Year 7, No. 1, June 2014, issN 1855-3303
Academica Turistica
Tourism & Innovation Journal Revija za turizem in inovativnost
Academica Turistica
Tourism & Innovation Journal - Revija za turizem in inovativnost Year 7, No. 1, June 2014, issN 2335-4194
3 Dialoguing Children's Travel: Chronotopes, Narratives and Guides
Irena Weber
15 Characteristics and Motivations of Wellness Visitors in Portorož During the Low Season
Helena Nemec Rudež
23 The Responses of Responsible Tourists: Limitations and Gaps in Prosocial Consumer Research
Petra Zabukovec Baruca and Aleksandra Brezovec
35 The Relevance of Consumers' Need for Uniqueness in the Tourism Context
Žana Čivre and Tomaž Kolar
47 The Quality of the Dining Experience - A Literature Overview
Marko Kukanja
61 The Heritage of Socialism in Škofja Loka as an Opportunity for Tourism Development
Gregor Balažič and Žiga Nedižavec
71 Abstracts in Slovene - Povzetki v slovenščini 75 Instructions for Authors
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issN 1855-3303 (printed) issN 2335-4194 (online)
Dialoguing Children's Travel: Chronotopes, Narratives and Guides
Irena Weber
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia irena.weber@fts.upr.si
While there has been a growing level of quality research in the field of childhood studies both in the social sciences and humanities since the 1990s, there seems to be a remarkable gap in the topic of children and travel/tourism research. The paper aims to address the gap, in a limited way, by analysing the spatial and temporal dimensions of children's travel in literature and specialized travel guides, relying on two chosen concepts: Bakhtin's chronotopes, and the ancient Greek concept of kairos, interpreted by contemporary philosophy. The methodology used combines auto-ethnography, narrative and qualitative visual analysis.
Keywords: children's travel, chronotopes, Kairos, narratives, travel guides
Introduction
"Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen,
don't worry. Don't stew.
Just go right along.
You'll start happening too."
- Dr Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!
The very first word of my daughter was "ap-ap", a mirror version of pa-pa, which in Slovenian baby talk signifies a farewell, a bye-bye. She skipped mum and dad and went straight to up and away much like the main character in Dr Seuss's rhyming travel adventure Oh, the Places You'll Go! Being the daughter of fairly mobile parents, travel was an integral part of her early experience. Aside from the weekend trips
and holidays, she has travelled with us to numerous anthropological conferences in Europe, the Near East and the USA. While she could not choose the destinations (more often than not conference venues were in larger towns and cities), she not only influenced the structure of our additional itineraries, including child-friendly public spaces, playgrounds, parks and museums, but also coloured our own perceptions and understanding of tourist destinations and travel encounters.
To give just a short illustration from our trip to Lebanon in 2003 when she was three years old: on the way from Quadisha, we stopped at a small inn at the side of the road and, since we were the only guests, as Lebanon was virtually devoid of tourists at the time, the owner was very happy to chat with us at length. When we mentioned in passing that our daughter was missing the company of children that she had daily enjoyed on the playground in Beirut,
he clapped, exclaimed something in Arabic and in the space of two minutes four of his daughters appeared to play with her (Figure 1). That act of hospitality changed our itinerary and we returned to this same place to eat and play every single day although doing so meant significantly longer routes. Children engaged in a play were in no way constrained by the fact that they spoke two different languages, while the parents engaged in a meaningful dialogue, learning about Lebanon and Slovenia respectively in much more detail than one usually does during a lunch.
In some other places, the daily symbolic construction of temporary homes, be it a tent, an apartment, a hotel room, a friend's house, held the potential of an imaginary world that weaved together as it were, the picture in an art gallery, the stray dog, the people watching, the impromptu city guiding and forgotten suede baby shoes under a park bench in Copenhagen.
The incentive to research the topic of children and travel thus stems in part from these personal experiences, many of which are integrated into travel diaries and family scrapbooks for reference. A great deal of material was collected as a matter of course, often as an anthropological observation and reflection, which is not switched off simply because one is vacationing, and was recorded as jotting, notes, diary and diverse visual material. It was not however collected with research in mind, so it cannot pass the scrutiny of rigorous field research. However, my research interest in tourism, literature and the anthropology of place/space are all long standing, while the field of the fast growing multidisciplinary childhood studies is something I started to tackle fairly recently and am still looking for the proper footing. While preparing a conference contribution on Responsible Tourism, employing ethnographic reading and a narrative and visual analysis, the idea was to look at the processes of imagery and narrative construction in children's tourist guide books in order to show in what way children are "taught" to be or become tourists by using suggested itineraries, stories and images. Particular attention was paid to establishing whether the principals of responsible tourism have been integrated into the tourist guides at all and in what form. During that task, I came to realize that comparatively little research had been done on children and tourism as a whole, which was, to some de-
gree, surprising given the research developments in social sciences and humanities in past decades.
In international law a child is defined as "every human being below the age of eighteen years unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier" (CORC, 2013, p. 2). Traditionally the domain of psychology, medicine and pedagogy, childhood studies have made a significant research effort since the 1990s both in the social sciences and the humanities, which has demonstrated that childhood is socially constructed, positional and culturally contextualized and cannot be defined, explained or interpreted as biological given.1 In anthropology, for example, child-centred research has meant a shift from the standard subjects of socialization and parenting to the children's own perception of their lives and their agency within culturally specific settings (Montgomery, 2009). This shift has also entailed a methodological adaptation of ethnographic methods to give voices to children, by employing new research techniques particularly those connected with new technologies.2
The scanning and skimming of literature,3 excluding the predominantly market-oriented research, yielded a picture of several strands of child and travel/tourism research, though the numbers do not appear to be high. For the most part, the research is dedicated to the area of children's rights and the exploitation of children in tourism settings. The protection of children from sexual and labour exploitation has been in focus for more than three decades and has alter alia resulted in a specially commissioned report of the UNWTO (2001). Some of the research deals specifically with children as tourist guides in the contested spaces of structural inequality where global tourist encounters take place (Huber-
1	For the basic overview selection in childhood studies by anthropologists, sociologists, cultural geographers and historians, see Montgomery, 2009; Oswell, 2013; Jenks, 2005; Holloway & Valentine 2000; Gutman & de Con-inck-Smith, 2008; Duane, 2013; Clarke, 2010.
2	For sample references on research methods that are exclusively or partly dedicated to children research see, Cappello, 2005; Coover et al., 2012; Emmison & Smith, 2007; Harper, 2012; Kullman, 2012; Theron, et. al. 2011.
3	As the article is not intended to be a comprehensive literature review on children and tourism in toto, only those references that emphasise the particular points are cited.
man, 2005, 2012; Crick, 2008). Research on how local children perceive and imagine spatial and temporal dimensions in tourist destinations in less-developed countries appears to be scarce (Gamradt, 1995; Buzinde & Manuel-Navarrete, 2013).
Some of the research on children's mobility and travel has been done by anthropologists (Vannini & Vannini, 2009), focusing on modes of transport, predominantly car travel, as do the currently fashionable mobility studies (Barker, 2009). Children privileged to travel have been subject of museum and heritage research (Smith, 2013) but as far as I am aware there seems to be no particular research done on the spatial and temporal dimensions of contemporary children's travel by examining the narratives and imagery in children's literature and guides. It is thus the aim of this paper to fill that gap to some small extent. The focus in this paper is on children tourists in Bau-man's sense of the word; those privileged to travel, at pre-school and primary school ages.
Figure 1: Four Lebanese sisters and a travel child, in a "map" pattern hammock, Quadisha, Lebanon 2003
Source: Author Methodology
Using an auto-ethnographic approach by including one's own child in research may come across as a case of extreme indulgence, so perhaps some anthropological contextualization might not be amiss. Anthropological debate in 1980s on the nature of the production of ethnographic texts, on the relationship between scientific and literary text and style resulted in the so-called "new ethnography" (Weber,
2003), including new types of auto-ethnography. While there are differences in opinion as to the balance and value of auto-ethnography (which was never a dominant approach within anthropology), it is by all means a legitimate methodological approach. All research demands an ethical consideration and more so should research involving children. As suggested by Bell (2008, p. 19), "ethical child research can be guided by four commonly identified types of rights embedded in the UNCRC: welfare; protection; provision; and choice and participation." By using auto-ethnography and by obtaining informed consent from my 14-year-old daughter to use some of the family travel diaries, photos, drawings and scrap-book in this article, I believe I have followed those guidelines.
In addition to auto-ethnography, literary texts and travel guides are treated as an ethnographic source and evidence, and basic semiotic analysis is used for the visual data.
The conceptual underpinnings consist of two main frames: Bakhtin's concept of chronotopes, and the ancient Greek concept of kairos interpreted via contemporary philosophy.
Narratives in Motion: Children's Literature
"Atticus was a very good sandal maker, but he was an even better storyteller. The children of the village were always popping into the shop to ask for a quick story, and Atticus was always happy to oblige, because he claimed that the stories got into his sandals and made the feet in them walk along faster." -100 Greek Myths for Children
Between the ages of five and six, our daughter became a fervent aficionado of Greek mythology, and we would read and discuss an adaptation for children of one hundred myths virtually every day. It was an enjoyable brushing up on of who is who in the Pantheon for the parent, for the child however it was not just a pastime, but a formative reading or listening as the case may be. She would start to interpret natural phenomenon by ascribing it to the god in question, i.e. Zeus is in a bad mood or alternatively Zeus is playing with his lightning bolts when there was a thunder/lightning or surprise us with more complex identity statements such as When I grow up I want to be like Artemis. Why? Because she is free in the woods
and never gets married. So when a conference in Athens was scheduled, I was somewhat apprehensive and tried to warn her that perhaps Zeus would not be strolling down the street and that Artemis might not come to greet her in person. Shortly upon our arrival in Athens, we went for a walk. She would smile and stop at every stray dog observing it carefully. When asked what she is looking for she explained: Well, you know how fond Zeus is of changing into animal shapes. I'm just checking whether that's him. She was quite satisfied that no definite answer was forthcoming. The possibility of divine incarnation itself was enough. That same evening she declared to the utter amazement and delight of our Greek colleagues that Athens is so much more beautiful than Paris.
The classical myths as retold stories offer children a realm of exciting worlds of adventure removed from everyday life, while transmitting elements of cultural heritage constructed, appropriated and selected in accordance to Eurocentric standards of meta-narra-tives. Greek myths may be read globally but are by no means universal; rather, they are culturally specific. The value of particular retold stories is measured by the narrative structure interlinking cultural heritage and moral judgments, which Stephens and McCal-lum (1998, p. 7) refer to as the "Western meta-ethic". Aside from transmittance of values and socially accepted norms, myths in a way provide children with a map, a pattern, an itinerary to follow so that they can position themselves in the surrounding world.
The stories directly frame explanations of geographical place names, i.e. Europe, Aegean sea, the pillars of Heracles; moreover, they describe the strategy of finding one's way out of a labyrinth by using Ariadne's thread, and not the least they provide a tangible location of Hope. In English, the most commonly referred to as a box or more accurately to a Greek original a jar, pithos, that Pandora opened, Hope has a definite place at the bottom of the jar. Since the jar is an object that can be moved, Hope may reside in or outside Greece.
The story of Atticus's sandals connects stories directly to movement. If feet are to be nimble, they need sandals with stories in them. Once on the road, the things can happen, but a child can "happen", too, as demonstrated by Dr Seuss. There is a promise of adventure in most children's "road" stories - and the possibility of dialogical imagination opens spaces
where fiction and reality are blurred. Grenby (2008, p. 194) points out that the hybrid nature of children's adventure stories and suggests that such stories "provide a fantasy of empowerment" and "depict a conflict between children's yearning for consequentiali-ty and their residual desire for protection and supervision" with their heroic narratives.
The road is one of the most enduring literary metaphors of adventure, ordeal, growth and transformation that writers for children use when depicting journeys and "very few fictional roads lead straight to their destinations and some are deliberately misleading" (Dewan, 2010, p. 58).
Chronotopes of Encounter and Chronotopes of the Road
In several essays that were eventually translated from Russian and published under the title The Dialogical Imagination (2008) Bakhtin introduced his concept of chronotopes, described as follows: "We will give the name chronotope (literally, "time space") to the intrinsic connectedness of temporal and spatial relationships that are artistically expressed in literature" (Bakhtin, 2008, p. 84). Before applying it to the realm of literary novel, Bakhtin invoked the image of what he perceived to be the real-life chronotope, i.e. the agora, the public square where the life of a citizen was sumultaneously shaped, accomplished and publicly approved.
Polysemic in nature and applied in literary science in various forms, the concept of chronotope was originally connected to Einstein's relativity theory as a metaphor, and more importantly to Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, in which space and time were defined as indispensable forms of cognition. Distinct from Kant, Bakhtin understood them "not as 'transcendental' but as forms of the most immediate reality" (Bakhtin, 2008, p. 85). His goal was to "show the role these forms play in the process of concrete artistic cognition (artistic visualization)" (ibid.). Bakhtin's chronotope in effect is a time space in which narratives are entangled and disentangled. His case studies were samples of classical literature from antiquity to Dostoyevsky.
While Bakhtin scholars understand and apply the concept in a great variety of ways and point out that Bakhtin himself did not offer any precise and definition, there seems to be an agreement that the
concept is "epistemological in character" and that there is not one chronotope but a plurality of them: "there are different chronotopes for different views of the world and different social situations. (Stein-by, 2013, p. 107).
In the case of "the chronotope of encounter" its most salient characteristic seems to be the saturation of experience with excitement and pronounced emotion - all familiar features of travel experience. The derived chronotope of the road expresses the same combination of saturation and acceleration; it is the literary symbol par excellence of the "flow of time", and the road is formed by the fusion of time and space (Bakhtin, 2008, p. 244). The road for Bakhtin was often a familiar path one followed and encountered the measure of saturated time, but the road itself could represent exploration and adventure. A case in point is an example of Norwegian children's literature in which Slettan (2013) utilizes the road chronotope to describe and analyse the nation-building narrative of Arctic wilderness exploration while the most important encounter on this road is the one with Nature (Slettan, 2013).
While flow of time would attest to chronological time, the leading principal in dialogical chronotope is not telos of the traditional narratives but kairos, of modern literature" (Bemong, 2010, p. 7).
Kairos
In contrast to Chronos (xpovo;), the ancient Greek god of time, depicted as an old man, winged, bearded and usually clothed, the image of Kairos (кшро;) is one of a youth, with a double set of wings, at the shoulder and at the heels. Kairos is naked, balancing a scale on a razor's blade. His head is shaved save for the single long lock of hair hanging from his forehead that needs to be grasped if one is to seize the right moment. While Chronos is a flow of time, a continuity and something that is measured, a quantified time, Kairos is an opportunity, the proper moment, or the right timing. Conversely with Chronos we are "in time", clothed in tradition and constant measure while with Kairos we are "on time", naked in the timeliness of opportunity, as it were. This opportunity makes an opening for innovation; as Antonio Negri argues in his Time for Revolution (2003, p. 153), "Kairos is the power to observe the fullness of temporality at the moment it opens itself onto the
void of being, and of seizing this opening as innovation".
The ancient Greeks did not necessarily perceive the right timing as a short moment in time, as an instant opening for an instant decision. It was rather a variable time span within which the right decisions had to be made, and the consequences of those decisions entailed some degree of personal responsibility. Thus, Chronos is often associated with the objective and ontological and Kairos with the subjective, the qualitative, and the "anthropological". Chronos is the time of gods who possess an absolute measure of time. Kairos, in contrast, while a divine entity, is also a time of humans, situational and interpretive. It is situated not in any time but in the time while "the ontological principle of Kairos indicates the absolute uniqueness of an event" (Muckelbauer, 2008, p. 115).
Various historical articulations of Kairos indicate that there is clear ethical dimension to Kairos and that a simple objective-subjective binary opposition might be misleading. There are, as Frost Benedikt (2002, p. 227) points out, "temporal frames that are independent of human action", meaning that the ontological dimension does not pertain to Chronos alone. When a kairic moment presents itself, one does not decide on a proper action outside of the wider "objective" circumstances and, by extension, without the Kairos of others. Kairos may well represent personal choice, yet the opening of creative opportunity cannot be seen as pure subjectivity if both principles, timeliness and measure, are to be observed. When traveling, for example, we come across someone's wedding, a funeral, a private party, and we may ask whether this is good timing or a bad one, depending not on our choices alone but on the responses of others and the context that we have co-created only in part. What is good timing for us, may be bad timing for somebody else. If a kairic moment is to occur within the travel encounter, it cannot be reduced to random chance nor can it be reduced to subjective, individual action particularly if we keep in mind the highly contested nature of global tourism spaces.
We may thus ask ourselves, with Frost Benedikt (2002, p. 230), whether timeliness then is "a skill or a virtue" and how children recognize or catch Kairos?
One particular domestic incident comes to mind. When our daughter was four years old, we would argue about daily routines and annoying repeated de-
mands. At one point, exasperated, I asked her to propose what we should do to avoid the tension. She thought for a second and said Let's go travel! The English translation does not adequately express the word she actually used in Slovenian Odpotujva! The word used in grammatical dual that is particular to Slovenian language included only her and myself, two people engaged in a problem, but it also held a distinct poetic dimension of the songs/poems written by Tomaž Pengov entitled Odpotovanja, in which the road is defined as "the shelter of restless people". The proposal of resolving daily frictions with a journey also indicated, at least in my opinion, the child's intuitive understanding of the kairic potential of travel.
Travel Guides
'Zeus, protect me from your guides at Olympia, and you, Athena, from yours at Athens.' - Augustan prayer
Historical evidence attests to travel guide books that were too heavy to carry, so they served only as "preparatory reading" (Lomine, 2005, p. 82), while the live guides were hired at the travel site, with some apprehension if the above Augustan prayer is any indication. However, it was much later, in the mid-i9th century that the art of travel guide writing came into full bloom. Karl Baedeker established his company in 1827 in Leipzig and won over the growing numbers of middle-class British travellers. His guides became so successful that the word baedekering entered the vocabulary signifying the description of travel that resulted in written travelogue or another travel guide (Palmowski, 2002). Baedeker promised to make his readers independent of the services of live guides if they followed the instructions in his books to the letter. That meant that the written guide constructed travel expectations, perceptions and also prescribed recording and remembering travel experience in a set manner. The travelogues written at the period were full of direct quotes from Beadeker and the anticipated experience was described in accordance to previously constructed imagery. What transgressions might occur if one did not follow Beadeker properly was demonstrated by E.M. Forster in his novel A Room with a View, made into a heritage film in 1980s, in which Lucy Honeychurch went to Santa Croce without her Beadeker guide and was immedi-
ately assailed by one of the guides in the church and had to be "saved" (as it were) by Mr. Emerson.
With the gradual democratization of travel, a plethora of new guides appeared with Beadeker adapting to all historical changes remaining in print up to date. In the late 1970s, travel guides started to include information and advice for particular categories (women, children, gay/lesbian, etc.) that reflected wider social and cultural changes. In the next two decades, various specialized travel guides that included children travel began to emerge. First, there were parent/family guides focusing on advising parents about how/where to travel with children; later, with the increased agency of children, travel guides became oriented exclusively towards children, preschool, school and teen-agers; some, such as Lonely Planet, started to edit guides for teens with the subtitle Not for the Parents; others are written and edited entirely by teen-agers themselves. The content of travel guides for children spans from predominantly pictorial for pre-school children to hybrid, crossover guides that combine facts, fiction and uses of new technologies for digital generations.
Three Guides for Children: VIENNA-LJUBLJANA-VENICE
The three guides (Vienna. City Guide for Children, published in 2002, A Mini guide for the Big Travellers. A Walk through Venice with Marta, Jacopo and Lula and, Let's see the city Ljubljana: Architectural Walk and Tour, both published in 2008), were selected for comparative analysis based on their geographical and historical proximity, as Slovenia was historically part of both the Habsburg and the Venetian empires. In terms of travel, Vienna and Venice are easily reached by car from Ljubljana, in four and two hours respectively. The Vienna and the Venice guides are clearly addressing the children travellers, while the Ljubljana guide is more ambiguous, one of the reasons being that it is a topical guide focusing on architecture. In personal conversation with the author (2013), I learned that the production of the guide had clearly been motivated by the author's own child, his perceptions of the city and the questions he raised while engaging with it. Although leaning towards the position of being a guide for families with children, it is also oriented towards a larger audience of those who appreciate architecture or tourists more in gen-
eral and is, in that sense, an example of a cross-over guide.
The most immediate visual quality that all three guides have in common are the colours of the cover illustrations. This may be in part due to the cultural proximity of respective traditions in children's book illustrations, mirroring the colour preference that children establish in early infancy (Pitch-ford et. al, 2011). In terms of content, we shall look at three groupings: 1) maps, trails, itineraries; 2) topical motives of children's literature as dialogued in the guides; 3) travel companions.
