Бекжигитова З.С., Жилкибакова Д.Н.,
Жексекина А.А.
Карагандинский государственный
университет им. Е.А. Букетова
Motivational aspects of modern tourism
The
article describes tourism as a social phenomenon, reveals its role in public
life and individual. In-depth analysis is the need-motivational component of
tourist activity: a classification of needs is presented that can be met in the
process of travelling: a variety of motives, and combinations thereof, are described
that impel a man to engage in tourism.
Tourism has long played a
major role in the development of society. It can be attributed to the human
activity whose history begins with the origin and development of civilization.
In each historical epoch there are elements of the human activity that somehow
come under the category of tourism.
Tourism has played a huge role
in the formation and development, as local ancient civilizations and world
civilization as a whole. Need and demand for traveling originated at our
ancestors in ancient times. It was typical for man throughout his evolution a
desire for world perception and pioneering in order of development of trade,
conquest and development of new lands, resources and search for new transport
routes. For many people, there is a need to see new areas and countries, to get
acquainted with the life and customs of the peoples. All this was the cause of
a particular form of travel - tourism. Tourism has long become a necessity and
an integral part of human life. Sooner or later, one feels the need to travel.
Human desire to experience diversity acquires clear outline when he comes to
the decision to spend free time away from home, hoping to relieve nervous
tension and fatigue with the help of changing places. People's interest in
tourism is growing every year. According to WTO statistics over the past decade
there is a steady growth of international tourism. At this stage in the world
all kinds of tourism are developing, no exception and youth. Young people between
18 and 30 years are the most active tourists, because at this age the need for
travelling is very high. Optimism is inherent for youth. The man begins to
realize a life plan; he is full of strength and energy, desire to implement the
goals and ideals. In youth, the most complex professional activities are
available, the most complete and intensive communication takes place; it is
easy to establish and develop relations of friendship and love. Youth is
considered the optimal time for self-realization, and tourism promotes it in
all its manifestations. Thus, we can say that youth is the most motivated
category of people involved in tourism.
What guides a man in the choice of travel,
places of tourist destination, the nature of the activities during the trip?
What makes him do so and not otherwise? One of the key moments for answering
these questions is the motivation of the trip. The concept of
"motivation" can be considered in two ways: as denoting a system of
factors determining the behavior (which includes needs, motives, goals,
intentions, aspiration, and many others), and as a characteristic of a process
that encourages and supports behavioral activity at a certain level.
Motivation, thus, can be defined as a set of psychological reasons that explain
human behavior, its origin, focus and activity.
Tourism motivation can be defined as a set of
human aspirations aimed at meeting recreational needs.
They can manifest itself in different ways
depending on the individual physiological and psychological characteristics,
belief systems, values, aptitudes, education. In the world there are more than
300 species and subspecies of travel, which are constantly updated with new
varieties able to satisfy the most diverse desires and needs of tourists.
Tourist trip is based on motivation, which is one of the most important factors
of making a decision about the journey, the choice of the tourist product and
its components. Motives guiding tourist, a lot, and a tourist always present a
whole range of incentive motives, of which only some may have a significant
importance and influence on the mechanism and the result of the final decision.
However, any motive in a particular situation
and under the influence of certain circumstances can influence the behavior of
tourists in the decision-making process of the journey and the choice of
tourism products. Often tourist program changes under the influence of not
basic but side motives. Not all tourist motives can be clearly defined and
determined, but they can be systematized. Objectives ultimately determined by
the needs that can be met during the trip. The demand on a psychological level
appears as the reason for people to travel.
Conditionally demands can be divided into
material, social, emotional, psychological and spiritual. Naturally, it is
impossible to draw clear boundaries between them, but it allows building a
certain classification of needs and their respective motives that make people
start out.
Meet of material
needs is manifested primarily in a variety of business trips. Modern tourism
industry provides people with an opportunity to make shopping and business
trips, to take part in conferences and congresses, to visit the thematic
industrial and agricultural exhibitions, where contracts, business and trade
agreements conclude. At present, we can say that formed a special culture -
business tourism with its own traditions, protocol, specifics of business
meetings' organization and so forth. Travel agencies are making great efforts
to engage in customer service in this category, as it is considered very
prestigious and brings significant income. [1, p. 118]
To meet the needs of this category can be
attributed a health care. In this area, tourism has a very long and rich
tradition. People went on a journey with wellness goals even in ancient times. They were attracted with
the healing springs and faith in a miracle. Currently, it is one of the most
developed and profitable sectors of the tourism industry. In addition to
traditional travel to resorts, to meet this need, there are also exotic tours,
for example, for those who want to quit smoking.
Group of social
needs, that can be met while traveling, is quite broad. These are needs related
with recreation, leisure and entertainment, knowledge, self-realization and
self-affirmation, communication, etc.
Leisure while travelling
among the majority of people is associated with the ability to reduce stress,
to change the atmosphere, to stay in new role, to get for a certain period of
time a high level of service and care.
