ABSTRACT
How does the suffering of a whole industry influence people's attitudes toward that industry? This research is the first, across disciplines, to examine this question. The authors provide the first conceptual study and empirical test for the phenomenon called tourism solidarity. Based on seminal social psychology research, tourism solidarity is conceptualized and defined as an individual's compassion with and support of an industry, resulting from an observation of suffering. The authors use a covariance-based structural equation model as well as a novel Bayesian estimation approach (i.e., non-parametric) to develop a reliable and easy-to-apply tourism solidarity scale and assess its role of solidarity in two consecutive empirical studies. By doing so, the authors are able to empirically demonstrate the importance of tourism solidarity for tourist behavior, and provide both tourism researchers and practitioners with a conceptual model and measurement tool to assess, quantify and actively manage solidarity toward the tourism industry. © The Author(s) 2023.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has drastically affected the public discourse on tourism in news reporting and on social media, potentially changing social perceptions of travel and its utility for conspicuous consumption. Prestige enhancement is a common tourist motivation, yet, as tourists have been portrayed as irresponsible and even dangerous during the pandemic, the benefits of travel for personal prestige may have been affected. The purpose of this study is to monitor changes in tourists’ personal prestige during the early pandemic in 2020. Design/methodology/approach: The authors developed an innovative study design implicitly measuring the personal prestige of tourists shown on experimentally manipulated social media posts. Three measurement waves were issued to compare the personal prestige of tourists just before, during and after the first lockdown situation in Germany. Findings: Differences regarding evaluations of tourists’ prestige were found for prestige dimensions of hedonism, achievements, wealth and power, suggesting that prestige ascription to tourists has been affected by the changing discourse on leisure travel. Originality/value: This study contributes to the discussion of the socio-psychological effects of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on customer benefits of leisure travel. It exposes possible impacts of the pandemic on tourisms’ value for conspicuous consumption and prestige enhancement. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.