Guided Chronotopes: Maps, Trails, Itineraries
All three guides contain maps. In the Vienna and Venice guides, they are depicted in the tradition of children's literature when imagined or fantasy lands are mapped. We can characterize them as chronotop-ic, since they are directly connected to imagination. The Ljubljana guide includes only standard tourist maps which do not provide space for imaginative dialogue, so they cannot be considered chronotopic.
The map of Vienna (see Figure 2) is pictured as a tree trunk in which the space of the city is directly infused with temporality, and the authors also connect it to the never ending thread of storytelling: "Just like a tree trunk, the city keeps on growing, and that is why we will never be able to finish this chapter..." (Höpler et al., 2007, p. 21). The map of Venice is in the shape of a fish, coupled with a child drawing of another fish displayed on the wall, inviting children to draw the shape of Venice's main islands. Smaller maps are provided for each of Vienna's seven (note the fairy tale number) proposed itineraries. Hand drawn, surrounded with imaginary figures and forms, they show red dot trails resembling the bread crumbs from Hansel and Gretel or a treasure hunt. The proposed trails in the Venice guide are not as prominent although organized around districts, the walks are oriented more around architectural features, i.e. bridges, squares, but they are accompanied by a distinctive character, the grandfather storyteller. The Ljubljana guide is organized much more formally with the dominant visual material being professional photographs. However, eight well-known Slovenian children illustrators contributed their original work, which is, in fact, the main reason that the guide is considered here at all.
Figure 2: Child's depiction of a map represented in the Vienna. City Guide for Children, p. 21. There are fewer elements in her drawing than in the original illustration in the guide, notably the animals are missing as well as a human figure on a skateboard .while the built structures almost all are present. The shape is in close correspondence to the original but using only one colour for the main lines instead of multiple colours of the original. Source: Author
Topical Dialogue: The Element of Flying
Laing and Frost (2012) identify four topical motifs in children literature: 1) The Call to Adventure, 2) Running Away, 3) Flight and Pursuit, and 4) Freedom and Escape. The element of flying may be found in each of them: one of the most famous examples from classic children's literature being Peter Pan. In the Ljubljana guide, the element of flying is borrowed from the story My umbrella can turn into a balloon by Ela Peroci. A well-loved Slovenian illustrated children story, first published in 1955, it was a step away from the then predominantly rural focus in Slovenian children's literature, depicting an urban landscape of Ljubljana with readily recognizable town features. Its main character was a little girl with strict parents who did not allow her to play with her peers, so she created a small world of her own using a tent behind the house where her precious yellow umbrella was stored. One day, she was playing with her new red ball, throwing it ever higher in the air trying to ignore the stern gazes of her parents, grandparents and an aunt, and
their constant admonishments. With each annoying exclamation of the adults, the ball went higher and higher until it landed in a nearby stream. To avoid the anger of the grown-ups, the little girl hid under her yellow umbrella, closed her eyes, grabbed the handle and whispered: "My umbrella can turn into a balloon". Her wish to be elsewhere, far away from angry faces, powers the umbrella to lift her up and she flies over the familiar houses, river and parks of Ljubljana. In Tivoli Park, she encountered a magical garden with colourful flowers shaped like hats. Each of the hats held a power to transform one into a particular character according to one's preferences. There were children from her street there, all those she was prevented from playing with at home, but there in the magical garden they could play to their hearts' desire. One of the children put on the "see-it-all" hat and found the little girl's red ball. She then plucked up some hats and flew back home. There she handed out the presents, a general hat for her grandfather, a make-me-younger one for the grandmother, a movie star had for the aunt, a professorial one for the father, and a beauty one for the mother; they all were transformed, and their severity completely dissolved. The girl herself did not want a hat as she had an umbrella that could turn into a balloon.
Figure 3: Illustration from the Ljubljana guide (used by the permission of the authors) The little boy is flying over the city with a yellow umbrella.
Source: Kuhar, Š., & Potokar, R. (2008). Let's see the city Ljubljana: Architectural Walk and Tours. Ljubljana: Piranesi Foundation, p. 61 (by permission of the authors).
Her timely decision to empower herself by flying created the kairic event which transformed her parents and relatives and ultimately the quality of her life.
In the Ljubljana guide, it is a small boy (Figure 3) not a girl evoking the story, flying over the familiar landscape of Ljubljana star-shaped park (which is not shaped like a star in the illustration, but is recognizable nonetheless on account of the buildings), the same boy that is one of several travel companions in the guide.
Travel Companions
The souvenir shops in theme parks are positioned at the single exit of individual attraction so that it is literally impossible to avoid them. In exiting the polar bear place in the Sea World, Florida, we were about to pass a huge pile of plush bears when our daughter stopped with my immediate protest, "Oh, no we are not buying yet another plush animal!" However, she came up with a solemn statement that one of the bears had spoken to her particularly, she pointed at it, and wanted to come home with her because it was not in a good place.
This argument transported me directly back to the story I liked as a child Moj prijatelj Piki Jakob (My friend Piki Jakob) by Kajetan Kovič, in which the father buys a bear in Paris after bear winks at him from the shop window. As it turned out, it was a decision no one regretted. In the space of minutes, our daughter provided a background story of the polar bear who was kidnapped in the far North; her mother couldn't protect it and all small brothers and sisters were crying for it, so it truly needed a better home than a souvenir shop. It spoke with a slight speech impediment (though none of our friends had one), slowly and with measure, using words carefully. It seemed well travelled, well read and spoke some fifteen languages in addition to the bear language.
In effect, it became not only our constant travel companion but also a source of travel stories while we are at home. When we cannot afford to travel, our bear provides adventure stories from whichever trip it "just returned from", usually from places we have not visited yet. Eight years after the bear became part of our family, it has yet to miss any of family travels, though lately it is carried in a parent's and not a child's backpack. Before the polar bear, our daughter had chosen two particular plush animals as her companions: a no-name pink rabbit that I found on the pavement in Chicago and that is seen attached to my backpack in several photographs from travel
in the USA, and a hedgehog named Fergus acquired in Scotland, which travelled with me for years. Both were thus invested with travel stories from the time before my daughter was born but neither acquired their own biography like Aurora, the polar bear, has.
Figure 4: From the family album: a child and her travel companion polar bear in the Bay of Kotor, Montenegro 2009 Source: Author
In travel guides, the companions come in human form, in pairs in the case of Vienna and Venice, a girl and a boy, and several in the Ljubljana guide. The same boy that flies over Ljubljana appears with his own plush travel companion, a dragon souvenir (Figure 4).
A girl and a boy in Vienna guide are flying over the city together with a bird and a dog, taking pictures, write notes, riding in a carriage, read, eating, having a nap, and appearing as both fellow travellers and guides. In the Venice guide, a girl and a boy are named, Martha, and Jacopo, with a cat, Lula, and a storytelling grandfather, Bepi; this provides a sense of a family invitation to explore the city. The roles of Martha and Jacopo are surprisingly conservative-
ly gendered, while children are invited to play with Jacopo, they are also invited to cook with Martha. Travel companions are cultural brokers and mediators, privileged insiders and interpreters of the imaginary, where the flow of Chronos may render a space for Kairos in dialogical imagination of children travel.
Figure 5: A little boy on a Dragon's bridge. In Barthesian terms, the main signs denoted in the illustration are a dragon on a bridge, a boy with a toy dragon and a castle. There is no written anchorage while the connotations are oriented towards elements of power in both the castle and the dragon while also evoking the children's stories of dragons in general and the story of St George (the patron saint of Ljubljana) and the dragon. Source: Kuhar, Š., & Potokar, R. (2008). Let's see the city Ljubljana: Architectural Walk and Tours. Ljubljana: Piranesi Foundation, p. 33 (by permission of the authors).
Conclusions
When Chris Jenks published The Sociology of Childhood in 1982, he had to carry the copies of his books two floors up in Dillon's bookshop to move them from the shelves of developmental psychology where the staff put them, to the shelves of sociology (Jenks, 2005). Much seems to have been accomplished for childhood studies since, yet the subject of travel/ tourism and children remains decidedly under researched. Whether this is because childhood studies and tourism studies have not yet engaged in a meaningful dialogue or because the reasons are more complex is difficult to assess for someone who is as new to childhood studies as I am. The absence of dialogue
among and across disciplines is noted in other areas, such as the classicists interested in children becoming aware of relevant historical research with rather significant time-delay "owing to the unfortunate dislocation of academic disciplines" (Beaumont, 2012, p. 8), but there is also a limited geographical focus within a single discipline, as Morrison (2012) points out in her criticism of Western-oriented research on the history of childhood. Another notable and rather disturbing lack of dialogue within tourism studies is worth mentioning, namely the research on children who travel and children who are visited appear to be on two different shelves, as it were. Admittedly, this paper has not contributed to moving the shelves any closer due to the limitation of the research material and the focus, but might nevertheless perhaps serve as food for thought in that direction.
Figure 6: From a family scrapbook diary. The cover of a "Vienna book". A child drawing in the garden of Belvedere Palace and Museum, 2009. Source: Author.
While most scholars agree that children's voices need to be heard, there are various challenges on this long and winding road on which children posi-
tion themselves (Figure 6 and 7), listen and narrate stories, create images and engage in meaningful encounters while traveling.
Figure 7: "Traveling in Vienna". A design of a family from photo cut out leftovers.
When photos were cut out to make a collage for the "Vienna book" the leftover photo paper was not thrown away, but was transformed into an image of our family by the then nine year old. With a little help of a fashion accessory, the child is the same height as the parents. Source: Author
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my daughter Medina Baskar Weber for letting me use her drawings, a collage and photographs, and for being the most serendipitous travel companion. My gratitude goes to the reviewers for their constructive and most helpful comments; any mistakes and omissions rest with me alone.
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14 | AcADEMicA Turistica, Year 7, No. 1, June 2014
Characteristics and Motivations of Wellness Visitors in Portorož During the Low Season
Helena Nemec Rudež
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia Helena.nemec@fts.upr.si
This paper aims to explore wellness visitors in Portorož with regards to their so-cio-demographic characteristics and to identify their push motivators and activities carried out by them.
Design/methodology/approach - A survey with structured questions was collected from 246 visitors to Portorož during the low season; 77 of them were identified as wellness visitors, and they were considered for further analysis on wellness visitors. Data were collected across several locations in Portorož. Descriptive statistics is used in empirical research.
Findings - Wellness visitors to Portorož are mostly older, employed, and regular visitors to Portorož. They mostly desire to get fit and relax. Of particular interest is that wellness visitors in Portorož are mostly engaged in passive activities and activities offered in the hotel facilities.
Originality - The paper provides an initial step in understanding wellness visitors in Portorož better and, therefore, contributes to the existing sparse literature on wellness tourism by adding the case of a Mediterranean destination during the low season.
Keywords: wellness, survey, wellness visitors, characteristics, motivations
Background
The development and the expansion of wellness tourism have become a trend inside the tourism industry, with the wellness product perceived to be a fashionable tourist product (Medina-Munoz & Medi-na-Munoz, 2013, p. 416). However, there are different terms, such as "health tourism", "wellness tourism" and "medical tourism", used in the literature. The distinctions between them are vague (Singh, 2013, p. 437) and differently defined by different authors. Health tourism is defined by Hall (2003, p. 274) as "a commercial phenomenon of industrial society which involves a person travelling overnight away from the normal home environment for the express benefit of maintaining or improving health, and the supply and promotion of facilities and destinations which seek to provide such benefits". Medina-Munoz and Medina-Munoz (2013) state that medical tourism and wellness tourism are parts of health tourism. While
medical tourism involves specific medical treatment, wellness tourism is more difficult to define, because it has different meanings in different parts of the world. Smith and Puczko (2009, p. 7) argue that wellness is related to spa waters in Europe, while it has traditional spiritual aspects in Asia. Konu et al. (2010, p. 127) state that wellness and well-being are sometimes used as synonyms; nevertheless, well-being is defined more widely, including factors related to the basic things in life, such as wealth, and the availability of food and services, social contact, work, leisure activities and spiritual beliefs.
Wellness is usually connected with a healthy lifestyle that people attempt to pursue as a response to the demands of the modern fast pace of life. The wellness concept and its philosophy were developed by Dunn in late 1950s, consisting of three elements (body, spirit and mind) being dependent on their environment (Mueller & Kaufmann, 2001, p. 2)
underlying the liaison between health and environment. Corbin and Pangrazi (2001) and Adams (2003 in Smith & Puczko, 2009, p. 54) define wellness as a multi-dimensional activity related to the quality of life and well-being. Moreover, Hettler (1984, p. 14) defined wellness as "an active process through which people become aware of, and make choices toward a more successful existence", and developed six-dimensional model of wellness consisting of physical, spiritual, intellectual, emotional, social and occupational dimensions. Therefore, the holistic approach of wellness is complex.
Many destinations today are attempting to position themselves as wellness destinations merely focusing on the physical dimension of wellness. This type pf tourism is growing rapidly due to the growing importance of the healthy lifestyle philosophy. Mueller and Kauffmann (2001, p. 3) defined wellness tourism as:
[...] the sum of all the relationships and phenomena resulting from a journey and residence by people whose main motive is to preserve or promote their health; they stay in a specialized hotel which provides the appropriate professional knowhow and individual care; they require a comprehensive service package comprising physical fitness/beauty care, healthy nutrition/diet, relaxation/meditation and mental activity/education.
Nevertheless, wellness tourism is an area with few empirical studies from which to gather information about wellness tourists (Voigt et al., 2011). Understanding the motivations of wellness tourists is central to designing tourism products and promotional messages (Frochot & Morrison, 2000). Although many studies of motivations in tourism have been undertaken (e.g., Sirakaya et al., 2003; Sarigollu & Huang, 2005; Park & Yoon, 2009; Rittichainuwat & Mair, 2012), identifying dimensions of motivations in tourism with regard to push (internal) and push (external) motivators, only a few attempts have been made to define the motivations of wellness tourists. A recent study of Wongkit and McKercher (2013) investigated motivators for medical tourists. Identification of motivators of wellness tourists could help to understand this particular target market and develop better tourism supplies.
Research on wellness tourism has somewhat increased since 2009, but it remains uncommon. Mueller and Kauffamn (2001) researched implications of wellness tourism for the hotel industry, while Wei-ermair and Steinhauser (2003) researched segments of wellness tourists in the Alps, and Deng (2007) analysed destination attributes that are important for tourists in Taiwanese hot springs. Since then, the push motivators of wellness tourists have been analysed by Chen et al. (2008) in hot springs in Taiwan, by Mak et al. (2009) among Hong-Kong spa-goers and by Voigt et al. (2011) in lifestyle resorts in Australia.
Pull motivators of wellness tourists were researched by Lee et al. (2009) for hot springs in Taiwan, by Pesonen et al. (2011) among well-being tourists in Finland, and by Medina-Munoz and Medi-na-Munoz (2013) in wellness centres on Grand Canaria. The demand characteristics of wellness tourists in Greece were researched by Magdalini and Paris (2009). Moreover, Bertsch and Ostermann (2011) analysed the effects of wellness brand awareness on expected and perceived service quality in Western Austria.
Review of studies of wellness visitors profile (Smith & Puczko, 2009, p. 134) shows that traditional spas, which offer sitting in mineral waters, massage, sauna and steam room, are visited by older people with specific diseases or complaints; meanwhile, hotels and day spas, which offer beauty treatments, relaxing massage, aromatherapy, Jacuzzi, are usually visited by high income visitors, business tourists, usually women. Moreover, seaside resorts and thalassotherapy centres are visited by older high income guests. Thus, older populations usually are the consumers of wellness facilities. Kaung-Hwa et al. (2013) investigated older consumers, hotel personnel, and expert opinions in the hotel industry in Taiwan and found that hot spring hotels can focus on critical customer-service items for wellness tourism, resource management, and resource allocation to improve competitive advantages in the tourism industry. In contrast, Medina-Munoz and Medina-Munoz (2013) found that wellness centres on Gran Canaria are visited by middle-aged visitors.
Wellness tourism is important in order to extend the high season, and lower seasonality in seaside destinations usually characterized with high seasonali-
ty. The issue of seasonality during the low season is addressed in a few research papers (e.g. Spencer & Holecek, 2007; Figini & Vici, 2012). Wellness tourism is suitable for reducing seasonality in seaside destinations. In fact, Huang and Kucukusta (2013) found that fresh air, clean water and natural features are the most important attributes for wellness tourism, Mediterranean seaside destinations have tried to reposition themselves also through wellness with health services (Crabtree, 2007). Moreover, Chen et al. (2008), Smith and Puczko (2009) and Rodriguez et al. (2010) argue that wellness tourism is increasingly sought in combination with other tourism products.
There is a paucity of empirical research of wellness tourists in the Mediterranean area. Portorož, a small destination in the North Mediterranean, is used as a case study; its wellness facilities are in the form of hotel spas. Portorož has the largest segment of so called "well-being visitors" in the shoulder season in spring (Nemec Rudež et al., 2013). This segment is represented by visitors who seek benefits related to physical activity and price convenience but do not frequently visit spas in Portorož.
The purpose of this study is to uncover the characteristics of wellness visitors to Portorož during the low season and, therefore, enhance understanding of wellness visitors in that season. It will enable wellness tourism stakeholders to make decisions on the supply side to match consumer needs (Dwyer et al., 2009 in Medina-Munoz & Medina-Munoz, 2009, p. 416). Additionally, this paper contributes to the understanding of wellness visitors in a seaside destination that has undergone a process of repositioning from a mass 3S destination towards a modern sustainable-oriented destination with diversified tourism products.
Methodology
The objective of the paper is to gain insight into the characteristics of wellness visitors to Portorož and their push motivators. This study is a part of a broader study on foreign visitors to Portorož. A survey using a structured questionnaire was conducted. There were questions related to socio-demographic and travel-related characteristics in the first part of the questionnaire and 15 five-point Likert-type scales on push motivations in the second part of the questionnaire. Push motivations were selected based on the
literature review of push motivations (Nemec Rudež et al., 2013).
Proportional quota sampling was used in the research in order to meet the structure of visitors to Portorož. The data were collected between November 15, 2010 and January 20, 2011. Face-to-face surveys were carried out in several public locations in Portorož.
Only visitors to Portorož who often visit spas there were included in the present research. Among the 246 visitors who completed the questionnaire, 77 declared that they usually visit spas; they are identified as wellness visitors for the purpose of the study. These visitors represent the research sample. Descriptive data analysis was used to describe the characteristics of the wellness visitors, their travel-related characteristics and push motivations. Since the sample is too small to conduct factor analysis in order to reveal the dimensions of push motivations, descriptive analysis using means and standard deviations was undertaken.
Findings
Less than one third (31.3%) of visitors to Portorož go to the spas during the low season in Portorož. Table 1 shows the demographics of wellness tourists. Half of wellness visitors were female (50.6%), and half were male (49.4%). The largest age groups were between 40 and 49 years old (28.6%) and between 50 and 59 years old (28.6%). The age structure shows that more than three quarters of wellness visitors were 40 or over. Almost half (45.5%) of the wellness visitors come from Italy. Wellness visitors are mostly employed (46.8%) or self-employed (22.1%) and there only 14.3% are retired people. They are mostly (57.1%) high spenders (spending more than €60 per person per day); meanwhile one third (33.8%) of them spend between €30 and €60 per person per day, which is relatively high spending since the study is during the low season, when prices are lower.
Word of mouth is the most valuable source of information for wellness visitors, since 31.2% of wellness visitors gather information from relatives and friends. It is followed by the internet, used by 27.2% of wellness visitors to obtain information about the destination. Brochures are the primary source for information for one of six (or 16.9%) wellness visitors to Portorož. Moreover, guide books and other sourc-
es of information (e.g. tourism offices, tourism fairs, and media advertising) are less important.
Table 1 : Socio-demographic characteristics of wellness visitors (n = 77)
Frequency (percentage)	
Gender	
Female	39 (50.6%)
Male	38 (49.4%)
Age	
19 and below	1 (1.3%)
20-29	8 (10.4%)
30-39	9 (11.6%)
40-49	22 (28.6%)
50-59	22 (28.6%)
60 and over	15 (19.5%)
Country of origin	
Austria	15 (19.5%)
Italy	35 (45.5%)
Germany	9 (11.7%)
Other countries	18 (23.3%)
Occupation Employed Self-employed Student
Unemployed/housewife
Retired
Other
Spending (per person per day)
To €30	7 (9.1%)
Between €30 and €60	26 (33.8%)
More than €60	44 (57.1%) Primary source of information about destination
Brochures	13 (16.9%)
Friends and relatives	24 (31.2%)
Internet	21 (27.2%)
Books	2 (2.6%)
Other sources	17 (22.1%)
Regarding travel-related characteristics (Table 2), about one third (36.4%) of wellness visitors travel with children, and only one tenth (11.7%) of wellness visitors travelled to Portorož with a tour group. More than one quarter (28.6%) of wellness visitors were in Portorož for the first time, but about half of them (48.1%) are regular visitors there. They mostly stay at hotels (76.6%) and are much less interested in other types of accommodation, e.g. private rooms, apartments, accommodation at friends and relatives.