Entertainment in travel is
mainly related to getting pleasure from unusual sensations that bring a variety
of attractions, including the extreme nature (ex. safari), gambling, romantic
adventure. Widespread tours, during which people visit national holidays, major
sporting events as spectators or fans. Here you can talk about the satisfying
needs, which are manifested in the ability
to communicate and to do favorite things (hobby) among like-minded people. For
this purpose organized special tours for motorists, sports fans, tours of
collectors, gourmet. For example, there are "cheese tour" in
Switzerland and "beer tour" in the Czech Republic. [2, p.236]
Travelling with educational purposes equally has as long and rich history, as
travelling with wellness purposes. Currently widespread tours related to the
study of foreign languages and conversational practice; tours, during which
people learn different kinds of sport, etc. In today's educational tourism widely
presented also professional training programs (management, marketing, economics
and etc). Often in such journeys people pursue not specific educational, but
rather informative purposes: they are
interested in getting acquainted with different culture, a way of life of other
people, their lifestyle; compare another way of life with its own in order to
self-assertion or in order to borrow innovations. In such journeys people
satisfy natural curiosity, get positive emotions, and to a certain extent
improve their general cultural level. Travel plays a great role and in
scientific knowledge of the world. To this end people go to far and long
lasting scientific expeditions, which fundamentally differ both in form and in
way of organization from educational and informative and entertaining journeys.
The
need for self-expression and self-affirmation also finds its satisfaction
on a journey. People tend to take part in a variety of travels where is great
element of risk. Forms of travel are very diverse: it is tourist trips of high
categories, climbing, hunting, expeditions in remote and uninhabited areas of
the Earth. In foreign tourist culture such services are traditionally provided
by professionals. Widely known French, Swiss, Italian guides, working in the high
Alps routes, as well as famous guides-Sherpas in the Himalayas. In national
culture so-called "independent tourism" is widely spread when the
journey is prepared and carried out by the participants, and the leader is a
person who has the greatest travel experience. Despite the lack of professional
training, the domestic amateur tourists often reached high and even outstanding
results in various types of tourism: mountain, water, walking, caving, and
skiing.
Meet of spiritual
needs is embodied in a special form of tourism - pilgrimage. They are made
by thousands of believers for strengthening faith and spiritual cultivation. In
some religions (like Islam) pilgrimage to religious sites (hajj) is considered
to be the duty of every faithful, but a man who has made it enjoys among fellow
honor and respect.
Let us now consider some of the social factors
that influence the incentives and the choice of a particular type of travel.
Most people imagine tourism as a pleasure, active or passive recreation,
leisure and entertainment. However, each person imagine tourism enough
individually, depending on age, education, life experience, marital status,
income and other factors.
Age has a significant impact on the motivation
of travel choice. For example, young people (students up to 25 years). Usually
they choose travels, where they could meet the informative and educational
interests and needs; they also tend to self-reliance and self-expression.
Therefore, they tend to be active kinds of trips, individual or backpackers.
For them, the most important are communicative component of travel, lively
bright dialogues, as well as adventures that leave bright unforgettable
experience.
According to the prevailing tradition in the
West, young people before creating families prefer to see the world that is
taken into account in the development of tourism products by travel agencies:
for this category of tourists there are a lot of offers and the greatest number
of discounts. [1, p.165]
Level of education and social status are also
factors that influence the formation of motives that stimulate people to
travel. In the second half of the XX century in the Soviet Union during the
development of amateur and planned tourism a significant portion of travelers
were people with a fairly high level of education (students, intellectuals,
officials). To some extent, this phenomenon can be explained by the fact that
the propensity to travel occurs in people with a high level of cognitive needs,
as well as the development of emotional and aesthetic sphere. In addition, the
urge to travel is more typical of people living in cities. On the one hand,
urban life creates a craving for nature, which leads to the choice of urban
residents travel in the wild, and on the other - high educational level of the
urban population generates the desire to travel, able to meet the
educational-cognitive and aesthetic needs.
A certain role in the choice of types of
travel, their content and direction, as well as related travel services plays a
social position and status of the person. In every social stratum in the
subculture, inherent to this layer, develops a certain attitude to traveling as
a kind of activity and determines a prestigious of area, level of service, ways
and means of transportation and so on. If for a student hitchhiking trips, not
quite comfortable rest on the sea or amateur hike in the mountains are
perfectly acceptable and socially approved, then this type of tourist activity
does not quite fit for a successful businessman. Currently, one of the motives
for travel and consumption of certain tourist services can be primarily
considerations of prestige. These considerations, in turn, are determined, on
the one hand, the level of claims, and on the other - material possibilities of
each particular person. The combination of these factors is fraught with
complicated, contradictory situation. Inconsistency of claims level of economic
opportunities, social position and status of an individual may give rise to
stress or frustration, and then the person or refuses to travel, or takes it on
the negative side. [2]
In today's world travel in a variety of its
manifestations, and services providing meet the diverse needs of the person
associated with the journey, became a powerful socializing factor. Therefore,
the analysis of this phenomenon from any position, including the standpoint of
motivation, will allow deeply realize its social value and more appropriate to
use for the benefit of the individual and society.
References:
1. Valedinskaya, E.
(2011). The formation of the tourism market as a factor of sustainable
development of the economy. Risk.
2. Kvartalnov, V.A.
(2002). Tourism management: Tourism as an activity.