Femininities in the field : tourism and transdisciplinary research

Within modern societal constructs where male scholars still dominate academic and research environment at many levels of professional and senior research leadership roles, this book is a well-timed addition on gender and research to Channel View Publications portfolio. The book edited by two inspirational female academics aims to present lived experiences of female researchers during the data collection phase in the field of tourism studies. “The Femininities in the Field” are portrayed through self-reflective case studies. These case studies use first-person narratives that illustrate and analyse the role of gender, portray encountered gender biases and experiences of researchers at different stages of authors’ lives and research journeys

Discourses of volunteer farm tourism in Nepal : a methodological approach to world wide opportunities on organic farms

In this research note, I propose an appropriate methodology to study discourses around the volunteer farm exchange programme World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) in Nepal. WWOOF is an international movement that connects organic farmers and international travellers who wish to exchange their labour for food and accommodation. Previously WWOOF was described as volunteer tourism, alternative tourism or as an alternative to tourism. As a non-profi t exchange programme WWOOF abodes the commercialisation of tourism and attracts long-term international travellers who do not describe themselves as tourists and see WWOOF as a way to explore the destinations off the beaten track. As such, WWOOF members share diff erent philosophy or discourse of travel from commercial farm tourism. Th us, it is essential to understand what drives farm hosts and volunteers to participate in this unique exchange programme in Nepal

Tourism in Russia, a management handbook

Tourism in Russia – A management handbook edited by Frederic Dimanche and Lidia Andrades is a timely and informative report, by an international group of researchers from 16 EU and Russian institutions, on topical issues concerning tourism in Russia. Authors collaborated to report the results of an EU-funded project aimed to boost the competitiveness and sustainability of tourism as well as enhancing the curricula in higher education institutions in the Russian Federation. Since mid-twentieth century, the tourism industry in Russia has been acknowledged as a complex economic sector, and as such has attracted scholarly attention from a range of disciplines including geography, anthropology, politics, sociology and business studies. Tourism in Russia, the world largest country, remains in its infancy

Moving beyond western methods: a methodological toolbox for family entrepreneurship research in tourism by including children's voices

Recently, tourism scholars turned their attention to families, specifically children's experiences. Yet, research illustrating children's voices in tourism family entrepreneurship is missing. Social researchers are encouraged to include children's voices to reveal their lived experiences rather than considering them too vulnerable to be interviewed. This qualitative study, underpinned by constructivist epistemology, explored how families are embedded within lifestyle migration and the tourism entrepreneurial process on Hainan Island in China. A combination of methods was adopted to create a toolbox suitable for family research, including children's voices through whole-family interviews and LEGO® Serious Play® workshops. Playing LEGO® seriously ensures that the researcher does not drive participants' thoughts, and children can freely express their opinions in playful, metaphorical, and meaningful ways. Moving beyond Western-centered methods, data was collected at Old Dad Teahouses (or Lao Ba Cha 老爸茶 in Chinese) to create a friendly environment. Old Dad Teahouses are a Hainanese cultural ritual where locals gather to enjoy tea along with local savory snacks. Historically, the name Old Dad Tea refers to predominantly male customers over 50 years of age who regularly attended tea houses in the afternoon as part of their leisure. Nowadays, people who go to Old Dad Tea are more diverse in age and gender, and spending time there represents a popular leisure activity among families living in Hainan. We emphasize that our methodological toolbox allows us to explore how individuals construct their understanding through their own belief systems and culture. The methodological toolbox allowed us to understand the scholarship on family tourism entrepreneurship from a Chinese cultural perspective by providing insight into the experiences of 15 children from eight entrepreneurial families, providing agency to the children. This study aims to enrich the definition of family entrepreneurship by identifying how children as family members can influence migration and entrepreneurial behaviors and exploring the experiences gained by children through the entrepreneurial process. Children's voices are usually filled by adults within the family business unit. However, children are also rights holders and social agents. This study supports the right of children to participate and have their voices heard

Tourism and 'dirt' : a case study of WWOOF farms in New Zealand

Tourism research on host-guest relations in non-profit exchange programmes remains scant. Using a case study of WWOOF farms in New Zealand, this paper examines the experiences of farmers and volunteers (‘WWOOFers’) in the Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) programme. Using qualitative methods that privileged participants’ voices, the research aimed to uncover the nature of the host-guest relationship in non-for-profit tourism. The key theme of ‘dirt’ is explored in this paper to illustrate both the physical nature of the voluntary farm work and the perceived exploitation of volunteers that are reported to characterise this experience. Overall, the findings challenge the idealistic aims of this type of volunteer tourism exchange programme that is usually reported in tourism literature. Specifically, the findings indicate the tensions of economic and ethical accountability within the WWOOF network and its community. The paper contributes to tourism studies research by providing a further understanding of the experiences shaping the relations and tensions between hosts and guests in this non-profit exchange programme

A critical consideration of LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® methodology for tourism studies

In recent decade tourism researches turned their attention to creative qualitative methodologies to gain the deeper understandings of tourism phenomena. Despite the considerable body of research focusing on creative methodologies there is a need to challenge and creatively disrupt conventional methodological approaches as they are criticised for their inability to be participant driven, capture the co-construction of research context or to address the impact of wider social dynamics to knowledge creation in tourism studies. Based on our research focused on host–guests experiences participating in the World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) programme in New Zealand we provide a critical consideration of LEGO ® SERIOUS PLAY ® for tourism studies. LEGO ® SERIOUS PLAY ® is a communication tool aimed at developing creative thinking through building metaphors around identities and experiences using LEGO ® bricks. To demonstrate how the method can be used in tourism studies, we draw on examples from three LEGO ® SERIOUS PLAY ® workshops to illustrate the benefits and challenges of this methodological approach. LEGO ® SERIOUS PLAY ® offered a metaphorical way for participants to construct creative artefacts and explain their ideal WWOOFing experience, representing sometimes complex, entrenched and emotional issues, and relationships that may have been difficult to express via traditional methods. The method enables participant driven, co-production of knowledge in a playful, free-flowing way to foster creative thinking, meanings and possible solutions. The method helps participants creatively communicate complex and sensitive issues, especially around their relationships–to objects, landscapes, people and identities–aspects that may otherwise be silenced by traditional research methods. As a novel method LEGO ® SERIOUS PLAY ® provides opportunities for researchers who want to gain a deeper understanding of the social dimensions of tourism, to co-create spaces for knowledge exchange and develop an in-depth understanding of socially constructed relationships and realities

Demystifying Theories in Tourism Research

This book published by CABI is designed to explore the theoretical frameworks applied in tourism research. The book is organised in five parts. The editors have included the 15 chapters devoted to theoretical perspectives on tourism planning and management, theoretical perspectives on tourism marketing and communications, theoretical perspectives on host communities and guest, and a variety of other related subjects. Unsurprisingly, the focus of the book is clearly centred on describing and analysing the current state of theories used in a tourism research. In the introduction part, the editors open a debate on the use of the theories in tourism studies and highlight the uncertainties in this field. The opening argument of the book is that due to the complexities of the tourism research field, some researchers believe in the existence of “tourism research theories” and others borrow theories from other disciplines