Table 2 : Travel-related characteristics of wellness visitors
Frequency (percentage)	
First visit to destination	22 (28.6%)
Regular visitor to destination	37 (48.1%)
Travel with children	28 (36.4%)
Travel with organized tour	9 (11.7%)
Accommodation	
Hotel	59 (76.6%)
Apartment	6 (7.8%)
Private room	3 (3.9%)
Friends/relatives	5 (6.5%)
Other	4 (5.2%)
There are different push motivators of wellness tourism. In order to understand them better, mean values and standard deviations were calculated for each push motivation (Table 3). Wellness visitors mostly want to get away from everyday life (mean = 4.30), relax physically (mean = 4.34), release tensions (mean = 4.31), "recharge batteries" (mean = 4.27) and enjoy comfort (mean = 4.20). Standard deviations of these items are less than one showing relatively narrow spread of answers. Having fun is also sought by wellness visitors (mean = 4.00) having a standard deviation around 1.00. Getting fit is also evaluated relatively high (mean = 3.86). Wellness visitors search less frequently for physical activity (mean = 3.45), seaside enjoyment (mean = 3.59) and enjoyment of tranquillity (mean = 3. 56).
Table 3 : Mean and standard deviations of push motivations of wellness visitors
	Mean	Standard deviation
Go away from everyday life	4.30	0.95
Relax physically	4.34	0.89
Release tensions	4.31	0.85
Learn new things	3.15	1.40
Get new experience	3.34	1.17
Have fun	4.00	1.03
"Recharge batteries"	4.27	0.87
Meet new people	3.06	1.20
Physical activity	3.45	1.15
Spend time with friends	2.83	1.59
Enjoyment of tranquillity	3.56	1.29
Do nothing	3.38	1.28
Get fit	3.86	1.16
Enjoy the seaside	3.59	1.22
Enjoy comfort	4.20	0.97
36 (46.8%) 17 (22.1%) 6 (7.8%) 6 (7.8%) 11 (14.3%) 1 (1.3%)
However, wellness visitors are less interested in spending time with friends (mean = 2.83), meeting new people (mean = 3.06), learning new things (mean = 3.15); however, the high standard deviations of these items show that answers are widely spread. Having new experiences is evaluated a bit higher
Table 4: Activities undertaken by wellness visitors durinj
(mean = 3.34), but this shows that learning and new experiences are not the central benefits for wellness visitors. In line with this, wellness visitors prefer doing nothing (mean = 3.38). High standard deviations (1.15 and above) show dispersed answers for these push motivations.
e low season (n =77)
Activities	Never	Sometimes	Often
Lying by the pool	6 (7.8%)	28 (36.5%)	43 (55.9%)
Eating out	3 (3.9%)	31 (40.3%)	43 (55.9%)
Visit historical sites	11 (14.3%)	34 (44.2%)	32 (41.5%)
Visit cultural sites	22 (28.6%)	33 (42.8%)	22 (28.6%)
Visit events	19 (24.6%)	29 (37.7%)	29 (37.7%)
Going out in the evening	5 (6.5%)	28 (36.4%)	44 ( 57.1%)
Going for walks	1 (1.3%)	27 (35.1%)	49 (63.6%)
Playing tennis	54 (70.1%)	12 (15.6%)	11 (14.3%)
Visit countryside	34 (44.2%)	28 (36.4%)	15 (19.4%)
Participate in excursions	34 (44.2%)	35 (45.5%)	8 (10.3%)
Shopping	8 (10.3%)	37 (48.1%)	32 (41.6%)
Frequencies of activities undertaken by wellness visitors (Table 4) show that wellness visitors seemed to be mostly interested in lying by the pool, eating out, going out in the evening and going for walks. They also engage in visiting historical and cultural sites, visiting events and shopping. Wellness visitors are less engaged in playing tennis, visiting countryside in the surroundings and participating in excursions.
Conclusions
Intensified tourism destination competition in the wellness tourism market calls for the understanding of wellness visitors and their profiles. This paper enhances the slim body of knowledge on wellness visitors and suggests that wellness visitors in Portorož are not homogeneous in terms of push motivators and activities undertaken. However, the study is limited to descriptive statistics.
The study included a sample of 246 visitors in Portorož during the low season resulting in one third of wellness visitors showing that Portorož is positioned as a wellness destination during the low season. It alludes to the importance of applying efforts of wellness tourism development within the broader context of destination development, and it is compatible with Crabtree (2007), who notes that Mediterranean seaside destinations have attempted to repo-
sition themselves also through wellness with health services
Despite the smallness of the sample, some features of wellness visitors are notable, calling for further in-depth research. Wellness visitors appear to be similar to those in the previous studies of Smith and Puczko (2009) and Kaung-Hwa et al. (2013), i.e. predominantly older. They are employed and regular high-spending visitors who come mostly from Italy and primarily use word-of-mouth to gather information about Portorož. The gender of respondents is not relevant for demand of wellness products. The level of income was not asked to respondents, but high spending suggests that they are well situated. This is in line with findings of previous studies (Smith & Puczko 2009, p. 134), who found that wellness visitors have high income.
This study provides insights and cues for the further development of wellness tourism in Portorož. The identification of motivators that affect the decision-making of wellness visitors shows the need to create attractive wellness products related to getting fit and relaxation. The findings are similar to the study of Chen et al. (2008), who found relaxation, persuasion of multiple activities and recreation as the most important push motivations. Similar to the findings of the studies of Mak et al. (2009) and Voigt et al. (2011), motivators related to "escape" and
"relaxation" were identified in our study. Furthermore, the evaluation of push motivations shows that wellness visitors in Portorož are less interested in socializing and intellectual activities, since push motivations related to learning and meeting new people have lower mean values. According to Hettler's (1984) six-dimensional wellness model, it can be concluded that only the physical dimension is present among wellness visitors to Portorož, while other dimensions, such as intellectual and social, are not present, according to push motivations.
As already found in the previous studies (Chen et al., 2009; Smith & Puczko, 2009; Rodriguez et al., 2010), the integration of wellness products with other tourism products is recommended. Indeed, consideration of the activities carried out by wellness visitors suggests product bundling. Wellness visitors seem to engage more in passive activities and activities related to the hotel facilities, suggesting, above all, the creation of specific hotel wellness products. This is in accordance with the argument of Mueller and Kaufmann (2001), stating that wellness visitors stay in hotels with appropriate professional care and knowledge.
In line with activities undertaken by wellness visitors, it can be stipulated that the promotional strategies of wellness tourism should be oriented towards the promotion of restaurants, evening entertainment, but also walking paths to present the attractive wellness destination. Moreover, the development of wellness packages for self-organized visitors is recommended.
Limitations and Recommendations for Future Study
In terms of limitations, a number of them should be acknowledged. Firstly, it must be noted that the study is based on a small sample of foreign wellness visitors during the low season. Therefore, the results cannot be generalized, because they are not representative for all wellness visitors in Portorož. Secondly, the present study is limited to the descriptive statistics because of the size of the sample. Thirdly, the methodological approach of the current study represents an initial step for the understanding of wellness visitors in Portorož, and it also needs to be redefined in future studies with the usage of a larger sample.
Fourthly, since each destination is unique, the applicability of the study findings is restricted.
Although this study has shed some light on wellness visitors to Portorož, considerable research is still required in order to fully understand them and to develop a detailed wellness tourism strategy. As a final word, further research must have a larger sample to increase the reliability and validity of the findings. Future studies may also explore different segments of wellness visitors. Comparative analysis, including the high season, and expansion of the research to the close seaside destinations are also suggested.
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The Responses of Responsible Tourists: Limitations and Gaps in Prosocial Consumer Research
Petra Zabukovec Baruca
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia petra.zabukovec@fts.upr.si
Aleksandra Brezovec
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia petra.zabukovec@fts.upr.si
This article is based on the concept of responsibility in tourism from the perspective of the tourist. The aim of this paper is the consideration of the question of the suitability of responsible consumer behaviour, which is gaining in importance in the context of sustainable tourism development. Modern forms of responsibility in tourism (e.g. sustainable tourism, ethical tourism, eco-tourism, green tourism) have emerged as responses of tourism stakeholders in global economic, social and environmental issues since the turn of the millennium Such forms of tourism coming to the fore are taking responsibility for the impacts that tourism has on the social, economic and natural environments (Goodwin & Pender, 2005). Changes have always been an intrinsic part of human evolution, and in the modern world changes occur ever more rapidly. The tourist is the key actor in the network of tourism. This conceptual paper is based on an overview of scientific literature and a comparison between various concepts derived from empirical studies of responsible consumer behaviour.
Keywords: tourist, responsibility, prosocial consumer, consumer behaviour, sustainable tourism.
Introduction and Literature Review
of the millennium, the competitiveness and environment-friendly models of sustainable development have been widely studied, both from international and tourist location perspectives and from a micro-level within the scope of companies (Dw-yer, 2005). With the ever-growing co-dependency of the world, both in the sense of phenomena and relations, and on a systemic and institutional level (Sassen, 2007), international organizations quickly have quickly grown into a global organization, which implemented global rules of conduct in tourism (Urry, 2001). Several documents were created that promote sustainable development and responsibility in tourism on a global level. One of these is Agenda 21 (UNCED, 1992) and the Global Ethics Codex (WTO, 2005). Other supporters of these principles and
Tourism, in essence, is a primary economic industry, dependent on natural, cultural and other aspects of the environment. Its development has both positive and negative effects on the environment and society. Mihalič (2006) highlighted the paradox of tourism development, which shows its economic dependency on the quality of the environment on one hand and its destruction of the environment on the other. It appears that the development of tourism and the preservation of the environment are not compatible concepts but still their integration is paramount for the implementation of sustainable tourism development and the desire for tourism to remain competitive in the long-term by fulfilling economic, socio-cultural and environmental goals. Since the turn
rights are numerous government and nongovernment tourist organizations and institutions, e.g. the UN, Greenpeace, UNWTO, the International Centre for Responsible Tourism, and others. Such common programs and policies are effective tools for the reduction of the negative effects of tourism and the increase of positive effects on the economy, society and environment (UNEP, 2009)
This trend is also followed by tourist companies, which frequently implement responsible practices in relation to their stakeholders and the environment. Business practices have established the concept of sustainability in measuring the effects, by using the triple bottom line (TBL) approach of three sustaina-bility pillars: economy, environment and society (El-kington, 1997). Another widely established model is that of corporate social responsibility (CSR) (OECD, 2001).
The key to the desired systemic changes is the individuals and the joint power of responsibility. Changes have been an intrinsic part of human evolution and in the modern world changes occur ever more rapidly. In the network of tourism, the tourist is the key actor; the tourist is also the modern consumer according to Urry (1995) and is linked to aesthetic cosmopolitanism, characterized by an interest in places, people and cultures as well as the ability to positively evaluate and accept all that is different (Urry, 1995), which is the foundation of responsibility awareness in tourism. In post-modern marketing theory, the discourse of a new consumer is identified by characteristics that describe the consumer as an integral person who expresses their view of the world and global social problems with their purchases (Jančič, 1999).
Despite different names of models and practices, the terms "responsibility" and "sustainability" appear in the context of connected or equal evaluations that are re-established by post-modern society with its mainly liberal rules. Modern capitalism places importance on the individual as well as on the benefit and well-being of a greater number of people. (Harris, 2002). Harris emphasizes: "If we act in a way that our actions benefit as many people as possible, we will contribute to the improvement of the world" (2002). Similarly, Holden (2003) places the task of the sustainable tourism development on people and the natural environment, democracy and "bottom-up"
planning. This reflects the approach of the responsibility for the preservation of the sustainable state of the tourist system, which is necessary for the existence and development of tourism on a higher level of quality.
The wider research field of responsible consumerism shows the use of different terms that stem from empirical research on responsible consumers in relation to sustainable tourism development. The research is focused on environmental and ecological aspects (Hopper & Nielsen, 1991; Bratt, 1999; Van Vugt 2001; Ebreo et al., 1999; Matthies et al., 2006) as well as social and cultural aspects (Howard & Sheit, 1969). The responsible consumer is identified as a prosocial consumer, determined by their responsibility and concern about the influence of consumerism on the environment and society. The literature mentions terms such as "socially-aware consumers" (Anderson & Cunningham, 1972), "environment-friendly consumers" (Tucker, 1980; Minton & Rose, 1997; Kalafa-tis et al., 1999), "green consumers" (Schlegelmilch et al., 1996; Wagner, 1997; Straughan & Roberts, 1999), "environmentally responsible consumers" (Tucker, 1980; Roberts & Bacon, 1997; Follows & Jobber, 2000; Laroche et al., 2002), "socially responsible consumers" (Andreson & Cunningham 1972; Webster 1975; Roberts 1995; Laroche et al., 2001) and "ethical consumers" (Strong, 1996; Shaw & Clarke, 1999; Carrig-an & Attalla, 2001). The constant behind these terms is "responsibility", which is often linked to the terms "ethical" and "moral". In essence, the term "responsibility" includes a wider meaning that references the obligation to do something. The individual takes on the moral responsibility for their own behaviour; this separates the term "responsibility" from the concept of sustainable tourism, since identifying the responsibility of the consumer follows the definition relating to the awareness, decision and activities that support the fulfilment of sustainable tourism (Tourism Sustainability Group - TGP, 2012; Mihalič, 2013). On this basis, the "responsibility" of a consumer in tourism can be defined as their "duty to do something" about the negative effects of tourism and to influence positive change. This definition is similar to Goodwin's (2002) in that it summarizes the essence of responsibility in tourism with the idea that all forms of tourism can be organized and implemented in a responsible manner.
At the same time, however, responsible tourism is not an absolute concept. It is a fact that consumers can be responsible in different ways. This awareness of responsibility in tourism is predicated on different consumer motives and practices that reduce the negative effects of tourism at different levels of intensity. These findings support the thesis that the response of society in the context of global awareness is reflected in consumers themselves and their shift to responsibility.
The need for a response is apparent in consumers of tourism as well, because they are becoming increasingly aware of their responsibility for social and cultural problems, and they have a responsible attitude towards them (Mihalič, 1993; Urry, 1995; Shaw & Clarke, 1999; Harrison et al., 2005). Research findings show that consumers express their responsible attitudes via a positive view of green practices of companies and their products and services (Jančič, 2002). They also demand socially responsible practices on the part of companies and tourist destinations (Miller, 2001; Weeden, 2002). The pressure of consumers that are interested in both the price/quality ratio and the production background of the services and products has been an influence on the rising importance of the social responsibility of business subjects that implement socially responsible practices in relation to their stakeholders and the environment (Juhard & Golob, 2011). When researching the responsibility of consumers, it is important to take into account their response that is shown in actively implementing responsible initiatives. These are realized with a reduction of negative influences on the environment, e.g. by using environmentally friendly transportation, waste recycling, the reduction in the use of natural resources, etc. (Ebreo et al., 1999; Matthies et al., 2006). There are also more radical approaches that are shown by the refusal to purchase tourist services because of unethical behaviour and/or approaches of tourist companies. This group of consumers is known as "healthy and sustainability-friendly consumers" (Ray & Anderson, 2000). It is proven that the goodwill of responsible consumers toward positive practices is shown in the purchase of more expensive products and services that are aligned with their own personal views, values and ethical principles (Cowe & Williams, 2000). The report of the international relief and development charity Tearfund
(2002), which engages in ending poverty and injustice in some of the communities in the world, states that tourists are willing to accept increasing responsibility for their part in the sustainable tourism. This is reflected in the fact that half of all tourists search for information on how to act in the poorest tourist destinations. In this context, Stanford (2006) concludes that it is no longer possible to overlook the collective activity of individual consumers toward a more responsible behaviour.
The future development of tourism is the responsibility of tourists who are an important link in the development and design of tourist offers. In researching this topic, the focus will be on the understanding of the actions of a responsible consumer. Key indicators of the actions of responsible consumers in relation to the sustainable development of tourism based on the method of comparing existing empiric research will be established.
The Responses of Responsible Tourists
To research responsibility in the framework of the dominant social paradigm in tourism, a critical overview of the literature concerning the aspect of actions of consumers in tourism will be summarized. An analytical and integrative approach to the literature overview will reveal key findings in relation to the definition of the term "responsible consumer" and in relation to the basic indicators that will enable the study of the responsible actions of consumers in relation to sustainability in tourism. The integrative overview will enable creating a balance between the width and the depth of the phenomenon, and it will enable combining essential elements into a unit, as well as exposing the most common limitations and gaps. This will ultimately lead to a better understanding of the topic.
This with will be followed findings from studies on socially responsible consumers and studies on environmentally friendly, green consumers. These are two crucial subgroups belonging to a common, widely spread "ethical responsibility" (Young et al., 2007). In this classification, there are ecologically aware consumers, socially aware consumers and ethical consumers that act pro-socially. Because of the aim of this research they are researched as one group.
For decades, responsible consumerism has been the focal point of market research that focused on
the profiling of ecologically and socially responsible consumers and the identifications of important segments to enable companies and marketing policy authors to create effective market approaches. The relevant literature describes several behavioural theories that are commonly used for the understanding of responsible consumer behaviour in particular situations. The two dominant theories are the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), presented by Fishbein and Ajzen (1975) and the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), presented by Ajzen (1985, 1991). It follows from TRA that the majority of social behaviours are under the conscious control of the individual and that this makes the behaviour predictable and also represents a motivational level for a particular action or for fulfilling a goal. The actions represent the individual's decision regarding several possible actions. The subjective norms reflect the individual's willingness to comply with the desires of relevant social actors and result from normative beliefs according to social and moral values, balanced by personal motivations (Kaiser et al., 1999). The TRA and TPB are among the most utilized models for explaining attitudes/beliefs that relate to ecological behaviours, travel choices (Bamberg, 2002), willingness to pay for environmental protection (Pouta et al., 2002), the marketing of environmentally friendly products (Kalafatis et al., 1999), and green consumerism (Sparks & Shepherd, 1992). In tourism, they are used for the explanations of destination choices (Lam & Hsu, 2006), tourist segmentation (Carr, 2002) and holiday experience satisfaction (Bigne et al., 2005). Further relevant personal influence factor theories are the theory of stages of moral development (Kohlberg, 1980) and the model of personal norms (Schwartz, 1977). This model explains the activation of norms and values and the awareness of consequences and personal responsibility; it reflects a willingness to act in a specific way, marked with individual actions and subjective norms.
The research of the prosocial consumer began in the 1970s. Anderson and Cunningham (1972) developed sensitive benchmarks for market segmentation and detected a higher sensibility to social and environmental problems in particular consumer groups. In the 1970s, several more studies were conducted, including by Kinnear et al. (1974), Webster (1975) and Antil (1984), which have contributed to common
starting points of a definition stating that the socially more responsible consumers are more long-term oriented and place importance on the needs of a wider society and the environment when making their purchase decisions. Similarly, Stone, Barnes and Montgomery (1995) defined the responsible actions of a consumer as a state in which an individual expresses their willingness to act in a way that reduces the environmental problems in a way that is beneficial to the social environment of the country and to the benefit of personal economic interests. Environmental consumerism and/or green buying are similarly defined as a consumer's purchase behaviour influenced by environmental concerns (Shrum et al., 1995), which translate to seeking products and services with minimal impact on the environment (Main-ieri et al., 1997).
The segmentation and profiling of a responsible consumer often take into account geographical (Samdahl & Robertson, 1989), cultural (Webster, 1975), personal (Kinnear et al., 1974) and other socio-demographic characteristics. Despite intense research, socio-demographic variables have been shown to be poor indicators of environmentally responsible behaviour (Kinnear et al., 1974; Antil, 1984; Roberts, 1996). The findings show a meaningful correlation between gender, age, income (Tognacci et al., 1972) and socio-demographic variables and personal traits (tolerance, understanding and damage prevention) that relevantly predict environmentally responsible behaviour (Kinnear et al., 1974; Antil, 1984). In other words, tolerant and more open-minded people who are understanding and have a strong desire to know how to contribute to a better environment and express concern regarding pollution are more likely to behave responsibly.
Diamantopoulos et al. (2003) believe that research that includes a range of variables (e.g. culture, personality, demography) without including other components of environmental consciousness (i.e. knowledge, attitude and behaviour) or prefers to focus solely on one of these variables is almost inevitably met with weak correlation. To remedy these shortcomings, The same authors researched all components and concluded that socio-demographic variables are useful for consumer profiling in the sense of environmental knowledge, but they could not convincingly conclude any predictions regarding behaviour.
