Touring in Step with the Times:Travel Behavior Transitions in the Life Course of Middle-aged Chinese Women
Life events,conceptualized as pivotal nodes in the life trajectories of individuals,are recognized as significant determinants of shifts in consumption behavior either at the individual or generational level.The occurrence of specific life events at disparate temporal intervals exposes individuals from diverse age strata to distinct historical contexts and developmental settings,thereby demonstrating the pronounced impact of cohort effects.Consequently,variations emerge among tourists from distinct generations in terms of their travel motivations,objectives,and frequencies,resulting in distinct travel behaviors in the tourism context.Existing research predominantly explores the generative mechanisms of tourism behavior by delving into the realm of tourism motivation,yielding a number of theoretical frameworks,such as the push and pull theory,escape and seek theory,psychographic personality types,and travel career pattern.These investigations,grounded in the perspective of individual psychological needs,explicate the procedural underpinnings of tourism behavior and its significance to the tourists involved.Nevertheless,the inadequacy of considering the impact of social context and living environment on individuals may lead to an overestimation of the agency of tourists,thereby complicating the explication of the reasons behind shifts in the tourism behavior of a particular generational cohort over the course of aging.Therefore,grounded in the fundamental consensus that the travel behavior of tourists undergoes discernible phases,it becomes imperative to delve further into the nexus between life stage transitions prompted by significant life events and corresponding alterations in travel behavior.This necessitates a nuanced examination of the behaviors and transformations exhibited by tourists within specific age cohorts through the lens of temporality.Employing a retrospective biographical approach,this study investigates pivotal life events experienced by Chinese middle-aged women(birth cohort 1961-1976)across various life stages.The objective is to discern how these events have influenced the travel preferences and behavior patterns of this particular birth cohort during different chronological periods.The empirical findings delineate the following observations:(1)As middle-aged Chinese women traverse into the middle phase of their life course,a relatively uniform role is played by their travel motivation in explicating their travel behavior;(2)The formative trajectory of tourism motivation is intricately intertwined not only with tourism experiences and age but also exhibits a significant correlation with the daily life events encountered by the tourists.This research contributes not only to the theoretical enrichment of interdisciplinary inquiries into the mechanisms governing the formation of tourism behavior but also,to a certain extent,addresses the oversight of the role of"daily life"in Pearce's Travel Career Pattern theory.It posits that a comprehensive understanding of the genesis of travel motivation should encompass considerations of the influence wielded by travel experiences,age,and daily life events.Ultimately,the study delves into the practical implications of its findings,and provides managerial and marketing recommendations for the market development targeting middle-aged female tourists..
life eventlife coursebiographical studymiddle-aged female touriststourist behavior
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