developed on its own. This indicates the dependence of the possibility of embryogenesis in the turnip microspore culture on the genotype. Results suggest that the initiation of secondary embryogenesis in primary embryos leads to an increase in the proportion of doubled haploid plants

О задаче перечисления всех максимальных индуцированных биклик гиперграфа

The problem of finding all maximal induced bicliques of a hypergraph is considered in this paper. A theorem about connection between induced bicliques of the hypergraph H and corresponding vertex graph L2(H) is proved. An algorithm for finding all maximal induced bicliques is proposed and computational experiments with its applying are presentedВ работе рассматривается задача поиска всех максимальных индуцированных биклик гиперграфа. Доказана теорема о связи индуцированных биклик гиперграфа H и вершинного графа L2(H). Предложен алгоритм нахождения всех максимальных индуцированных биклик. Приведена теоретическая оценка сложности предлагаемого алгоритма и доказательство его корректности. Приведены вычислительные эксперимент