When examining the pro-environment behaviour, Follows and Jobber (2000) studied the correlation between the values of the individual and the influence of the values that affect the purchasing intention and the later purchase of environmentally friendly products. They relied on Schwartz's (1992, based on Schwartz & Bilsky, 1987) value typology and established that these values are an important factor in the forming of the purchase behaviour in relation to the environment. Furthermore, Straughan and Roberts (1999) continued with research on the demographic and psychographic characteristics in relation to environmental awareness and the observed efficiency of consumers (Straughan & Roberts, 1999). In their research, they included additional constructs of altruism and liberalism. They have proven that altruism is a more important factor for a pro-environment purchasing behaviour than liberalism. They have also established that the meaning of environmental awareness and knowledge has a positive effect on the environmental attitude and the purchasing behaviour. In a similar study, Laroche et al. (2001) studied the importance of consumer attitudes, values and behaviour in connection with the willingness of a consumer to pay more for environmentally friendly products. Their research has shown that the persons who are prepared to pay more are convinced of the environmental issues and the importance of solving those issues on a personal and social level and thus express values that are focused on the well-being of others.
The presented studies place importance on the personal and social values; especially altruism, liberalism, taking care of others and life in harmony. In their study of the pro-social behaviour of consumers, Gilg et al. (2005) conducted research that focused on the study of perspective values rather than the demographic and psychographic profile, i.e. already accepted environmental values, demographic and psychographic variables used to examine how different types of environmental action, such as energy saving, water conservation, waste management and green consumption were related and what factors were influential in their achievement. Their research contributed to the typology of three consumer groups: "committed environmentalists", who are the most enthusiastic about sustainable behaviour; "mainstream environmentalists", who remain en-
thusiastic but less so; the "casuals", who very rarely accept green behaviour; and the non-environmentalists, who are not committed to green or sustainable behaviour. The area of classification of responsible consumers in tourism that are better prepared to undergo social and environmentally responsible activities has several established segmentations that define the groups of individuals (Wearing & Neil, 2001). An often used classification in tourism is Swarbooke and Horner's (2001) classification of the tourist according to their allegiance to three larger groups: green (intent to operate on behalf of others), grey (not interested in the well-being of others) and brown (undecided in relation to these matters.) The green tourists are the most desirable for the better future of tourism, even though they are a small fraction of the population (Lohmann, 2004). The biggest fraction of the population is undecided or not interested in the environmental issues (Fairweather et al., 2005).
The key basic conditions that define responsible behaviour of a consumer were the focus of many other studies. Stone et al. (1995) emphasized the knowledge and awareness of the consumer, the wishes and the willingness to act, the attitude toward society and ecology, the ability to act and actions as an activity. Mihalič (2013) classified responsibility as the third pillar of a sustainable, responsible model on the level of a tourist destination for the implementation of the sustainable development and upgraded it with consumer satisfaction, education-based awareness and responsible behaviour in relation to ethics based on the knowledge of sustainable practices. She defined consumer satisfaction as a condition for the retention of profitability of tourist companies and as an important factor for the realization of the sustainable development. Inskeep (1991) defined consumer satisfactions as one of the five goals of sustainable development that are connected to the economic indicators of the influence on development. Responsibility as a wider dimension in the context of sustainable behaviour and activities is conditioned on a real awareness of sustainable development, ethics, critical mass, partnership, and cooperation (Mihalič, 2009). This implies a deeper relationship between consumers and products or services, which relates not only to the product or service attributes that are important to the consumer but also to personal consequences and benefits of the use of these products. Emphasiz-
ing this point, Dolničar and Long (2009) mentioned marketing purchasing motives as good points of research together with the viewpoints of consumer behaviour in relation to social and ecological attributes in the context of consumerism. They sorted them according to main market attributes, such as information, price, shopping preferences and personal mo-
tives for the purchase of tourist services. The individual responsibility and moral choice can force the tourist (consumer) to accept or decline these market attributes and cause their action or response (Isaacs, 2011).
Indicators of Prosocial Consumer Behaviour
Socio-demographic indicators	Psychographic indicators	Consumer values
• age,	• Personality •	health,
• gender,	• personal responsibility, •	environmental values,
• socio-economic background	• tolerance, •	fulfilment of sustainable de-
(income level, occupation, so-	• understanding,	velopment,
cial classes),	• environmental consciousness, •	self-fulfilment,
• education,	sociability, •	moral choice,
• family circumstance,	influence on others, contem- •	altruism,
• geographical belongingness,	porary mindedness, •	liberalism,
• cultural characteristics	• open-mindedness •	partnership,
	Lifestyle	cosmopolitanism
	• activities (waste management,	
	energy saving, use of environ-	
	mental-friendly transport),	
	interests (health, living life	
	in harmony, company ethics,	
	fair trade)	
	Purchasing intentions	
	personal motives,	
	willingness to pay more for	
	environmentally friendly	
	products,	
	willingness to act pro-socially	
Limitations and Gaps in Responsible Consumer Behaviour Studies
From the viewpoint of the neo-classical economic sovereignty of consumers and the benefit maximization of an individual, this approach implemented several demographic, behavioural and other correlations (which are fascinating from a lifestyle point of view) and also implemented determinants for the study of the responsible consumer behaviour. However, despite several attempts to identify correlations and determinants, responsible consumer behaviour turned out to be difficult to predict (Jackson, 2005; McCarty & Shrum, 2001). The researchers empha-
sized several reasons for the limited study of this field, which are related to four key restraints:
a)	the temporal distance of public benefits of responsible consumerism, i.e. responsible consumerism is not immediately effective and does not fulfil its intent at the moment of purchase (McCarty & Shrum, 2001);
b)	consumers are limited to their own cultural and institutional contexts and norms (Sanne, 2002);
c)	consumers do not trust the companies and their motives regarding responsible behaviour (Peattie & Crane, 2005); and
d) responsible behaviour is complex and dynamic, and cannot be effectively explained by using conventional reductionist theories (Thompson & Troester 2002).
McCarty & Shrum (2001) established that the connection between the responsible consumer and the positive effects cannot be adequately explained in the frame of the mainstream individualistic and rational model of consumer behaviour, because of its physical abstractness and the characteristics of temporally distanced public benefits that stem from direct decisions of personal consumerism.
The limitations of the study of consumer behaviour are also relevant when choosing the alternatives of services and products being offered with the intent of satisfying local standards and sustainability demands (Mont et al., 2007). The environmental alternatives could mean worse accessibility, poor comfort when travelling, prolonged travel time, e.g. when choosing travelling by train instead of by plane. If tourists want to accept such alternatives, additional resources, such as time, money and information must be available to enable this behaviour. Internal barriers preventing people from purchasing environmentally friendly products come from individuals' lack of knowledge and ability to understand the consequences of their acts, and habits (Shove & Warde, 2002). Individual decisions to act are also determined by external aspects that relate to the availability of benign products and services, the convenient to access them, and to the belief that one person cannot make a difference. External barriers are stronger than internal knowledge and motivations in hindering tourist environmental behaviour (Kaiser et al., 1999; Tanner et al., 2004). An important limiting factor for tourist choices is the availability of financial resources.
In contrast, there are frequent findings that consumers are divided (Shrum, McCarty & Lowery, 1995) and often confused in relation to the implementation of their responsible consumerism in practice. Mainieri et al. (1997) discovered that consumers had pro-environment viewpoints but did not behave in a way congruent with their expressed viewpoints.
In several studies, these limitations are apparent in the discrepancy between the consumer's intent and the actual responsible behaviour, which means that consumer intent remains a poor indicator of ac-
tual purchasing habits, not only because of the difference between viewpoints and behaviour but also because of an apparent social desirability that affects the answers (Schlegelmilch et al., 1996; Laroche et al., 2001). It is unclear if knowledge of the environmental impact of their consumption automatically leads to more environmental purchasing behaviour.
The relevance of studies of consumer responsibility in tourism has shown that, in addition to the aforementioned different behaviour aspects of the study of personal factors, there is also a need to emphasize situational factors that cloud a clear overview of the situation and limit the extents of the studies in this field.
The Future Power of Understanding Responsible Tourist: Conclusion
The literature overview has shown a clear connection between prosocial consumers who are aware of their responsibility and the primary factors that are embedded in their purchasing decisions. The findings of research that show the development of a broad understanding of the motivators of prosocial aware consumers have been presented. For instance, despite different consumer typologies, it has been established that the purchasing behaviour of prosocial consumers is affected by different motives. This paper also explained the semantic challenges regarding the new terminology that is used to describe the key research theme, i.e. "consumer responsibility", which covers a spectrum of responsible practices in relation to society, environment and ethics under the hyper-nym "prosocial consumer groups".
The key common determinants for the research of responsible consumer group behaviour are the personal factors, such as personal viewpoints, values, ethics, knowledge and the related awareness, the motives that can be personal or related to the main market attributes such as information, price or preferences, and the motives for purchasing tourist services in relation to social and ecological attributes. This paper has also presented the findings of studies that show a weak correlation and weak prediction of responsible consumerism, if the prediction is based only on socio-economic and personality variables. The situational factors that stem from social norms, other attractive alternative choices or economic limitations are also significant. The purchase decisions of
the consumer before, during and after the purchase phase should also not be disregarded. The study of identified types of responsible consumers and their response (behaviour) in reference to the importance of particular attributes of tourist services and products requires the inclusion of the direct consumer experience that is connected to the expectations and the context of satisfaction. It is proven that satisfaction is an influential economic indicator of potential changes and the development of tourism products and services. When applied to the responsibility of the development of such products and services, it means that the tourist service provider must understand the consumer's conceptualization and interpretation of responsibility in order to be able to understand their expectations and develop accordingly.
It is difficult to wholly evaluate all the contributions and their possible limitations, but these papers are used to illustrate the appeal of understanding the complex phenomenon of consumer responsibility. Based on the extensive research, the responsible consumer with a prosocial viewpoint will continue to be the focal point of research, because the entire dimension of this behaviour is still under-researched and remains to be fully explained. This research overview has shown that the typologies of responsible consumers are different and contingent upon the included variables. The answers to the questions "Who are these people, what motivates them and how to fulfil these motives?" require an integral and multi-faceted approach; as a result, this research will continue. The key topic has a great research potential in tourism as well, since tourists are influenced by changes in the natural, social and economic circumstances of the 21st century. They have started to show motivation and pro-activity regarding the reduction of negative influences and the increase of positive influences of tourism. Responsible tourists are more sensitive to the environmental and social consequences, but the fact remains that tourist service providers retain an inappropriate attitude to resource usage, work misuse and a low level of empathy toward consumers and other participants as active citizens or cosmopolitans. The goal of the transformation of the tourist system into a sustainable system that would enable the development of tourism on a higher level is focused on responsibility, which represents power in different forms (Stuck-
elberger & Mathwig, 2007) and also plays a key role in the dynamic interaction between consumers and service providers in tourism. Their synergy helps to promote the growth of the entire tourist system and is intertwined with the motivation of responsible behaviour that differs among consumers and service providers and remains an uncompleted challenge and a field for further research.
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The Relevance of Consumers' Need for Uniqueness in the Tourism Context
Žana Čivre
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia zana.civre@fts.upr.si
Tomaž Kolar
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Economics tomaz.kolar@ef.uni-lj.si
This paper addresses the relevance of the psychological concept termed "need for uniqueness" (NFU) in the tourism context, for which the lack of its theoretical examination and empirical verification is evident. In order to address this gap, we define, conceptualize and empirically examine the CNFU concept on the sample of young adults in order to verify its potential relevance as a segmentation variable. The results obtained provide support for two hypotheses: 1) that segment of tourists who travel via a travel agency exhibits lower level of CNFU than that segment that travel via self-organized arrangements, and 2) that segment of more knowledgeable tourists exhibit higher levels of CNFU. Findings suggest that various components of CNFU have distinctive roles as segmentation variables and provide support for the theory of uniqueness, suggesting that tourists seek to be moderately (but not extremely) distinct from others. This paper concludes with a brief discussion of managerial implications and limitations.
Keywords: consumer behaviour, uniqueness theory, consumers' need for uniqueness, tourism
Introduction
be slightly different from others. This is congruent with Snyder and Fromkin's (1977) theory of uniqueness which indicates that the individuals' perception of too much similarity leads to a need for differentiation. Reflecting this view, authors (Snyder & From-kin, 1980) later explain through the theory that the need to maintain a sense of uniqueness is a social desire, which is the motivating force of consumption (Belk, Ger & Askergaard, 2003). From this perspective, it represents an essential role in interpersonal decision-making (Snyder & Fromkin, 1980). In the context of consumer behaviour, consumers choose products, services and even experiences that distinguish them from the mass, or the mass they perceive, in order to differentiate themselves from other consumers (Lynn & Harris, 1997).
Consumer behaviour is one of the most intensively researched areas in both the marketing and tourism fields (Cohen, Prayag & Moital, 2014). Contemporary issues and concepts in the field of consumer behaviour have provided new concepts and insights. Additionally, as world travel and tourism have grown faster than the global economy, it is essential to investigate the latest issues considering consumer behaviour, especially regarding young travellers. Global trends (IPK International, 2014) indicate that more young people than ever are travelling, seeking new destinations, and spending more money. In this vein, they are looking for unusual travel experiences and tourism products and services. In the social psychology literature, it has been argued that many people have a need to be special and unique, or at least to
By way of analogy, we investigated whether tourists also feel the need to be different from other (tourists) or even to be unique. According to available yet indirect evidence, we posit that they do. The ascent of the new tourist-consumer, driven by intellectual motives (see e.g., Middleton & Clarke, 2004) and the contemporary quest for authenticity, driven by trends like individualization (see Yeoman, Brass & McMahon-Beattie, 2007) suggest that modern tourists are increasingly reluctant to be typical (i.e. mass, 4S) tourists. Instead, tourists are seeking more unique experiences, such as less conventional unique hotels and unusual destinations (Puetz-Willems in IPK international, 2014). Therefore, in tourism, the same logic seems to be in place, yet the "tourist need for uniqueness" has, thus far, not been explicitly and comprehensively addressed from the theoretical or empirical perspectives.
Following this purpose, our paper aims to introduce, conceptualize and empirically examine the consumer need for uniqueness (CNFU) in the tourism context. In the theoretical part, the psychological origins of the concept are explained, and their importance for consumer behaviour is discussed. Afterwards, CNFU is empirically examined on a sample of Slovene students in order to examine its potential relevance as segmentation variable in tourism. In this study, we tested whether CNFU discriminates between segments of tourists who travel via travel agencies vs. self-organized arrangements and between segments that exhibit high vs. low knowledge of tourism products.
Origins - Theory of Uniqueness
Uniqueness theory (Snyder & Fromkin, 1980) deals with people's emotional and behavioural responses to perceptions and information regarding their similarity to others. The central tenet of this theory is that people are generally uncomfortable with extremes (high levels of similarity and dissimilarity) and, therefore, seek to be only moderately distinct from others. With uniqueness, the goal of a person is to be different and establish a separate identity from others, but not of course to the point of isolation (Fromkin, 1970). It may be useful to think of a continuum: at one extreme (Ruvio, 2008) people want to be like everybody else, while at the other people want to be
as different as possible. Given this range, conformity vs. nonconformity should be clarified.
Conformity - Similar vs. Dissimilarity
Naturally, people often act like those around them, e.g. wearing similar clothing, adopting the same musical tastes, etc. (Chan, Berger & van Boven, 2012). Conformity may be simply defined as the coming into the presence of group norms (Burnkrant & Cousineau, 1975). Yet, while conformity is then a typical social process, people also want to be different (Snyder & Fromkin, 1980; Tian et al., 2001). In regard to consumerism, buyers purchase products to satisfy their need for uniqueness to the point at which the value of the products increases proportionately to its perceived uniqueness. In other words, consumers may then value a product less when more own it. This behaviour has been shown to be evident even in the case as cookies, for example in the work of Worchel, Lee, and Adewole (1975). A similar study was conducted by Berger & Shiv (2012), the results of which reveal that those consumers who have a higher need for uniqueness are willing to pay more for food such as mousse cake, burritos and sushi.
Based on the conceptual models of social nonconformity, behaviour that differentiates a person from others is due to different motivational processes (Nail, 1986; Tepper, 1997). This counter-conformity motivation (Nail, 1986) arises from the feeling of a threatened identity, which occurs when consumers think that they are too similar to others (Snyder & Fromkin, 1977). Moving forward from these notions, Snyder and Fromkin (1977) studied both the concept of conformity and perceived uniqueness, observing that often people do have a need to see themselves as "somewhat" unique, yet individual differences in this regard exist. The more individuals value uniqueness, the greater their desire to see themselves as different from others (Fromkin & Snyder, 1980).
NFU in the Consumer Behaviour Context
In the consumer behaviour context, the need for uniqueness (NFU) is designated as the consumer's need for uniqueness (CNFU) and reflects the pursuit of distinctiveness or differentiation in consumption (Ruvio, 2008). Authors have defined the CNFU concept as "the trait of pursuing differentness relative to others through the acquisition, utilization, and dis-
position of consumer goods for the purpose of developing and enhancing one's self-image and social image" (Tian et al., 2001, p. 52). Generalizing this idea, individuals fulfil their desire to be unique in a variety of ways (Tian et al., 2001), including through their displays of their possessions (see Belk 1988 in Tian et al., 2001) and the style of interpersonal interaction (see Maslach et al. 1985 in Tian et al., 2001). Another possible way for consumers to satisfy their need for uniqueness through their purchase behaviour is through their knowledge about products (Holt, 1995). Consequently, CNFU is relevant for understanding the motivations involved in consumer behaviour related to perceptions of social belonging (Gentina et al., 2014). As a result (Tian et al., 2001), consumers are targeted by a variety of marketing stimuli that attempt to enhance their perceptions of uniqueness, which they acquire through the material possessions they display for the purpose of feeling differentiated from others.
In one of the earliest studies in the context of uniqueness and consumer behaviour, Lynn & Harris (1997) proved that some consumers pursue uniqueness more than others. Since then, a few studies have been done in the current context (e.g., Watson, 1998; Simonson & Nowlis, 2000; Zinkhan, Couchar, Gupta & Geissler, 1998). Tian, Bearden and Hunter (2001) introduced the concept of CNFU as an individual-level trait. Considering its contexts, other authors have described it similarly, i.e. as an individual trait (Kumar, Lee & Kim, 2009), a personality trait (Ranjbarian, Barari & Salehina, 2011) or a psychological trait (Zhan & He, 2012). According to Tian et al. (2001), a multidimensional CNFU construct consists of three factors. From this perspective, Ruvio (2008) states that the CNFU construct denotes three aspects/dimensions of consumer behaviour to describe how people fulfil their need for uniqueness:
1) Creative choice counter-conformity
This is the tendency to choose products/brands that are different from the established norms but still viewed as acceptable (Tian et al., 2001). In other words, consumers may seek a creative choice by making a product selection that is acceptable, yet original, novel, or unique compared to those choices made by others (Solomon & Rabolt, 2004). Consumers can thus make purchases that both allow them to conform (e.g.,
same brand as their reference group) while differentiating themselves somewhat from the peers of their social group in one aspect of uniqueness (e.g., colour) to satisfy their need for uniqueness (Chan et al., 2012).
2)	Unpopular choice counter-conformity Consumers may make an unpopular choice by choosing a product that is considered unacceptable and is thus rarely chosen by others. These consumers are not afraid of criticism; in fact, they tend to make purchase decisions that others might consider to be outright bizarre (Knight & Kim, 2007). On the continuum, this dimension is close to the extreme, indicating the selection or use of products or brands that deviate from group norms to the extent that the consumer risks social disapproval in order to establish their distinction from others (Tian et al., 2001). A positive outcome is that at times if the choice is initially unpopular it may later turn out to be widely accepted, distinguishing the consumer as innovative (Heckert, 1989).
3)	Avoidance of similarity
This is the tendency that people intentionally avoid using commonly used products or brands (Tian et al., 2001) in order to avoid object con-formism without risking status as an acceptable member of the social group. Selected products/ brands are chosen by others but not overwhelmingly so (Tian and McKenzie, 2001); i.e. they are just distinctive enough to allow the consumer to feel a modicum of distinction. To avoid excessive similarity with others, consumers develop various strategies, such as purchasing styles no longer widely sold, shopping in vintage stores, combining their clothes in unusual ways, etc. (Knight & Kim, 2007).
Following the view of the extended self (Belk, 1988), one way to differentiate one's self from others is by possessing unique consumer products (From-kin, 1971; Snyder, 1992; Simoson & Nowlis, 2000). Additionally, people with higher needs for uniqueness strive for scarce, new, exclusive or differentiated products (Lynn & Harris, 1997; Tian et al., 2001), novelty goods, handcrafted goods, and personalized items (Tepper, 1997). Contemporary studies in consumer behaviour contexts have investigated the
CNFU concept from different perspectives when purchasing different types of products, mostly apparel (Gentina, 2014; Park, Han & Park, 2014; Stok-burger-Sauer & Teichman, 2013; Bian & Forsythe, 2012; Chan et al., 2012), luxury products, e.g., luxury watches (Kastanakis & Balabanis, 2012; Zhan & He, 2012) and high tech products, such as computers (e.g., Liang & He, 2012; He et al., 2010). Another means of differentiation asserted in order to project uniqueness of identity is by the purchasing of products with distinct aesthetic characteristics (Mowen, Fang & Scott, 2010).
