Glocalization Management Strategies of NGOs Engaged in Transformative Tourism

Glocalization aims at 1) adapting organizational structures to the cultural specificities of a given location, 2) developing services that are customized to the residents’ expectations, and 3) encouraging residents to appropriate and transform global services to fit their tastes and preferences. The present study will explore how Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) could employed globalization strategies in order to develop an alternative form of volunteer tourism that encourage the creation of transformative learning experiences. The glocalization strategies for NGOs will be analyzed in terms of encouraging cultural understanding from the volunteers, including reflection about local symbols and culture, adapting human resource strategies, and communication

Drawings as a way of expressing transformation after a trip

Note: We previously submitted this abstract, and it was accepted for the 2020 International TTRA Conference. When the conference was canceled, we were given the option to retract our abstract and resubmit this year. Abstract: We apply the Interaction Ritual Chains theory (Collins, 2004) to examine how transformative travelers use symbols when narrating their transformation. Transformative travel is a form of travel that encourages travelers to develop more tolerant worldviews and become agents of change in their community by promoting cross-cultural understanding and social empowerment (Reisinger, 2013). More precisely, the study uses an original multi-methods approach that includes drawings, sentence completions, and in-depth interviews to investigate how and in what ways are transformative travel narratives symbolized by travelers? We interview thirty-five transformative travelers and asked them to draw themselves before and after their transformative trip. Transformative travelers are the ones interpreting their drawings. Through their interpretations, their reveal deep and powerful symbols that are at the heart of their transformative journey. Transformative travel practitioners can use those symbols to attract prospective transformative travelers because those symbols align with their aspirations

Using tourism to build social capital in communities: new pathways to sustainable tourism futures

Despite considerable discussion about how tourism could or should contribute to sustainable destination development, there is little evidence that the practice of tourism planning or development has altered in any significant way in the last 30 years. This paper will report on an action research project aimed at identifying and applying new approaches to using tourism effectively as a strategy for sustainable development in destination communities. The research reported in this paper adopted a community capitals approach to sustainable destination development and explored the links between features of tourism development and impacts on the social capital available to destination communities. The study was based on a workshop conducted with sixteen regional tourism development officers that used a variety of techniques, including a futures wheel exercise, to identify the relationships between aspects of tourism development and both positive and negative impacts on social capital. The results of the workshop highlighted the importance of effective local resident engagement in tourism planning and activity and suggested several new dimensions of tourism planning for further exploration and development. These included the need for tourism leaders to take on a broader responsibility for community development, the need for tourism take a more social entrepreneurial role in destination communities and the need to find different models for local and regional tourism organisations

What Makes a Political Leader? Identifying the attributes of tourism industry advocates

This study explored the characteristics of tourism advocates who serve as the vital link between policymakers and tourism industry members. These individuals seek to gain political influence for the industry, yet there is only a limited understanding of what influences their participation in leadership and how they create relationships with industry members. Through the use of in-depth interviews and secondary data analysis this study focused on understanding what attributes are common among the advocates who help gain political influence for the tourism industry in Virginia, USA. The findings offer information that may be useful in cultivating future advocates for the industry

Potential Volunteer Tourists’ Expectations of Transformative Learning Opportunities

This study utilizes a factor-cluster analysis to determine segments of potential volunteer tourists based on their motivations for participating in volunteer tourism experiences. Three segments emerged, Volunteers, Voluntourists, and Tourists, and were subsequently compared across their expectations for transformative learning opportunities in volunteer tourism experiences. Three components of transformative learning are considered: self-reflection, engaging in dialogue, and intercultural experiences (Taylor, 2008). Each segment was found to hold different expectations of the components of a transformative learning experience, suggesting that in order to fully engage in such an experience and gain its benefits each segment requires a customized volunteer tourism program. The study offers implications for future research and managerial action

Examining Eating Attitudes and Behaviors in Collegiate Athletes, the Association Between Orthorexia Nervosa and Eating Disorders

Purpose: Orthorexia nervosa (Orthorexia) is an eating attitude and behavior associated with a fixation on healthy eating, while eating disorders (EDs) are clinically diagnosed psychiatric disorders associated with marked disturbances in eating that may cause impairment to psychosocial and physical health. The purpose of this study was to examine risk for Orthorexia and EDs in student-athletes across sex and sport type and determine the association between the two. Methods: Student-athletes (n = 1,090; age: 19.6 ± 1.4 years; females = 756; males = 334) completed a survey including demographics, the ORTO-15 test (values), the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26; \u3e20 score), and additional questions about pathogenic behaviors to screen for EDs. Results: Using a ORTO-15, 67.9% were at risk for Orthorexia, a more restrictive threshold value of 17.7% prevalence across student-athletes with significant differences across sex [ \u3c40: \u3eχ2(1,1,090) = 4.914, p= 0.027; \u3c35: \u3eχ2(1,1,090) = 5.923, p = 0.015). Overall, ED risk (EAT-26 and/or pathogenic behavior use) resulted in a 20.9% prevalence, with significant differences across sex (χ2 = 11.360, p \u3c 0.001) and sport-type category (χ2 = 10.312, p = 0.035). Multiple logistic regressions indicated a significant association between EAT-26 subscales scores and Orthorexia, and between Orthorexia positivity, ORTO-15 scores, and risk for EDs. Conclusions: Risk for Orthorexia and ED is present in collegiate student-athletes. While healthy and balanced eating is important, obsessive healthy eating fixations may increase the risk for EDs in athletes. More education and awareness are warranted to minimize the risk for Orthorexia and EDs in student-athletes

Tourism and Community Well-Being: An Applied Approach

This study utilized a grounded, inductive framework to explore the relationship between tourism and the well-being of communities through the integration of three complimentary planning and strategy exercises. Attendees of a regional tourism development conference in Queensland, Australia participated in a “Futures Wheel, Appreciative Inquiry, and Make It Fail” exercise. This was part of a workshop hosted by researchers interested in understanding the current and future relationship between tourism and community well-being. In order to provide parameters for the three-step exercise, Flora’s community capitals framework was applied as a means of identifying components of a community that contribute to its well-being. These exercises benefitted both practitioners and researchers seeking to understand how stakeholders perceive tourism’s impacts on community well-being. This paper demonstrates how the exercises were applied in a workshop setting and presents limited findings based on the analysis of a portion of the data

“To Plan or ot to Plan:” Serendipitous vs. Organized Travel

The recent invention and popularity of mobile navigation devices have increased the possibility of unplanned, serendipitous travel. To better understand the independent travel market, this study developed a scale for the construct “Style of Independent Travel” (SIT) in order to explore the serendipitous and organized dimensions of travel and their relationship to relevant travel behavior. The scale was included in a survey of visitors to the Rocky Knob area of southwest Virginia. Findings revealed that tourists had a higher preference for travelling spontaneously than following a fixed and organized itinerary and that serendipity and organization in travel was related to travel planning and visitor activities. However, there was no significant relationship between SIT, past visitation, and role of the destination as primary destination or stopover