Another way for consumers to enjoy the benefits of unique products they possess is by acquiring and displaying in-depth knowledge of them (Holt, 1998). Consumer knowledge is thus an important construct in understanding consumer behaviours such as the processing of information, which is a rather complex process (Rao & Monroe, 1998). For example, subjective knowledge includes perceptions of what or how much they know about a product class (Park, Mothersbaugh & Feick, 1994). Despite importance of consumer knowledge concept, we found that only few studies to date have investigated NFU in relationship with knowledge (Zhan & He, 2012). The results of their study show that consumer knowledge moderates the relationship between NFU and brand attitude.
CNFU has been mainly examined as an individual characteristic that is antecedent to various marketing constructs (e.g., Bian & Forsythe, 2011; Knight & Kim, 2007; Clark, Zboja & Goldsmith, 2007; Kumar, Lee & Kim, 2009; Fromkin, 1972; Clark & Goldsmith, 2005). Thus, it has received limited academic attention as a key concept (e.g., Ruvio et al., 2008), and this study aims to contribute to better knowledge about the CNFU concept in the tourism context.
Empirical Study
Purpose, Research Goals and Hypotheses
In order to explore and verify the potential relevance of CNFU concept for modern tourists, an empirical study was carried out to examine the differences in CNFU among Slovene students. A basic assumption that was tested is based on the finding that some consumers exhibit stronger uniqueness tendency that other (Lynn & Harris, 1997) and that consumers also differ in respect to various CNFU dimen-
sions (Ruvio, 2008). Another two research goals are more tourist-specific. One is related to the assertion that tourist segments also differ in respect of CNFU, according to which modern (e.g., intellectual, authenticity-seeking, individualist) tourists are expected to exhibit higher levels of CNFU than traditional tourists do (Middleton & Clarke, 2004; Yeoman et al., 2007; Puetz-Willems in IPK international, 2014). In order to test differences among the segments in our study, those tourists who travel via a travel agency were designated as "traditional" while those who travel by means of self-organized arrangements were designated as "modern". Accordingly, the first hypothesis states:
Hi: The tourist segment that travels via travel agency arrangements exhibits lower levels of CNFU than the segment of tourists who travel via self-organized arrangements.
In order to advance understanding of contemporary tourists and in line with CNFU findings, we also seek to examine the relationship of CNFU with tourist knowledge. This relationship is consistent with Holt's (1998) argument that it is likely that knowledge implicates the degree of each dimension of CNFU. Given the essential role of CNFU in the literature of contemporary consumer behaviour, further applications of this concept in various contexts and in relation to various concepts are warranted (Ruvio, Sho-ham & Brenčič, 2008). It thus seems plausible that more knowledgeable tourists also differ from those less knowledgeable in CNFU. Consistent with this argument, the second hypothesis is put forth:
H2: More knowledgeable tourists exhibit higher level of CNFU.
Sample
The research was conducted among tourism students in Slovenia. All 205 of the completed questionnaires were usable; 82.4% (N=169) of the respondents were female, and 17.6% (N=36) were male. The average age was 20.58 years (SD=1.047). It is likely that students represent an appropriate sample because, according to the behavioural literature (see Tian et al., 2001), traits regarding CNFU are not dependent upon factors such as income and social status. For all the variables, the values of skewness and kurtosis were above +/-2; therefore, their distribution is similar to a nor-
mal one, and in this phase no item was excluded from the analysis.
Instrument
In order to measure a CNFU concept, a CNFU-S scale was used by Ruvio et al. (2008). The authors of this paper developed a short-form scale, which is originally adapted from Tian et al.'s (2001) 21-item CNFU scale. Thus, CNFU-S scale represents a shortened version of a 12-item measurement scale. The items are shown in Table 1. For all items, a 5-point Likert scale was used (1-strongly disagree, 5-strong-ly agree). Knowledge about tourism products was measured using a dichotomy scale (yes/no), as well as respondents' usual way of travel (travel agency vs. self-organized arrangements).
Analysis and Results
Table 1 provides descriptive statistics by questionnaire items for each dimension of CNFU (mean values and standard deviations). Considering the mean scores for the three dimensions of the CNFU construct, the highest extent of agreement is shown by the item creative choice counter-conformity (CCC) dimension (M=3.31), followed by the similarity avoidance (SA) dimension (M=2.71). The lowest extent of agreement is the unpopular choice counter-conformity (UC) dimension (M=2.49). Specifically, most respondents prefer being different from other people, but still within social norms. For all the variables, the values of skewness and kurtosis were above +/-2; therefore, their distribution is similar to a normal one and in this phase no item was excluded from the analysis.
Table 1 : Mean values, standard deviations, Cronbach Alpha coefficients, factor loadings
CNFU items	Mean	SD	Cronbach
Alpha
Creative choice (CCC)
I often combine possessions in such a way that I create a personal image that cannot be duplicated.	3.25	0.910	
I often try to find a more interesting version of run-of-the-mill products because I enjoy being original	3.51	0.998	
I actively seek to develop my personal uniqueness by buying particular products or brands	3.07	0.995	0.808
Having an eye for products that are interesting and unusual assist me in establishing a distinctive image.	3.41	0.933	
Total CCC	3.31	0.764	
Unpopular choice (UC)			
When it comes to the products I buy and the situations in which I use them, I have broken customs and rules.	2.49	0.958	
I have often violated the understood rules of my social group regarding what to buy or own.	2.62	0.988	
I have often gone against the understood rules of my social group regarding when and how certain products are properly used.	2.58	0.980	0.728
I enjoy challenging the prevailing taste of people I know by buying something they would not seem to accept.	2.30	1.136	
Total UC	2.49	0.756	
Similarity Avoidance (SA)			
When a products I own becomes popular among the general population, I begin to use it less.	2.48	1.096	
I often try to avoid products or brands that I know are bought by the general population.	3.02	1.135	0.857
As a rule, I dislike products or brands that are customarily bought by everyone.	2.63	1.107	
The more commonplace a product or brand is among the general population, the less interested I am in buying it.	2.74	1.084	
Total SA	2.71	0.925	
TOTAL CNFU	2.83	0.639	0.851
Source: own
Reliability of the constructs was measured with the Cronbach Alpha coefficient, ranging from 0.728 to 0.857. The internal consistency estimates (Coefficient Alpha) for each scale appear in Table 1.
Since the theory for CNFU constructs has already been established, a confirmatory factor analysis was conducted for three dimensions of CNFU. The analysis confirmed the validity of variables for all three dimensions of CNFU as all coefficients are
Table 2 : The model of CNFU and its dimensions
positive and statistically significant. The structural relationships in the model including all three dimensions of CNFU were estimated using the elliptical reweighted least square (ERLS) method in EQS 6.1. EQS reported that parameter estimates appeared in order. The global fits are satisfactory (NFI=0.90; CFI=0.961; RMR=0.096; and RMSEA=0.083). The results are shown in Table 2.
Source: own
Table 3 displays the respondents' knowledge regarding tourism products. The findings indicate that 62.4% (N=128) of the respondents indicated that have a knowledge about tourism products, and 37.1% (N=76) of the respondents indicated that they did not have knowledge about tourism products. For further analysis, the respondents' knowledge was ana-
lysed according to each CNFU dimension separately. The results of the independent t-test reveal that statistically significant differences appear only for the CCC dimension of CNFU (Sig=0.022). This suggests that respondents who have knowledge about tourism products also exhibit higher need for uniqueness in terms of CCC (Table 2).
Table3: Independent t-test between CNFU dimensions and knowledge about tourism products
CNFU dimensions	Knowledge	N	Mean	SD	T-value	Sig
CCC	yes	128	3.40	0.769	2.31	0.022
	no	76	3.15	0.737		
UC	yes	128	2.48	0.788	-0.130	0.897
	no	76	2.50	0.695		
SA	yes	128	2.67	0.971	-0.949	0.344
	no	76	2.79	0.846		
Source: own
Table 4 displays the respondents' usual way of travel. The findings indicate that 76.1% (N=156) of the respondents indicated that they usually travel via self-organized arrangements and 23.9% (N=49) of the respondent indicated that they usually travel via travel agencies. For further analysis, the way respondents travel was analysed according to each CNFU dimen-
sion separately. The results of the independent t-test reveal that statistically significant differences appear only for the CCC dimension of CNFU (Sig=0.027). This suggests that respondents who usually travel via self-organized arrangements also exhibit higher need for uniqueness in terms of CCC (Table 3).
Table 4 : Independent t-test between CNFU dimensions and the way of travel.
CNFU dimensions	Way of travel	N	Mean	SD	T-value	Sig
CCC	self-organized arrangements	156	3.37	0.785		0.027
	travel agency	49	3.10	0.657	2.228	
UC	self-organized arrangements	156	2.48	0.753		0.726
	travel agency	49	2.53	0.771	-0.350	
SA	self-organized arrangements	156	2.75	0.921		0.279
	travel agency	49	2.59	0.937	1.086	
Source: own
Discussion and Conclusions
In line with these findings, this research reveals that the most prominent dimension of the CNFU concept among young adults is CCC. This means that respondents acquire a desire for uniqueness to such an extent that it is still acceptable within group norms. As such, CNFU allows individuals to buy different products and brands that reflect creative choice in terms of uniqueness, but remain acceptable according to their socially desirable norms.
Additionally, in terms of consumer behaviour in the tourism context, the relationship between each dimension of CNFU and knowledge about tourism
products is investigated. The results reveal that young adults who have knowledge about tourism products are more likely to seek uniqueness in the context of general consumer behaviour. More specifically, the results show that consumers who have knowledge about tourism products have a higher need for uniqueness in terms of CCC. Differences considering knowledge and the other two dimensions of CNFU (UC and SA) are not significant. The findings of this study support Holt's (1998) notion that greater in-depth knowledge of several products increases their uniqueness benefits here in terms of CCC. In this vein, Hypothesis 1 is partially confirmed.
Another aspect regarding consumer behaviour is the investigation of the relationship between each dimension of CNFU and respondents' usual way of travel. The results reveal that young adults who travel via self-arrangements exhibit higher levels of CNFU than those who travel via travel agencies. This is evident only in terms of one dimension: CCC. The differences considering other two dimensions of CNFU (UC and AS) are not significant. In terms of uniqueness seeking, the findings support Yeoman et al. (2007), who emphasize the consumers' individualization. Therefore, the Hypothesis 2 is partially confirmed.
The results obtained provide support for the theory of uniqueness. The average values (close to 3 on a 5-point scale) suggest that respondents do exhibit the need for differentiation, yet not an extreme one. This is well in line with the central tenet of this theory that people seek to be only moderately distinct from others (Snyder & Fromkin, 1980). More substantive interpretation of examined components of CNFU concept points to the same conclusion. The first (CCC) component addresses a creative and relatively conformist (and thus not a very extreme) form of uniqueness. In addition, statements on the CCC component focus more on "intended" differentiation, rather than a "realized" one, which is more emphasized on the other two components (UC and SA). Consequently, the plausible interpretation might be that the uniqueness sought is on average more emphasized than subsequently realized uniqueness.
Following this view, the differences obtained among components thus provide support for recent calls for a distinction between consumers who acquire different uniqueness motives, such as CCC, UC and SA (e.g., Tian et al., 2001). The findings of this study indicate that the CCC dimension is the most prominent of the three, which means that consumers have a desire to be individual, original, and that they create a personal unique image by possessing particular products, though they prefer being different from other people in a way that is still accepted by the members of their social group. This is congruent with Bearden and Etzel (1982), who theorized that consumers often choose products associated with members of their own group. Therefore, the impulse toward uniqueness does not influence consumers' choice in such a way that they would make a different choice than others.
In this study, the three dimensions of CNFU were also examined regarding the level of customer knowledge and the way of travel, contributing to a better understanding of this relationship. According to Ling (2008), various areas have investigated uniqueness-seeking behaviour, but still only a few studies have placed this concept in a consumer behaviour context. Moreover, to date no research has been found that investigates this concept in the field of tourism. Therefore, this research takes an important step toward understanding the role of CNFU regarding tourism. Following this view, the tourism industry has great potential to use this uniqueness-seeking motive in developing marketing strategies for its products and services, as trends in tourism suggest that young travellers also desire unique, authentic, special products, services and/or destinations that enhance their CNFU. Moreover, consumers (in addition to desiring uniqueness in concrete purchases) are also eager to experience, for example, innovative, engaging restaurants (Postrel, 2003) and other environments, many of which tourism offers (Richards, 2001). Therefore, it is likely that they will seek uniqueness in various ways, e.g. customized and innovative products or services (e.g., themed accommodations, specialized travel agencies, customized travel plans, etc.) or means travel. Thus, focusing the research spotlight on CNFU in tourism is advisable, as, following Ling (2008), innumerable varieties of products are affected by the concept.
Moreover, according to IPK International (2014), youth travel is increasingly perceived as a massive part of the travel and tourism industry. The UNW-TO reports that in 2012, young travellers represented more than 20% of the more than one billion international arrivals. Thus, marketers in tourism are, therefore, well advised to consider these results with regard to CNFU and consumer knowledge in several ways. According to Lynn and Harris (1997), CNFU is most commonly used by marketers in advertising, also using new approaches such as mobile advertising, etc. Other possible areas in which to use uniqueness-seeking motives are in product positioning, product differentiation, pricing, distribution and other promotional strategies. On this basis, Puetz-Willems (2014 in IPK international) argue that tourist providers should emphasize their unique selling propositions, offer more themes, reveal more his-
torical tales, and so on. For smaller operators, there is a real opportunity to return to the roots of hospitality and to benefit by being real hosts again. Marketers in tourism should be aware that young adults have a need for uniqueness, more specifically it applies to young adults who acquire higher knowledge about tourism products and who travel via self-arranged travels. This is congruent with the trends mentioned above.
The presented examination and findings lead to the conclusion that CNFU is a relevant and promising concept in the tourism context. As such, it warrants further theoretical and practical examination in order to upgrade the findings obtained in this study, which was subject of some limitations. The measurement of consumer knowledge, for instance, was very simplistic and a pre-requisite of more elaborated methodology in the presented study. Further study could include more rigorous measures regarding specific aspects of consumer knowledge. The convenience sample is, of course, also a limitation in respect to its representativeness.
This paper present responded to a call for further research using the shortened CNFU-S scale (see Ru-vio et al., 2007). However, further study is advisable in order to compare samples from different countries. Most of the previous studies examined the CNFU concept as a one-dimensional construct (e.g., Stokburger-Sauer & Teichmann, 2013; Kastanakis & Balabanis, 2012; Khare, Labrecque & Asare, 2011). As discussed earlier, this research illustrated the expected three conceptual dimensions of CNFU following Tian's et al. (2001) suggestions, here toward consumer knowledge and the way of travel. Considering those three dimensions of CNFU adapted from Tian et al. (2001) and Ruvio et al. (2008), it is essential to investigate possible relationships with other relevant concepts like market mavenism (see Ruvio, 2008), as market mavens are consumers who are highly involved in the marketplace and acquire a great deal of knowledge about multitude products or services (Feick & Price, 1987).
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The Quality of the Dining Experience - A Literature Overview
Marko Kukanja
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia marko.kukanja@fts.upr.si
The importance of quality has been recognized in most service industries, as it generates revenue and has a significant impact on customer behaviour. Measurement of the quality of restaurant service has attracted increasing attention from hospitality researchers since the implementation of the DINESERV model in the mid-1990s. As a fairly new topic, it requires frequent and critical monitoring, which would shed light on current research and make needed adjustments in terms of methodological research processes and the focus of inquiry. However, to date, there have been few systematic reviews of this body of work. As such, this study aims to fill this void by conducting a qualitative analysis of research on restaurant quality since the mid-1990s. Particular attention has been devoted to a marketing perspective and different marketing attributes (food, people and price), as there is no consensus on which marketing attribute is the most important in assessing the quality of the dining experience. Food quality often seems to be accepted as the fundamental component in determining the quality of dining experience, but several studies have identified service quality (people) to be the most important factor in the restaurant industry. A qualitative study with a grounded theory approach has been used via analysis of the relevant scientific literature. Data of guests' perceptual responses has been collected from restaurant quality-related articles retrieved from major academic databases. Based on an extensive literature review, the findings reveal that restaurant quality research remains at the stage of developing industry tailored-research models. The research results also reveal that the results of numerous studies are mutually inconsistent and contradictory. Therefore, it is not possible to simplify and highlight just one quality attribute as the most important. Scholars should, therefore, adapt their research techniques to different environments and types of catering facilities. This research has raised many questions in need of further investigation. Future research should include a broader range of quality dimensions. It is suggested that the association of different marketing attributes be empirically investigated in future studies.
Keywords: restaurant industry, marketing attributes, dining experience, service quality.
Introduction
rants is limited by a number of industry-specific limitations. These limitations include volatile demand, small businesses, intense competition, a wide range of food and beverage products offered, labour-intensive production, the importance of employees' at-
In the highly competitive restaurant industry, satisfying guests should be the critical objective of all businesses that wish to build a base of repeat customers and prosper. Ensuring proper quality in restau-
titude towards guests, and many other factors that significantly affect the level of overall service quality. A current crucial challenge of all restaurateurs is knowing how to provide quality food and services that are not only compelling to guests, but also superior to business competitors. In order to gain an edge in this highly competitive environment, marketing literature has continually emphasized the importance of marketing orientation and treated it as a strategic tool. The growing recognition of customer-based marketing approaches (business-to-consumer) has suggested that implementing quality as a marketing tool is the essential element in fostering customer relationships and sustainable market share (Wang, Law, Hung & Guillet, 2014). Understanding customers' needs is the first step in delivering quality services. The best way to manage customers' expectations is to investigate what their needs and wants are, strategize how to meet them, and implement these strategies. In the relevant literature, there are several theoretical models that explore customers' expectations and assess service quality. Since the introduction of the generic SERVQUAL instrument in 1988 by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry, the issue of restaurant service quality has received considerable critical attention. Several attempts have been made (Kim, Ng & Kim, 2009; Mattila, 2001; Sulek & Hen-sley, 2004; Vanniarajan, 2009) to develop specific quality measurement techniques fitted to the needs of the restaurant industry (DINESERV, SERVPERF, CIERM, TANGSERV). All of these techniques focus on specific aspects of service delivery (techniques are thoroughly presented in Table 1).
As food is the fundamental component of the dining experience, it indisputably has a significant impact on guests' satisfaction (Vanniarajan, 2009). Despite the importance of food quality, some other scholars preferred to focus on the service encounter aspect of service quality (Ayeh & Chen, 2013; Ed-vardsson, 2005; Han, Back & Barrett, 2010). Together, all these studies outlined the importance of food and people, often overlooking the significance of price as the core financial indicator of quality value. Further, examination reveals that most studies (Andaleb & Conway, 2006; Voon, 2012; Mosavi & Ghaedi, 2012) empirically investigated the role (importance) of different quality factors. Along the same line, several researchers examined the mediating role of quality
and satisfaction in explaining post-purchase behaviour and loyalty ("Sunny" Hu, Huang & Chen, 2010; Bell, Auh & Smalley, 2005; Bobalcä, Gätej (Bradu) & Ciobanu, 2012). Nevertheless, no study has analysed restaurant quality from the marketing perspective (7P). Therefore, the significance of individual marketing attributes remains undetermined from the perspectives of quality. As such, it would be of academic significance to summarize and compare the results of different studies, as it can clarify particular issues involved.
To fill this gap, this study has focused on the selected three marketing attributes that form the fundamental part of what a restaurant offers: food, people and price. We assume that these marketing attributes have the most significant impact on guests' satisfaction, as they are essential elements of the dining experience. We focused our research on only three crucial marketing attributes (out of seven - 7P), as we assume that other marketing attributes, such as physical evidences, promotion, placement and processes can be easily avoided or replaced (food can be home delivered, promotional activities can be avoided, the restaurant can be based on a self-service concept, etc.). More specifically, the theoretical construct of this research is mainly related to our central research question: Which marketing attribute -food, people or price - is the most important in assessing the quality of dining experience?
Answering this question calls for a review inquiry into recent research of restaurant quality from the customers' perspective. This qualitative study is, therefore, exploratory and interpretative in nature. A holistic approach is utilized, integrating relevant scientific literature with in-depth analysis of the latest studies in the field of the restaurant quality management. Unfortunately, due to differences in methodology and terminology used in different studies, we had to be selective and focus our research only on those studies that undoubtedly include the selected marketing attributes. The overall structure of the study takes the form of five chapters, including this introductory chapter. Chapter 2 begins by laying out the theoretical dimensions of the research; Chapter 3 is concerned with methodology, while Chapter 4 presents research analysis and findings of the study. Finally, the conclusion gives a brief summary and critique of the findings.
Literature Review
Service Quality
A large and growing body of literature has investigated the importance of service quality since the 1980s. The definition of service quality requires a specific approach to quality measurement, as it is not based on general objectivity and measurability. The approach from the standpoint of the customer is based on a highly subjective perspective. While a variety of definitions of the term "service quality" have been suggested (Grönroos, 1984, 1990; Langer, 1997; Para-suraman, Zeithaml & Berry, 1988; Reeves & Bednar, 1995), this paper is based on the definition suggested by Parasuraman, Berry and Zeithaml (1985), who defined service quality as the ability of service to fulfil and exceed guests' expectations. The key concept of satisfaction is based on Oliver's (1980) disconfir-mation theory. If the perceived performance exceeds expectations (a positive confirmation), the guest is satisfied. In contrast, if perceived performance falls short of his or her expectations, that the guest is dissatisfied. The subjective assessment toward confirmation or disconfirmation causes satisfaction-related emotions. From this perspective, only the consumer can judge the quality of services. Perceived quality captures the subjective responses to service from a "user" perspective. Uran (2003) analysed several studies on service quality in tourism and found that researchers were unanimous in defining service quality. The common characteristic of all definitions is the consumer-based concept, which makes service quality a highly subjective and relative phenomenon that differs based on who is judging the service.
Since there is no standardized definition of service quality, it is, therefore, relatively complicated to define specific quality attributes. Quality attributes (also referred to as "quality factors") are various elements that measure restaurant service quality in relation to the service provider and the customer during service delivery. According to Uran (2008), quality attributes represent basic parameters (a kind of framework) for the description and analysis of the overall service experience. Different quality attributes with similar characteristics are then logically merged into different so-called quality dimensions. As quality attributes and quality dimensions vary according to different authors and methodologies, they cannot be generalized, although several theoreti-
cal attempts have been made to standardize service quality dimensions (Brogowicz, Delene & Lyth, 1990; Stevens, Knutson & Patton, 1995; Zeithaml, Berry & Parasuraman, 1988). In this study, specific marketing attributes (price, product (food) and people (staff)) are used as key quality dimensions.
Theoretical Models of Service Quality
A large and growing body of scientific literature has investigated the theoretical concept of service quality. Several attempts have been made to capture the essential characteristics of service quality in theoretical models. These models are especially significant because they provide a theoretical basis to various techniques (instruments) for measuring service quality. Brogowicz et al. (1990) reported that the majority of these models are based on the findings of the so-called North American and Scandinavian schools of service quality management. The American School (Bitner, Faranda, Hubbert & Zeithaml, 1997; Parasuraman, Berry & Zeithaml, 1993; Parasuraman, Zeithaml & Berry, 1994) is mainly focused on identifying the criteria that consumers use in evaluating the quality of services. Researchers have contributed a five-step model of service quality and an instrument for measuring service quality, the SERVQUAL instrument, in which they defined five dimensions of service quality. These dimensions (also known as RATER dimensions) are Reliability, Assurance, Tangibles, Empathy, and Responsiveness. Uran (2004) stated that the American approach has experienced the greatest support and use among researchers. Scandinavian researchers (Grönroos, 1990; Lehtin-en & Lehtinen, 1991) determined two major aspects of service quality: the technical quality (the tangible aspect of the quality) and the functional quality (the customer' subjective experience with the service encounter).
Despite the given definition of both qualities, other authors (Brady & Cronin, 2001; Kang & James, 2004; Kang 2006) have questioned the usefulness of such approach, because, in practice, there is no consensus about the technical and functional aspect of quality. Drawing on an extensive range of sources, the scholars set out different ways in which they had attempted to create valid and complete service quality models. Brogowicz et al. (1990) combined both the American and the Scandinavian models, and de-
veloped a new synthesized model of service quality. Candido & Morris (2000) had defined a new model with 14 steps, but an in-depth analysis has revealed that the model is mainly based on the five-step model. Overall, none of these modified models has received significant scientific validation.
Conversely, several authors highlighted the need to break the link between the traditional American and Scandinavian schools, and proposed alternative quality models. In 2007, Carr developed a model called FAIRSERV, which is based on the concept of a fair service relationship between the customer and the service provider. Lin Chan & Tsai (2009) upgraded the traditional IPA (Importance Performance Analysis) model and developed a new model called IPGA. The IPGA model is designed to optimize the use of the production resources with the aim of improving the quality of services offered. Later, Cheng Chen, Hsu and Hu (2012) upgraded the IPGA model, using complex analytic methods in an experimental two-stage hybrid model. The model was used in only one study and has not yet been the subject of proper scientific evaluation. Nevertheless, all these studies highlight the need for future development of service quality management.
Tools for Measuring Service Quality
This paper focuses on the most important standardized measurement tools. All of these tools (techniques) collect quality information based on predetermined standards, although the customers' feedback can also be obtained by a number of qualitative techniques, including observations, interviews, playing the role of hidden guest, etc. The use of such qualitative approaches can significantly help to improve the quality of overall quality analysis (North-cote & Machbech, 2005). Despite the unquestionable significance of qualitative techniques, quantitative techniques are the main focus of this study. These techniques measure the quality level of services in different ways. Some techniques (often structured as models) measure service quality based on the gaps that occur as a result of differences between guests' expectations and perceptions (SERVQUAL, DINESERV); others are one-dimensional and focus solely on service performance (SERVPERF , Dineserv.per); some measure the quality and importance of different service attributes (SERVIMPERF);
others focus on employees' responses to critical situations (CIT - Critical Incident Technique); while still others address external evaluators (AAA Diamond , Michelin Stars).
The predominant quantitative measurement technique is the SERVQUAL instrument (Markovic & Raspor, 2009). Quality is measured based on the perception gap, as the difference between guests' expectations and perceptions. The main advantages of the SERVQUAL instrument are its clear indications of the level of service quality; the results represent a solid basis for the implementation of operational standards, and the concept concentrates on overall quality improvement (Heung et al., 2000; Ladhari, 2008; Rood & Dziadkowiec, 2011). However, many critics have questioned the usefulness of such a generalized approach (Buttle, 1996; Carman, 1990; Cronin & Taylor, 1994; Llosa, Chandon & Orsingh-er, 1998, Tribe & Snaith, 1998). Their concerns were primarily related to the adequacy and consistency of its dimensions, its impracticability, its generaliza-bility and the quality of its psychometric properties. According to Aigbedo and Parameswaran (2004), all five dimensions of the SERVQUAL instrument have not yet been fully validated. Therefore, the authors propose additional metrics that would better explain the gap between expectations and perceptions. Other authors (Akan, 1995; Jensen & Hansen, 2007; Juwaheer, 2004) have highlighted the necessity of a tailored approach for the measurement of service quality. Despite all this criticism, SERVQUAL remains one of the most commonly used techniques for service quality measurement (Markovic, Raspor & Šegarić, 2012).
In the view of all that has been mentioned so far, many scholars have tried to adapt the original SERVQUAL instrument to specific characteristics of different hospitality businesses (Choi & Chu, 1999; Cronin & Taylor, 1992; Ekinci & Riley, 1999; Knut-son et al., 1995; Stevens et al., 1995; Tribe & Snaith, 1998; Yuksel & Rimmington, 1998) and to develop new "business-tailored" quality measurement models (Crick & Spencer, 2011; Ekinci & Riley, 1999; Era-qi, 2006; Getty & Thompson, 1994; Mills & Thomas, 2008; Raajpoot, 2002; Ryu, 2005; Qu & Ping, 1999; Wilson, 1998; Yüksel & Yüksel, 2003). Different models and their variations are presented below (Table 1).
Table 1 : Service quality measurement techniques and their characteristics
Model
Main characteristics
LODGQUAL	An upgrade of the SERVQUAL instrument. Authors have demonstrated that the original
SERVQUAL dimensions (responsiveness, trust and empathy in the lodging industry) cannot be completely distinguished and generally show guests' experiences with staff.
An upgrade of the SERVQUAL ins., adopted for the need of the hotel industry. The model consists of five industry specific dimensions.
This model consists of 29 attributes that are adapted to specifics of the restaurant industry. The model is based on generic SERVQUAL dimensions.
One-dimensional, straightforward approach that measures service quality after the service encounter (performance-only). A good example of this technique is guest comment cards. The model is substantively similar to DINESERV, except that the scale of the Dineserv.per model measures quality only after the service encounter.
An upgrade of the SERVPERF model. In addition to quality evaluation, guests also assess (rank) the significance of individual quality attributes.
The model measures the quality of tangible elements. The dimensions of the model are the appearance and variety of food, the ambience (temperature and music) and the equipment. This model measures the impact of the physical environment and social factors on the emotional state of guests.
This model is primarily designed to assess the quality aspects of the wider business environment (tourist destinations). It is a modification of the SERVQUAL instrument. QFD	QFD (Quality function deployment) is based on the transfer of guests' desires and expectations in
the characteristics of goods and services offered.
LODGSERV
DINESERV
SERVPERF
Dineserv.per
SERVIMPERF
TANGSERV
DINESCAPE
TOURSERVQUAL
CIT - the extended CIT model CIT (Critical Incident Technique) measures the impact (response) of employees' behaviour in different critical situations.
CIEREM	This model measures guests' expectations in connection with the information provided on me-
nus. The most commonly used dimensions are information regarding the nutritional (caloric) value and information regarding ingredients and cooking techniques.
An optional, American system of classification and categorization of restaurant and accommodation facilities. Facilities that meet the minimum criteria can apply for a Diamond quality label. Michelin stars are considered to be the most prestigious symbol of overall restaurant quality. The biggest deficiency of the Michelin Guide is the absence of written quality criteria.
AAA DIAMOND
MICHELIN STARS
Table 2: Inclusion of quality dimensions in			different	service quality	models			
Dimension Model	Tangibility	Reliability	Responsiveness	Assurance	Empathy	Nutritional value	Ingredients	Technique of food preparation
SERVQUAL	x	x	x	x	x			
Dineserv	x	x	x	x	x			
Dineserv.per	x	x	x	x	x			
Tangserv	x							
CIERM						x	x	x
In Table 2, the intention was to analyse the inclusion of different quality dimensions in models presented in Table 1. Unfortunately, all the presented models could not be included, as some of them are not based on written criteria (Michelin stars), or their quality dimensions represent specific quality attributes in other models (interior and ambience
in the AAA methodology can be classified as the appearance of physical evidence in the tangible dimension of the SERVQUAL instrument). Therefore, we had to focus on the generic SERVQUAL instrument and its modifications (Dineserv and Dineserv.per) as well as on some state-of-the-art models, such as the Tangserv (introduced by Raajpoot in 2002) and
the CIERM model (introduced by Mills in Thomas in 2007).
The results of this comparison indicate that specific techniques, such as Tangserv and CIERM have moved away from the traditional dimensions of the SERVQUAL instrument. Our findings are consistent with those of other studies (Cronin & Taylor, 1994; Llosa, Chandon & Orsingher, 1998, Tribe & Snaith, 1998) and suggest the necessity of moving away from the traditional RATER dimensions of the SERVQUAL instrument. These results also confirm our decision to use marketing attributes as quality dimensions.
Methodology
To accomplish the main objective of the study, articles related to dining quality were retrieved in May 2014 from EBSCOHost (http://search.ebsco-host.com/) and Science Direct (http://sciencedirect. com/), which are the major academic and most comprehensive databases for tourism and hospitality research journals (Buhalis & Law, 2008; Wang, Law, Hung & Guillet, 2014). In addition, the Springer database (http://link.springer.com/) was also utilized to search articles. Keywords used to retrieve literature included: "restaurant quality", "dining quality", "quality attributes", "restaurant industry quality", "service quality", "service quality measurement" as well as "quality and hospitality". Due to its complex nature, the concept of quality has been discussed in various contexts; in this study, the focus is solely on restaurant (dining) quality and its specific dimensions. As such, careful screening was needed to identify articles that were specifically related to food, people and price. The screening process started with reading titles and abstracts of each article. Any unrelated papers were omitted from further analysis as well as book reviews and editors' notes. Articles that partially matched the topic of the research were than included in the study in a logical manner (a total of 89 articles). The exclusion of marketing attributes from standardized quality models (Table1) presented a major obstacle in our research. From the retrieved 140 articles (all reporting on restaurant quality) only nine articles clearly emphasized the importance of food and people (Table 3 and Table 4). However, to date, no studies have determined price to be the most important quality
dimension; none of the models presented in Table 1 even include this dimension. The operationaliza-tion of results was, therefore, from the perspectives of terminological aspects, research methods, quality measurement, data collection, location and sample size. All retrieved articles regarding specific quality dimensions were published between 1995 and 2012, with a steady increase since 2004, which indicates that quality management researchers have been giving increasing attention to this topic. A review of the literature has also revealed that scholars significantly emphasize the importance of psychological factors in assessing service quality.
Analysis of research results
Food
Several studies have reported that food is the most important quality dimension that affects both the restaurant selection process and guests' satisfaction process (Clark & Wood, 1999; Kim, Ng & Kim, 2009; Mattila, 2001; Sulek & Hensley, 2004; Vanniarajan, 2009). Surveys, such as those conducted by Abbas and Somayeh (2011) and Law and Goh (2008), have shown that the assessment of food quality is subject to guests' purchasing power. It is, therefore, expected that the quality of food has the most significant impact only in fine dining restaurants, whilst it does not have any major impact on the perception of quality in other restaurant facilities. Conversely, Kim Ng and Kim (2009) reported that food quality is also the most important quality dimension in fast food restaurants.
A broader perspective has shown that excessive focus on the food dimension may prove to be misguided. Several studies have revealed that food is not always the most important dimension of quality. MacLaurin and MacLaurin (2000) noted that food quality is only one of the nine most important quality dimensions in themed restaurants in Singapore. Similarly, Mosavi and Ghaedi (2012) reported that food is not always the core attribute in luxurious restaurants. Collectively, these studies outline a critical role of food quality evaluation in correlation with other quality attributes. Table 3 presents results and characteristics of international studies in which food was identified as the most important quality dimension.
Sample	Study design
Academic staff of two universities in En-	Self-administered questionnaire. gland. n=31
Students of one university in USA. n=4659	Modified DINESERV questionnaire.
Students of one university in USA. n=124 Self-administered questionnaire.
Random guests of one Irish pub in Ame-	Self-administered questionnaire. rica. n=239
Random visitors of different types of resta-	Modified DINESERV questionnaire. urants in India. n=239
Table 3 : Research that emphasizes the importance of food
Research Clark and Wood (1999)
Kim, Ng and Kim (2009) Mattila (2001)
Sulek and Hensley (2004)
Vanniarajan (2009)
It is clearly apparent from this table that all presented studies have been conducted in different cultural environments, on different research samples, with different methodologies. Despite all the differences in these studies, food was highlighted as the most important quality dimension. Common characteristics of research samples were not detected.
When discussing the evaluation of food quality, it is necessary to determine specific attributes, based on which food quality is evaluated. We have noted that several authors used entirely different quality attributes to evaluate the quality of food. Some of them (Namkung & Jang, 2007; Liu & Yang, 2009) highlighted only taste and appearance, while others (Harrington, Ottenbacher & Kendall, 2011) extended the range of attributes to food safety, acceptability (taste, appearance, temperature, size of portions) and nutritional value. There are other approaches to food quality assessment. Kivela, Inbakaran and Reece (1999) highlighted the importance of the variety of items offered on the menu. A recent study by Ha and Jang (2010) involved the significance of menu appearance. The evidence presented in this section suggests that the evaluation of food quality is highly subjective. Sulek and Hensley (2004), therefore, propose that the quality of food should be simply defined by three key characteristics: food safety, attractiveness and digestibility.
People
Several studies have been published (Andaleeb & Conway, 2006; Jaafar, Lumbers & Eves, 2008; Mosa-vi & Ghaedi 2012; Voon, 2012) describing the role of people as the most important quality dimension in restaurant quality management. It is essential to
highlight that specific factors describing employees' characteristics are included within different quality dimensions in different quality models (Table 1). For example, The SERVQUAL and the Dineserv model include attributes describing staff characteristics in practically every quality dimension. The generaliz-ability of much published research on this issue is, therefore, extremely problematic, as there is no consensus about quality attributes on which guests val-uate the quality of staff. Akan (1995) stressed the importance of helpfulness and professionalism, while Ariffin and Maghzi (2012) were more concerned with issues relating to hospitality. Many scholars (Akan, 1995; Claycomb & Martin, 2002; Meng & Elliott, 2008; Scanlan & McPhail, 2000) have argued that guests' satisfaction is predominantly affected by communicativeness of staff.
Other researchers, however, who have looked at psychological aspects of perceptions, have confirmed the correlation between guests' quality evaluation process and the demographic characteristics of service staff. For example, Luohe and Tsaur (2011) confirmed the link between guests' perceptions and age, Martinez-Tur et al. (2011) emphasized the importance of organizational climate, while Wall and Berry (2007) concluded that guests' quality perceptions heavily depend on the type of the food & beverage facility. This finding corroborates the idea of Kim and Kachersky (2006), Meng and Elliott (2008) and Noone et al. (2007) who suggested that guests of fine dining restaurants are more sensitive to staff attitudes.
In contrast, a study conducted by Waxman (2006) in coffee shops stressed not only the importance of staff attitude, but has also revealed a rich set
of social quality attributes which are associated to staff: warmth and a sense of belonging, familiarity, respect, trust, support, etc. This research has shown that coffee shops (and their staff) in particular play an important role in the expansion of social capital. Wall and Berry (2007) argue that it is quite natural that the human factor prevail over other tangi-
Table 4 : Researches that emphasize the importance of people
Research Andaleeb and Conway (2006)
Voon (2012)
Mosavi and Ghaedi (2012) Jaafar, Lumbers and Eves (2008)
As can be seen from the table above, all presented studies were performed in different cultural environments, on different research samples and with different methodological approaches. Despite all differences, the quality of people was identified as the most important quality dimension.
Price
Subjective assessment of quality is particularly problematic with individual perceptions of price, although basic economic indicators that reflect guests' purchasing power can be relatively easily measured (income, average spending etc.). Kim and Kachersky (2006) state that the perceived price level and its correlation to quality are exclusively the result of individual psychological processes This view is supported by many authors (Meng & Elliott, 2008; Ranaweera & Neely, 2003; Oh, 2000; Bhattachnaya & Friedman, 2001) who have argued the importance of individualism in price perception (especially to the perception of "fair price"). According to authors, a fair price has an important impact on guests' satisfaction and their perception of quality. An individual and segmented pricing approach is especially significant in service industries, as various segments of guests respond differently to different price levels. The restaurant industry tends to be highly price elastic as changes in price have a relatively large effect on the quantity of demand. Restaurant managers can minimize sensitivity to price by using tailored pricing approaches,
ble quality dimensions, as they can all be easily substituted. According to the authors, no other quality dimension can compensate for guests' bad experience with unfriendly staff. Table 4 presents' results and sample characteristics of studies in which the staff was undoubtedly identified as the most important quality dimension.
e.g. price differentiation, discounts, special promotions, happy hours, etc.
Conversely, the results of research conducted by Iglesias and Guillén in Spain (2004) showed that the price that is revealed to guests' only after the service encounter has no impact on guests' satisfaction. According to the authors, price is important but only in the pre-purchasing phase. A broader and contra-dictive theoretical perspective was adopted by Oh (2000) and Barber, Goodman and Goh (2011). These authors reject the elevation of quality in the hospitality industry as they believe that more attention should be focused on delivering fair-price services. According to this concept, satisfaction is merely a short-term emotional state that eventually becomes self-evident and expected. Service providers should, therefore, concentrate on delivering services that provide good value for the money, as from the guests' perspective quality is perceived to be a self-evident and fundamental part of services (Oh, 2000).
We have noted that in none of the presented studies was price identified as the most important quality dimension. Nevertheless, many studies emphasized the importance of different individual price attributes. We believe that price (value) perceptions should be further investigated, especially in correlation to other quality dimensions.
Sample	Study design
Random guests of various types of restau-	Self-administered questionnaire rants in Pennsylvania (USA). n=119
Random guests of gastronomic, fast food	Self-administered questionnaire and garden restaurants in Malaysia. n=407
Random guests of luxury restaurants in	Self-administered questionnaire Shiraz (Iran). n=830
Random guests of various types of restau-	Self-administered face to face interview
rants in England. n=15	schedule
Discussion and Conclusion
The initial objective of the study was to determine which marketing attribute has the most significant impact on guests' overall satisfaction and perception of quality. Contrary to expectations, the most interesting finding was that the results of the presented studies are mutually inconsistent and contradictory; one marketing attribute cannot be highlighted as the most important one, although in terms of cultural context, the majority of research was conducted in America (four of nine studies) in most of them (three of four studies) food was the most important dimension of quality.
Another important finding was that all presented cases of this study were based on modified questionnaires. This finding accords with our earlier observations that showed that service quality dimensions cannot be generalized. We assume that this result may also be explained by the fact that the restaurant quality management demands a specific and termi-nologically adopted research approach. A good example of this is the SERVQUAL instrument, in which different quality characteristics of people (staff) could be simultaneously found in all four quality dimensions. One of the issues that emerges from these findings is the necessity for caution when comparing standardized instruments such as the SERVQUAL and Dineserv to other models and their quality dimensions. A reasonable approach to tackle this issue could be the development of a comprehensive methodology that would be based on the specifics of the restaurant industry terminology. It can, therefore, be assumed that the terminological ambiguity represents a major gap between researchers and practitioners (restaurateurs).
Measuring service quality is subjected to a number of environmental variables (sociological, cultural, psychological, etc.) which, in different environments, have different impacts on the perception of quality. This study produced results that corroborate the findings of previous work in this field (Atil-gan, Akinci & Aksoy, 2003; Juwaheer, 2004; Kincaid, Baloglu, Mao & Busser, 2010; Martinez & Martinez, 2010; Markovic et al., 2012). In accordance with the present results, previous studies have demonstrated that specific and customized quality attributes should be introduced to each study. The proposed attributes are employees (Markovic et al., 2012; Snoj &
Mumel, 2002); competition (Kristensen, Martensen & Gronholdt, 2000); complementarity and authenticity (Albacete-Saez, Mar Fuentes-Fuentes & Javier Lloréns-Montes, 2007); emotions (Akbaba, 2006; Ed-vardsson, 2005; Ladhari, Brun & Morales, 2008; Jr., 2003; Wong, 2004); and the purpose of visit (Iglesias & Guillén, 2004). The evaluation of quality is also significantly affected by the nationality of guests' (Nield, Kozak & LeGrys, 2000), as well as some demographic characteristics, such as gender, age and cultural capital (Baek et al., 2006, Harrington et al., 2011; Hsu Hung & Tang, 2012; Law, This & Goh, 2008; Rood & Dziadkowiec, 2011). A practical implication of these findings is that both quantitative and qualitative research methods should be taken into account when evaluating overall service quality in different food & beverage facilities.
This research has raised many questions in need of further investigation. Future trials should assess the specifics of different marketing attributes, especially those correlated to traditional gastronomic facilities, such as Greek taverns, traditional Slovene gostilnas, Hungarian csàrda, etc. Finally, a number of important limitations need to be considered. This study is limited by the lack of empirical research. In view of the limitations of qualitative research, it is, therefore, suggested that an empirical association of all seven marketing attributes be investigated in future studies.
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The Heritage of Socialism in Škofja Loka as an Opportunity for Tourism Development
Gregor Balažič
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies - Turistica, Portorož, Slovenia gregor. balazic@fts.upr.si
Žiga Nedižavec
Ljubljana
ziga.nedizavec@gmail.com
In recent years, the heritage of socialism has found its way into the tourist services of many eastern European cities, where it is being successfully marketed through various tourist products. Since this kind of heritage is also present in Slovenia, we believe that by developing these kinds of tourist products, together with their appropriate presentation and organization, socialist heritage tourism services could be offered by the municipalities of many Slovene towns and cities, including Šk-ofja Loka, the subject of this paper. We have used qualitative semi-structured interviews with four selected tourism stakeholders in the region and have obtained their positions regarding the integration of socialist heritage into the tourism range of services in the municipality of Škofja Loka. We also present the heritage of socialism and proposals for new sustainable tourist products based on the relics of socialism.
Keywords: heritage of socialism, Škofja Loka, sustainable tourist products, tourism stakeholders, tourism development
Introduction
Socialism was present until the end of the 1980s in most of eastern and southeastern Europe. Yugoslavia, which included Slovenia, established a self-governing socialist system, which was different from the Warsaw Pact socialist regimes and was considered "softer" than them. The period after World War II was marked by a changed socio-political situation as a result of the establishment of socialism as the dominant social-political system. From 1945 onward, the socialist management of space caused substantial spatial and social change as a result of systematic industrialization aimed at achieving modernization (Vrišer, 1978). This had obvious effects on major cities, but also in smaller municipalities such as Škofja Loka. The consequences are currently seen in towns and society and represent the cultural heritage of socialism, which consists of a variety of architectural relics and an intangible heritage.
After the fall of socialism, transitions in various places were characterized by the complexities of politics, which is evident from the way cities are being or have been transformed, where space has been re-valued, and places re-created with new identities and images (Rätz et al., 2008). In relation to this general process, tourism products based on the heritage of socialism have been successfully integrated into the range tourism services of former socialist countries, including Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, with the heritage of socialism becoming a successful market niche in these countries. Among the most numerous consumers are visitors from the United States and Western European countries that did not experience the socialist socio-political system and, therefore, are not intimately familiar with socialist regimes (Ivanov, 2009). We believe that the heritage of socialism, with arranged selected tourism products, must be included in the tourism services
of Škofja Loka, as the elements of socialist/communist heritage that became tourist attractions in other European former socialist countries (Light, 2000a, 2000b), such as the Lenin Monument in Bucharest (Richardson & Burford, 1995).
Škofja Loka is currently focussed primarily, in fact almost exclusively, on the Medieval heritage of the town (and naturally so), but need not exclusively do so for the tourist trade. This would thus represent an innovation in Škofja Loka, at the same time upgrading the existing range of tourism services. Because the designation of sustainable tourism products requires a broad consensus of stakeholders, interviews conducted among tourism industry stakeholders, including at a regional development agency and a local museum, tourist agency and hotel, were analysed. Selected stakeholders from different tourism branches represent both the public and private sectors within the tourism industry of the region as a whole. The semi-structured interviews were related to the position of these stakeholders on the inclusion of the heritage of socialism into the range of tourism services, its process of integration, and potential dilemmas that could arise as a result. Such approaches are necessary in order to assess the feasibility of potential profitability and other objectives (given the varied natures of shareholders compromise in planning is essential), so as to smooth the path of the development process and provide direction and support to marketing (Swarbrooke, 2002). Furthermore, this paper provides various proposals for the integration of various relics of socialism into the range of tourism services based on appearance, functions, physical positions and typological diversity. These tourism products can be arranged in a variety of sustainable ways: the establishment of museums, expansion of existing museum collections, creation of info-points, souvenir shops, history lectures, and the creation of learning pathways (again, this list is guided by best practices in other former socialist countries as applied to tourism (Papp & Raffay, 2011)).
In conclusion, the importance and promotion of the integration of industrial heritage in tourism are highlighted. In addition, the importance of the involvement and participation of all potential actors in the realization of new tourist products of sustainable tourism on the local, regional, and national levels is emphasized.
Heritage of Socialism in Škofja Loka
Socialism in Škofja Loka, as elsewhere, brought about changes in the physical and social realms, and left its heritage, which reveals itself in the form of various relics (Balažič, 2010). As relics represent a part of cultural heritage, we should first explain the concept of cultural heritage. The Institute for the Protection of the Cultural Heritage of Slovenia defines cultural heritage as sources and evidence of human history and culture regardless of origin, development and level of preservation (tangible/material heritage), and the cultural assets associated with this (intangible/non-material heritage). The primary function of cultural heritage is its direct incorporation into the physical realm and the active life within it, chiefly in education, the transfer of knowledge and experience from past periods of history, and the strengthening of national originality and cultural authenticity (ZVKDS, 2012).
Relics of socialism are the result of socialist rule and represent a phenomenon of that time. These are the physical phenomena of the time, economic and housing facilities, perhaps entire suburban settlements or separate buildings, nationalized agricultural land and other buildings in the area, such as monuments, particularly the National Liberation War (WW2) monuments, and are typologically different because they are the result of human management of the physical realm in various fields, such industry, settlement, agriculture and ideology (Balažič, 2010). Relics belong to the categories of cultural heritage previously mentioned and can be divided into relics of industry, settlement, agriculture and ideology. Currently, physical relics of socialism represent an important historical, social, technical and political expression of what socialism used to be in the physical and social realms.
A word about industrial heritage might be instructive here, because the process of industrialization was very different across historical time and space. For instance, the heritage of industrialization in 18th century England was a far different set of circumstances than in countries that were industrialized nearly two centuries later. In fact, in a place like Škofja Loka, which was virtually not industrialized until the socialist era, it may be said that the process was a particularly socialist process.
Relics of industry in Škofja Loka are closely linked with industrialization, which took place soon after the implementation of the new political system in 1945 and up until the late 1970s. Industrialization left its mark in both smaller and larger Slovenian cities; the share of the industrial population increased from 11% to 19% within a few years. According to the number of employees, the metals industry ranked first, followed by the textile, wood and chemical industries. This development also included industries that previously did not exist: electrical engineering, chemicals, mechanical engineering (Vrišer, 1978).
Among the most important factories in Škofja Loka relevant to the time of industrialization are the factory of Gorenjska predilnica, LTH, a refrigerator factory, and Šešir, a hat factory (Nedižavec, 2011). Upon nationalization in 1945, Gorenjska predilnica became a social property. After a rapid economic rise and high revenue, in 1975 they made a substantial investment, introducing a new process of spinning cotton and synthetic fibres, which achieved higher productivity. The crisis in the textile industry at the end of the 1990s, which resulted in the advantage of Asian textile companies over European ones, left Gorenjska predilnica facing restructuring. Starting in the 1960s, LTH had a reputation for producing high quality compressors for refrigerators, coolers and freezers; it was founded in the 1930s. During the socialist era, it was renamed Loška tovarna hladilnikov (LTH, which means "Loška factory of refrigerators"). Until the collapse of Yugoslavia, the company was successful, but soon after suffered its first losses and incurred debt. Since then, production has declined. In 2002, 500 workers were employed (Mrdja, 2005).
These companies were all established before World War II, but started operating on a larger scale in the 1960s, when economic circumstances became quite favourable. All major companies of the region had their headquarters in the Tara industrial zone of in Škofja Loka, next to the railway line. Several other companies failed or were required to drastically alter their ownership structures and reduce the number of employees since the year 2000. One of them is Šešir, the hat factory, which was established in 1921. The factory reached its zenith around 1960 (Planina, 1976). Currently, it is still operating but at a significantly reduced capacity.
Figure 1: Šešir hats factory Source: Žiga Nedižavec
The development of industry has influenced the development and expansion of the suburban settlements of Podlubnik, Frankovo and Groharjevo, which represent the relic of settlement. Such settlements were located on the edges of the town and built mostly in the 1970s. These settlements primarily consisted of multi-storey blocks that were built next to each other, often in groups, with little architectural flourish.
As a consequence of industrialization, the share of the rural population between 1948 and 1971 fell from 44% to just over 20% (Vrišer, 1978). The postwar period was characterized by a process of agrarian reform, the result of which was land consolidation, and modernization of the countryside under then principles of development, which was a priority of the authorities. Post-war changes in agriculture had a substantial impact on land treatment, and its effects remain visible today. "De-agrarianization" and the collapse of many small agricultural holdings was common. Among the relics of agricultural changes are agricultural cooperatives, which represent not only architectural cultural heritage but also the heritage of rural life. Their main role was the trade of general consumables, distribution of fertilizers and materials for reproduction. Furthermore, they familiarized farmers with new working methods, machinery, and crops. An example of an agricultural cooperative is Log near Škofja Loka.
AcADEMicA Turistica, Year 7, No. 1, June 2014 | 63
Figure 2: Agricultural cooperative in Log near Škofja Loka
Source: Žiga Nedižavec
Figure 4: Naming a street in Škofja Loka Source: Žiga Nedižavec
After World War II, numerous monuments, commemorative plaques and memorials to meritorious individuals during the war of liberation were erected. Such monuments represent the building heritage of ideology, while the naming of streets, squares and other institutions to emphasize the importance of prominent socialist figures maintain a strong symbolic and ideological function, representing socialism's intangible heritage. Both types of heritage are relics of ideology. One such example is the monument to the fallen soldiers of WWII war and victims of fascist violence, built in 1962 in Godešič, and another dedicated to 50 hostages who were shot during the war in Kamnitnik. Some examples of intangible relics are Demšar Street, Boris Kidrič Street, Franko-
Figure 3: Monument of National Liberation War in
Godešič Source: Žiga Nedižavec
vo settlement, etc. Most such streets and institutions have retained their names to the present time (ZAL, 1948).
Methodology - Analysis of Interviews of Tourism Industry Representatives
In order to determine the position of stakeholders regarding the integration of the heritage of socialism into the range of tourism services, we conducted four semi-structured interviews with leading representatives of the tourism industry in Škofja Loka and the surrounding area.
We took this approach rather than make a suggestive study among local inhabitants for a few reasons. First, in general, any new ideas that promise the possibility of extra income are usually eagerly adopted. Second, the issue of Slovenia's relationship with her past is simultaneously and complex, and our intent here is not to examine this topic. From what we know anecdotally, Slovenes who lived as adults during socialist times have very favourable memories of that period, but given the failure of post-independence economics to retain the best aspects of socialism (such as economic security) and add to these benefits without ill effect, we cannot draw fair conclusions without extensive study. Finally, we believe that any evident opening for expanded tourism is to be explored, and if it is not in any way destructive, it is of obvious value; this cultural/historical/intellectual notion of an immersion into socialist life is likely to appeal to some number of Westerners immedi-
ately, and, once established, is relatively low maintenance and thus likely to endure indefinitely; such as, for instance, the castle in Škofja Loka.
Interviewees were leading persons in companies and organizations: a consultant for regional development and tourism development at the Sora development agency, the Director of the Loški Museum, the director of incoming overseas travel at the Kompas Slovenia travel agency, and the marketing manager at one of the hotels in Bled. We included just a relative few diverse stakeholders of the region of interest, for one thing, because of the limited resources available to us; but, second, we were comfortable in doing so because the involvement of more parties, such as other professors and other public figures, would inevitably lead to a less traceable complex of conflicting interests, and conflicting interests would inevitably arise once a second party were included. Our goal is merely to establish the grounds for discussion of such a project before attempting a more comprehensive study.
All the interviewees were asked the same or similar questions.
The first question sought to determine in what detail interviewees know the range of tourism services based on the heritage of socialism in Slovenia and abroad. The responses showed poor knowledge about the issue, which is understandable in the case of Slovenia, because this kind of tourism service is underdeveloped. The most familiar are the director of the leading Slovenian tour operator and the hotel marketing manager. They both know of some examples of "socialist tourist attractions" associated with the former Yugoslavian leader Tito (for example, his birthplace at Kumrovac and his villa in Bled). Moreover, in relation to range of tourism services featuring the heritage of socialism, the interviewees highlighted examples of industrial heritage tourism in eastern European countries and Slovenia. Among those mentioned were different factories in Silesia and the former German Democratic Republic (East Germany) and Jesenice in Slovenia, where adventure parks and museums have been created in recent years.
Through the second and third questions, we obtained concrete answers regarding the "reasonableness" of implementing the heritage of socialism into the range of tourism services in Škofja Loka. The director from Kompas accepted the idea with enthusi-
asm and was ready to work on the implementation of such heritage into existing tourist arrangements for Škofja Loka with adequate participation of local tourism representatives (especially the local tourism organization (LTO)). He said that such an offer would be of interest to visitors from the USA, who could explore their roots in Slovenia and would like to know the places where their ancestors lived, as well as those interested in socialism as a political system in Yugoslavia. This is so-called "tailor-made" travel.
The idea of integrating the heritage of socialism into the range of tourism services seemed unattractive to all the other interviewees. The most openly expressed view came from the hotel marketing manager, who believed that such an offer is not suitable for the destination and would be generally unattractive for foreign guests. He believes that the Gorenjska region should be primarily marketed as an idyllic natural heritage region. The director of the Loški Museum and the consultant from the Sora agency shared this opinion. They stated the belief that it would be necessary to develop Škofja Loka as a "medieval" tourist town, believing that that should be the trademark of the town.
When asked if their company or organization would involve itself in implementing this type of tourism- only the marketing manager from the hotel expressed a strongly contrary opinion, while the museum director and consultant replied cautiously that they did not "mind" such a bid, but doubted that the project would be successful. The director from Kompas believed that such an offer would mean a "refreshment" and innovation in the Slovenian tourist market but that it would be necessary to follow the successful marketing cases from abroad, such as the that for heritage of socialism in Hungary and Poland, but also there were relevant examples of heritage tourism in Slovenia, such as that of the Soška Front in the Soča valley. All the interviewees believed that it would be necessary to ensure high quality and effective marketing before implementing new tourism products that would result in new tourists flows to Škofja Loka. They also agreed that it would be necessary to do market research at the beginning to determine whether such tourism products would be interesting to tourists at all, as well as which segment of tourists should be targeted (young, middle age, domestic, foreign, etc.).
The last question was about the major obstacles in the implementation of the heritage of socialism into the range of tourism service. We received the most concrete response from the Sora consultant, highlighting the following: finance, and the mentality and openness of the local population to such a proposal. In the latter case, the issue is that it might be difficult to avoid politicization of the issue, pitting those in favour against those against. It would probably take some time before people entirely accept socialism as a part of cultural heritage. All four agreed that a problem might arise when an individual tourism representative would apply for financial backing, and they also foresaw complications in the area of marketing and in the segmentation of tourists. Some argue that such an offer is suitable for the elderly foreign tourists, others that it is worth focusing on younger visitors, including students that do not know much about socialism, and that tourism products should take on an educational role. They also emphasize the proper B2B cooperation of all stakeholders and integration with other Slovenian destinations, with the aim of the providing a fully rounded range of the tourism services. This problem reflects the organization of Slovenian tourism, which is, unfortunately, insufficiently developed, with the Gorenjska region in particular falling short of its potential.
On the basis of the above findings from the interviews, we can be presume that tourism stakeholders are for the most part unfamiliar with tourism based on socialist heritage abroad. Three of the four we interviewed generally thought that the inclusion of the heritage of socialism would enrich the range of tourism services in the region. One of them was against the integration of heritage of socialism into range of tourism services Škofja Loka. One would be prepared to invest partly, and two of them thought that such integration would contribute to greater recognizabil-ity of the region. Regarding problems that may arise in the process of integration, all of them agreed that the key factor would be the role of individual tourism representatives in financing and the means of marketing and segmentation of tourists. One of them also highlighted the sensitive attitude towards this kind of heritage of the local population, because it is still linked with the nexus of politics and recent history.
Integration of Socialist Cultural Heritage into Tourism Offer of Škofja Loka
The number of tourists travelling to Eastern Europe in recent years has increased. One of the main reasons is the refreshed tourism serves of destinations targeting special tourist segments (Prosser, 2001). Furthermore, "alternative" or "niche tourism", which may both overlap with socialist heritage tourism, are becoming increasingly prevalent. We believe that the heritage of socialism represents great tourism potential, and we have formed proposals for the integration of this kind of heritage into the range of tourism services. These proposals are tightly linked to relics of socialism such as those we presented.
We suggest an arrangement of relics of industry and other types of relics in a sustainable way as research demonstrates the growing demand for tourist visits to environmentally responsible destinations (UNWTO, 2012). Relics of industry may form a thematic pathway in a factory area and an exhibition of industry in one of the existing factories, for example, LTH or Šešir; the establishment of a souvenir shop; an exhibition of relics of socialism in the Škofja Loka Museum; and the reconstruction of the agricultural cooperative as a building heritage site. An upgrade of the socialist heritage tourism would be a thematic excursion entitled "Trail of socialism, with academic lecturers" and a special integrated travel arrangement, "Life in socialism". Cities such as Berlin and Prague, Gdansk and Sofia, all have socialist landscapes, once functioning as intended, now remaining as recognized relics of that era; some require no external designation, some have been revived as thematic touristic products, in certain instances (Czep-czynski, 2008). Of importance is that in the cities we cite, for both the local inhabitants and the current tourism stakeholders, these additional tourism services in no way detract from the circumstances -touristic and otherwise - of these cities, just as the medieval focus of Škofja Loka's tourism need not be altered; in fact, one ought to recognize here the fate of larger and more complex cities (to name one even more complex than Berlin or Gdansk, there is Istanbul) that have many layers of history, all of them "on offer" at all times. In this regard, one might understand that tourist services, in some aspects, reflect historical processes.
A factory may decide to open a museum on the industry's history while inviting visitors to tour the existing factory as well (a common example of successfully implementing this idea structurally is to be found in innumerable breweries). Thus, the tourism product would have several possible components, such as a factory tour, a purpose-built visitor centre, catering facilities and shops selling the company's products themselves (this would seem especially apt for the hat factory) as well as in the form of souvenirs (Yale, 2004). Former local factories present a precise and profound industrial and technical heritage and should be included in the range of tourism services of Škofja Loka. We also recommend a short thematic pathway and exhibition that would represent working conditions in the factories, industrial development, principle industrial products, and the life of the typical socialist working man. It is also possible to reorganize a factory hall into a museum or small souvenir shop, or both. LTH and Šešir are suitable factories for reorganization for such tourism purposes.
Tourists are often reminded of their visited destination through the souvenirs they purchase; therefore, it would be reasonable to establish souvenir shops, where visitors might buy several products linked to socialism, such as umbrellas, T-shirts, pens and other products with socialist motifs. Since Tito's cult of personality is still recognizable in Western countries and the USA, it would be appropriate to sell a set of souvenirs related to him (Balažič, 2011). Souvenir shops should focus on the personality of Tito as president, marshal and national hero, his image displayed on a variety of items. Miniature models of socialist block buildings (Podlubnik) in Škofja Loka and factory models (LTH) might also be made available.
Another proposal for a tourism service is the opening of both permanent and temporary exhibitions of socialism in the Museum of Škofja Loka that would present the period from 1945 to 1990. The emphasis would be on different social spheres. The museum collection could include displays of aspects of daily life, politics, history, sports, education, the military, media and art from the socialist era. Aside from the tourist value, such exhibitions would also provide an important educational and cultural function. The museum would be suitably equipped for ed-
ucational purposes and would thus be of interest to young visitors from Slovenia and visitors from Western Europe and the USA. Among notable exhibitions would be those concerning the visit Tito to Škofja Loka (1973), celebrating of Dan borca 4. julij (Warrior's Day July 4th), Štafeta mladosti (Relay of Youth), etc. The exhibition could be modelled on the successful Museum of Communism in Prague, Czech Republic; however, it is important to stress that here is a very pronounced distinction between Yugoslav socialism and that of countries directly under USSR control, and any museum in this region would necessarily reflect that.
Agricultural cooperatives played an important role in local farmers' lives after World War II. With the reorganization of one of the agricultural cooperatives, we could display rural life from that period. We suggest the opening of an exhibit that would include the collection of various materials, documents and photos that represent farming and the everyday life of local farmers. It would be a very good idea to organize a market for tourists where it would be possible to buy only local agricultural products that were available during the socialist era.
A thematic excursion entitled "Trail of socialism, with academic lectures" would also include academic lectures in addition to sightseeing of socialist relics. This excursion is appropriate for domestic and especially foreign students, and also for tourists who are interested in cultural heritage. Co-organizers of the excursion could be educational institutions, including local high schools, universities and institutes. At the beginning of such an excursion, students could go sightseeing and learn about monuments and memorial plaques such as Kamnitnik and Dom zveze borcev za vrednote NOB Škofja Loka. Meanwhile, students would complete assignments given them by the organizer. Furthermore, they would visit the typical suburban settlement of Podlubnik and Šešir. The tourist guide and history professor would play an important role in the presentation of these two socialist relics. The thematic excursion would be completed with a typical working lunch, and participants would receive a souvenir, perhaps a Young Pioneers hat from the period of socialism. Naturally, these are but suggestions used here to given a full idea of what this type of tourism could be like; in practice, a vari-
ety of alternatives are available (for instance, see Ivanov 2009, for similar ideas in Bulgaria).
Our final proposal is an integrated travel arrangement. The tourist package would include, for example, two overnight stays in a typically socialist flat; rental of a car typical of the era, such as a Zastava; purchasing of foodstuffs in a socialist grocery store, where only essential goods of famous brands from the period of socialism are available; and guests might wear clothes from that era (jeans, working clothes, etc.) and take part in an authentic (if replicated) socialist celebration.
To make this experience truly authentic, tourists should stay in a socialist apartment complex, a sort of heritage hotel. A key role would be played by the equipment in the rooms and the interior design. The apartment itself would be a theme park. In order to internalize the experience to the utmost, the tourist should adapt to the environment, which means the exclusion of more modern devices, such as mobile phones, laptops or other electronic devices that were not known and used in the era of socialism. Guests would take care of food and beverages by using the grocery in the neighbourhood, cook for themselves with recipes available in the apartment. A concession would be the inclusion of a canteen, which would offer only basic meals, again typical of the socialist era.
We are well aware of the massive capital investment that would be necessary for implementing this kind of tourist product, but we believe that such innovation is necessary for the success of future tourism in Slovenia. The ideas must be put in place following successful similar examples and in consideration of the market situation. In addition, as our study is somewhat impressionistic, given the few stakeholders interviewed, a more comprehensive study would be beneficial before any final version of the project is initiated. Eventually, if properly implemented and advertized, such a destination would become recognized and well known abroad.
Conclusion
Škofja Loka, despite its rich cultural and natural heritage, is one of the least developed tourist towns in Slovenia. Therefore, we conducted interviews with stakeholders of the local tourism industry to obtain their views on the integration of heritage socialism into the range of the tourism services of Škofja Loka.
We believe that new tourism products derived from the heritage of socialism that can be sustainably arranged would contribute to a new start for tourism in Škofja Loka and attract both domestic and foreign tourists. In this regard, we have created some tourism products based on the heritage of socialism that would enrich the existing range of tourism services in Škofja Loka.
Although some persistently reject the integration of the heritage of socialism into the tourism services and products in Škofja Loka, because this kind of heritage is believed to be inappropriate and of potentially troublesome political controversy, it would be an innovation on the tourism market not only in Šk-ofja Loka but also in Slovenia. The interviews that we conducted showed that tourism stakeholders do not know much about this kind of tourism product from abroad, but are generally sufficiently interested that it would make sense to move forward with the idea. Some of them are willing to support and engage themselves in the process of making new tourist products as they represent an innovation for the Slovenian market.
We are aware that our proposals for the integration of the heritage of socialism is only one small step forward and that much remains to be done in this re-gard._Integrating the heritage of socialism into tourism requires the cooperation of tourism stakeholders and, furthermore, the fulfilment of conditions such as (foremost) the adoption of a holistic program, for the innovative aspect of our proposal is offering the possibility to live socialism. These proposals address the stakeholders in the hope of reaching consensus in the process of creating tourism products. Other conditions for advancement on this path include using the concept of sustainable tourism wherein all stakeholders are actively playing their allotted roles, which means emphasizing the intensive involvement of the local population. The process of creating tourism products should include all tourism stakeholders in Škofja Loka, starting with the Škofja Loka municipal government and the Sora Development Agency, which could help with the financing and arrangement of facilities. Financial funding could be obtained within the framework of EU projects. Local travel agencies would take on a significant role in the field of marketing and would have the responsibility of designing new tourism products and services, in-
eluding arranging the involvement of local inhabitants. This would, of course, mean new jobs. Currently, Škofja Loka has only 196 permanent beds in the accommodation facilities (SURS, 2012), and no hotel; this too must be taken into account and, as we have suggested in line with our thesis, in order to offer a truly authentic experience for tourists the hotel may be located within the settlements constructed during the time of socialism.
We can conclude that with proper support from the local community and investors the realization of new sustainable tourism products based on the heritage of socialism in Škofja Loka, tourism would be given a new impetus and thus contribute to the promotion of Škofja Loka as a destination and Slovenia as a country.
References
Balažič, G. (2010). Integrating cultural heritage of socialism into the tourism offer of the municipality of Koper. In F. D. Pineda & C. Brebbia (Eds.), Sustainable Tourism IV (pp. 369-381). Southampton, England: WIT Press. Balažič, G. (2011). Marshaling Tito: A Plan for Socialist Cultural Heritage Tourism in Slovenia. Focus on Geography, 54(3), 103-110. Czepczynski, M. (2008). Cultural landscapes of post-socialist cities: representation of powers and needs. Aldershot, England: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.
Ivanov, S. (2009). Opportunities for developing communist heritage tourism in Bulgaria. Tourism Review, 57(2), 177-192. Light, D. (2000a). An unwanted past: contemporary tourism and the heritage of communism in Romania. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 6(2), 145-160.
Light, D. (2000b). Gazing on communism: heritage tourism and post-communist identities in Germany, Hungary and Romania. Tourism Geographies, 2(2), 157-176. Mrdja, Z. (2005). Analiza poslovanja družbe LTH Škofja Loka., d.d.. (Diplomsko delo). University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Nedižavec, Ž. (2011). Vključevanje dediščine socializma v turistično ponudbo občine Škofja Loka (Zaključna projektna naloga). Portorož, Slovenia:
Fakulteta za turistične študije Portorož - Turistica.
Papp, Z., Raffay, A. (2011). Factors influencing the tourism competitiveness of former socialist countries. Human Geographies, 5(2): 21-30.
Prosser, G. (2001) Regional tourism. In D. Norman & D. Ros (Eds.), Special Interest Tourism (pp. 86109). Brisbane, Australia: John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.
Planina, F. (1976). Škofja Loka s Poljansko in Selško dolino. Škofja Loka: Muzejsko društvo v Škofji Loki.
Ràtz, T., Smith, M., & Michalkó, G. (2008). New Places in Old Spaces: Mapping Tourism and Regeneration in Budapest. Tourism Geographies, 10(4):
429-451.
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SURS - Statistični urad Republike Slovenije. (2012). Statistični letopis Republike Slovenije. Prenočitvene zmogljivosti po skupinah nastanitvenih objektov, občine, Slovenija, letno. Retrieved from http://pxweb.stat.si/pxweb/Dialog/varval.as-p?ma=2164504S&ti=&path=../Database/Ekon-omsko/21_gostinstvo_turizem/02_21645_nas-tanitev_letno/&lang= 2
Swarbrooke, J. (2002). The development and management of visitor attractions. Oxford, England: Reed Educational and Professional Publishing Ltd.
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Vrišer, J. (1978). Regionalno planiranje. Ljubljana, Slovenia: Mladinska knjiga.
Yale, P. (2004). From Tourist Attractions to Heritage Tourism, 3rd Edition. Huntingdon, England: Elm publications.
ZAL - Zgodovinski arhiv Ljubljana. (1948). Mestni odbor Škofja Loka, TE 3AE11 (interno gradivo). SIZALŠKL7. Škofja Loka, Slovenia: Arhiv Škofja Loka.
ZVKDS - Zavod za varstvo kulturne dediščine Slovenije. (2012). Retrieved from http://www. zvkds.si/sl/
Otroško potovanje v dialogu: kronotopi, naracije in vodniki
Irena Weber
Medtem ko so v minulih dveh desetletjih na področju študij otroštva nastale kvalitetne raziskave tako znotraj družboslovja kot humanistike, je opazno pomanjkanje raziskav na temo otroškega potovanja/turizma. Članek nagovarja to pomanjkanje v zelo omejenem obsegu, in sicer z analizo prostorskih in časovnih dimenzij otroških potovanj v literaturi in specializiranih vodnikih z uporabo dveh izbranih konceptov: Bakhtinovimi kronotopi in starogrškim konceptom kairosa v interpretaciji sodobne filozofije. Uporabljena metodologija združuje avtoetno-grafijo, narativno in kvalitativno vizualno analizo.
Ključne besede: otroško potovanje, kronotopi, Kairos, naracije, potovalni vodniki Academica Turistica, 7(1), 3-14
Značilnosti in motivacija wellness obiskovalcev Portoroža v nizki sezoni
Helena Nemec Rudež
Namen - Članek raziskuje socio-demografske značilnosti, identificira motivator-je in aktivnosti wellness-turistov v Portorožu.
Oblikovanje/metodologija/pristop - Raziskava temelji na strukturiranem vprašalniku, ki ga je izpolnilo 246 respondentov v nizki sezoni. Med njimi je bilo 77 re-spondentov identificiranih kot wellness-turisti. Le-ti so bili upoštevani za nadaljnje raziskovanje. Podatki so se zbirali na različnih lokacijah v Portorožu. Empirična raziskava uporablja opisno statistiko.
Ugotovitve - Wellness-obiskovalci Portoroža so večinoma starejši, zaposleni in ponovni obiskovalci Portoroža. Večinoma iščejo dobro počutje in oddih. Zanimiva je ugotovitev, da se wellness-obiskovalci Portoroža večinoma udeležujejo pasivnih aktivnosti in aktivnosti, ki se ponujajo znotraj hotelskih zmogljivosti. Originalnost - Članek predstavlja začeten korak za boljše razumevanje well-ness-obiskovalcev Portoroža in je tako prispevek k skromni literaturi o well-ness-turizmu z usmerjanjem v sredozemsko destinacijo v nizki sezoni. Ključne besede: wellness, raziskava, wellness-obiskovalci, značilnosti, motivacija Academica Turistica, 7(1), 15-21
Odzivi odgovornih turistov: Omejitve in vrzeli v raziskavi prodružbeno usmerjenih potrošnikov
Petra Zabukovec Baruca in Aleksandra Brezovec
Članek temelji na konceptu odgovornosti v turizmu z vidika turista. Namen prispevka je preučitev vprašanje primernosti odgovornega vedenja potrošnikov v kontekstu trajnostnega razvoja turizma. Sodobne oblike odgovornosti v turizmu (npr. trajnostni turizem, etični turizem, eko turizem, zeleni turizem) so se pojavile kot odziv turističnih deležnikov na globalna gospodarska, družbena in okoljska vprašanja. Pri teh oblikah turizma vstopa v ospredje prevzemanje odgovornosti za vplive, ki jih ima turizem na družbeno, ekonomsko in naravno okolje (Goodwin in Pender 2005). Spremembe so bistveni del človeške evolucije, ki se v sodo-
bnem svetu odvijajo čedalje hitreje. Pri tem je turist kot potrošnik ključni akter v turističnem sistemu, zato ga v raziskavi postavljamo v ospredje. Pričujoči konceptualno zasnovani članek temelji na znanstvenem pregledu literature in primerjalni analizi različnih konceptov, ki izhajajo iz empiričnih študij o odgovornem obnašanju potrošnikov v turizmu.
Ključne besede: turist, odgovornost, prodružbeni potrošnik, vedenje potrošnikov, trajnostni turizem Academica Turistica, 7(1), 23-33
Pomen kupčeve potrebe po edinstvenosti v turističnem kontekstu
2ana Čivre in Tomaž Kolar
Članek se ukvarja z relevantnostjo psihološkega koncepta, poimenovanega kot »potreba po edinstvenosti« (PPE) v kontekstu turizma, pri katerem je očiten manko teoretskega preučevanja in empiričnega preverjanja. Z namenom učinkovitega soočenja s to praznino definiramo, konceptualiziramo in empirično preučimo koncept PPE na primeru mladih odraslih, da bi preverili njegov potencialni pomen kot segmentacijsko variablo. Pridobljeni rezultati nudijo oporo dvema hipotezama: 1) da segment turistov, ki potuje preko potovalne agencije, izkazuje nižjo stopnjo PPE kot segment, ki potuje preko samoorganiziranih aranžmajev, in 2) da segment bolje poučenih turistov izkazuje višje ravni PPE. Iz ugotovitev bi lahko sklepali, da imajo različne komponente PPE različne vloge kot segmentacijske variable in nudijo oporo teoriji edinstvenosti, pri čemer predpostavljajo, da se turisti želijo zmerno (toda ne ekstremno) razlikovati od drugih (turistov). Prispevek zaključimo s kratko diskusijo z upravljanjem povezanih implikacij in omejitev. Ključne besede: vedenje potrošnikov, teorija edinstvenosti, potreba potrošnikov po
edinstvenosti, turizem Academica Turistica, 7(1), 35-45
Kakovost izkušnje obiska gostinskega obrata - pregled literature
Marko Kukanja
Pomen kakovosti je prepoznala večina storitvene industrije, saj prinaša dobiček in ima znaten učinek na vedenje stranke. Merjenje kvalitete strežbe v restavracijah je pritegovalo pozornost raziskovalcev gostoljubja od implementacije modela DI-NESERV v sredini 90. let dalje. Kot dokaj nova tematika zahteva pogosto in kritično ocenjevanje, ki bo osvetlilo stanje trenutnih raziskav in povzročilo nujne prilagoditve metodoloških raziskovalnih procesov in fokusa raziskav. Kljub temu pa je bilo doslej sistematičnih revizij tega raziskovalnega področja malo. Kot takšna si pričujoča študija prizadeva zapolniti praznino z izpeljavo kvalitativne analize raziskovanja kakovosti restavracij od sredine 90. let 20. stoletja dalje. Posebna pozornost je bila posvečena trženjski perspektivi in različnim tržnim dejavnikom (hrani, ljudem in ceni), saj konsenza o tem, kateri od tržnih dejavnikov je najpomembnejši pri ocenjevanju kakovosti izkušnje obiska, ni. Zdi se, da je kot ključna komponenta pri ugotavljanju kakovosti izkušnje obiska pogosto sprejeta kvaliteta hrane, toda kar nekaj študij je kot najpomembnejši dejavnik v industriji resta-
vracij identificiralo kakovost strežbe (dejavnik ljudje). Kvalitativna študija s pristopom utemeljene teorije je bila uporabljena preko analize relevantne znanstvene literature. Podatki o zaznavnih odzivih gostov so bili zbrani iz člankov, ki se ukvarjajo s kakovostjo restavracij, pridobljenih iz glavnih akademskih baz podatkov. Na podlagi ekstenzivnega pregleda literature nam ugotovitve razkrijejo, da raziskave kakovosti restavracij ostajajo na stopnji razvijajočih se industrijskih raziskovalnih modelov. Rezultati raziskave razkrijejo tudi, da so rezultati številnih študij medsebojno nekonsistentni in protislovni. Iz tega razloga ni mogoče poenostavljati in kot najpomembnejšega izpostaviti le en dejavnik kakovosti. Raziskovalci bi zato morali svoje raziskovalne tehnike prilagoditi različnim okoljem in tipom prehrambenih obratov. Raziskava je izpostavila mnogo vprašanj, potrebnih nadaljnjega preučevanja. Prihodnje raziskave bi morale vključiti širši razpon dimenzij kakovosti. Predlagamo, da se v prihodnjih študijah empirično razišče povezavo različnih tržnih dejavnikov.
Ključne besede: industrija restavracij, tržni dejavniki, izkušnja obiska, kvaliteta strežbe
Academica Turistica, 7(1), 47-60
Dediščina socializma v Škofji Loki kot priložnost za razvoj turizma
Gregor Balažič in 2iga Nedižavec
Nekatera vzhodnoevropska mesta so v zadnjih letih v turistično ponudbo vključila dediščino socializma in izoblikovala različne turistične proizvode, ki jih uspešno tržijo. Ker je tovrstna dediščina prisotna tudi v Sloveniji, menimo, da bi jo bilo mogoče s turističnimi proizvodi ob ustrezni predstaviti in ureditvi tržiti v številnih slovenskih občinah, tudi v Škofji Loki. Uporabili smo kvalitativne pol-strukturirane intervjuje s štirimi različnimi turističnimi deležniki v regiji in pridobili njihova mnenja o smiselnosti implementacije dediščine socializma v turistično ponudbo občine Škofja Loka. Prav tako predstavljamo dediščino socializma in predloge novih trajnostnih turističnih proizvodov, ki temeljijo na reliktih socializma.
Ključne besede: dediščina socializma, Škofja Loka, trajnostni turističnih proizvodi, turistični deležniki, turistični razvoj Academica Turistica, 7(1), 61-69
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Academica Turistica - Tourismand Innovation Journal (at-tij) is a peer-reviewed journal that provides a forum for the dissemination of knowledge on tourism and innovation from a social sciences perspective. It especially welcomes contributions focusing on innovation in tourism and adaptation of innovations from other fields in tourism settings.
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One author. Tourism innovation specific ismentioned (Brooks, 2010). Thomas (1992) had concluded . . . Two authors. This result was later contradicted (Swarbrooke &Horner, 2007). Price and Murphy
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American Psychological Association. (2009). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.).Washington, dc: Author. Swarbrooke, J., & Horner, S. (2007). Consumer behaviour in tourism. Oxford, England: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Journals
Laroche, M., Bergeron, J., & Barbaro-Forleo, G.
(2001).	Targeting consumers who are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly products. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 18(6), 503-520.
Wolchik, S. A., West, S. G., Sandler, I. N., Tein, J.Y., Coatsworth, D., Lengua, L., ... Griffin, W. A. (2000). An experimental evaluation of theory based mother and mother-child programs for children of divorce. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68, 843-856.
Newspapers
Brooks, A. (2010, 7 July). Building craze threatens to end Lanzarote's biosphere status. Independent. Retrieved from http://www.independent.co.uk/ environment/nature/building-craze-threatens-to-end-lanzarotes-biosphere-status-2020064. html
Chapters in Books
Poirier, R. A. (2001). A dynamic tourism development model in Tunisia: Policies and prospects. In Y. Aposotolopoulos, P. Loukissas, & L. Leontidou (Eds.), Mediterranean tourism (pp. 197-210). London, England: Routledge.
Conference Proceedings
Price, G., & Murphy, P. (2000). The relationship between ecotourism and sustainable development: A critical examination. In M. Ewen (Ed.), cauthe 2000: Peak performance in tourism and hospitality research; Proceedings of the Tenth Australian Tourism and Hospitality Research Conference (pp. 189-202). Bundoora, Australia: La Trobe University.
Paper Presentation
Thomas, J. (1992, July). Tourism and the environment: An exploration of the willingness to pay of the average visitor. Paper presented at the conference Tourism in Europe, Durham, England.
Theses and Dissertations
Sedmak, G. (2006). Pomen avtentičnosti turističnega proizvoda: primer destinacije Piran (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Working Papers
Salamon, L.M., Sokolowski, S.W., Haddock,M. A., & Tice, H. S. (2013). The state of global civil society volunteering: Latest findings from the implementation of the un nonprofitt handbook (Comparative Nonprofit Sector Working Paper No. 49). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University.
Web Pages
Croatian Bureau of Statistics. (2001). Census of population, households and dwellings. Retrieved from
AcADEMicA Turistica, Year 7, No. 1, June 2014 | 77
http://www.dzs.hr/Eng/censuses/Census200i/ census.htm
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