8,916 research outputs found
Humour, tourism and positive psychology
No full text[Extract] Peter Collett, a prominent British commentator on social behaviour, argues that humour and laughter are central to our well-being and social judgements. In particular, he observes that those who respond to our humour and jokes are seen as attractive to us. Those who fail to laugh with us are seen much less favourably (Collett, 2004). In earlier analyses other social psychologists argued that appreciating and responding to humour can generate positive health outcomes by reducing stress and enhancing personal control (Argyle, 1987; Solomon, 1996). Positive psychologists have identified having a sense of humour as a core character strength. In this view humour is effectively a virtue which helps individuals forge connections to the larger universe and provides them with meaning (Peterson and Seligman, 2004; Park et al., 2005).
Following these multiple perspectives, it can be suggested that, at least in contemporary Western society, having a good sense of humour is widely regarded as a positive trait. The temptation to suggest that a good sense of humour is a positive universal trait is appealing, although the ways in which humour is displayed and appreciated across cultures may be quite different and not easily understood by external observers (Dann, 1996). In tourism studies the role of humour has been specifically identified as first, helping tourists concentrate, second, assisting them to relax and feel comfortable in novel settings, and finally as being useful in enhancing their connections with others (Pearce, 2009). In this chapter two kinds of evidence will be used to add to our understanding of the humour-tourism connection. The first kind of material to be considered will be humour produced for tourists; that is communication designed to appeal to tourists' sense of humour. Instances of this kind of humour will be drawn from tourism businesses and awareness campaigns. A second source of information to build our understanding of the tourism humour connection consists of humour produced by tourists. In particular humorous blogs written by tourists will be considered. This dual approach is consistent with the view that researching a sense of humour must consider the ability to comprehend humorous situations and a different and independent ability to produce humour (Kohler and Ruch, 1996)
Australian copyright regimes and political economy of music
No full textIn this chapter I review the history of in Australia through a singular and exemplary ruling of the Australian High Court made in 2012 and then relate that to the declining fortunes of Australian recorded music professionals. The case in point is Phonographic Performance Company [PPCA] of Australia Limited v Commonwealth of Australia [2012] HCA 8 (hereafter, HCA 8 2012). The case encapsulates the history of copyright law in Australia, with the judicial decision drawing substantive parts of its rationale from the Statute of Anne (8 Anne, c. 19, 1710), as well as acts that regulated the Australian markets prior to 1968. More importantly the High Court decision serves to delineate some important political economic aspects of the recorded music professional in Australia and demonstrates Attali's (1985) assertion that copyright is the mechanism through which composers are, by statute, literally excluded from capitalistic engagement as 'productive labour'. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013. All rights are reserved
Smithson (Michael), Amato (Paul R.), Pearce (Philip) Dimensions of Helping Behavior
No full textDeconchy Jean-Pierre. Smithson (Michael), Amato (Paul R.), Pearce (Philip) Dimensions of Helping Behavior. In: Archives de sciences sociales des religions, n°57/2, 1984. p. 281
Preparation and prospects
No full text[Extract] This volume provides personal accounts of the careers of 10 select scholars who have made important contributions to the study of tourism. In particular, the individuals providing the autobiographies have contributed especially to the study of tourist behavior and experience. Their work implicitly or explicitly approaches tourism study from the perspective of psychology, social psychology, applied sociology, or derivatives from those traditions in marketing and recreation. Curiously, perhaps, few of the scholars would be described at this point in their career as a psychologist, social psychologist, or microsociologist. They are more likely to be called marketing researchers, tourism researchers, consumer behavior analysts, or recreation specialists
From discord to harmony: connecting Australian music and business through the experience economy
No full textIt is argued that connecting music and business presents some challenges. There is the primary issue of the different values of people who inhabit separate worlds; the music set oriented towards expressive, identity affirming creativity and their business counterparts driven by instrumental values underpinned by personal commercial gain. By analysing the way access to music has evolved for Australian audiences, a process shaped by rising affluence and technology, it is possible to see the mutual intersecting interests which reside in creating enabling environments where audiences can enjoy diverse musical styles. This sense of co-production, a covert liaison between music entrepreneurs and the musical audiences, can be further understood by analysing the component parts of experience including an appreciation of the sensory, relationship, affective and personal capital components of listening to music. The players in the music and business sector may be different but it is possible to depict their points of harmony through an appreciation of the dimensions of the modern experience economy
Australian music and Aussie team sports: how the experience economy and the score interact
No full textAs the reach of the experience economy expands into multiple facets of contemporary business new synergies between forms of leisure emerge. One such conjunction is that between music and sport, both popular features of Australian recreational life but now increasingly interwoven contributors to the good times of many Australians. The popularity of three sports in Australia – rugby league, Australian Rules football and cricket – are chosen as examples of nationally popular spectator sports. The increased role of Australian music in enhancing promotion, in shaping game day experiences and extending the social appeal of the three sports are highlighted
Reflections and directions
No full text[Extract] All readers who have considered the autobiographies presented in the preceding pages are likely to have formed impressions of the researchers and their careers. The final section of this monograph provides my personal synthesis of some themes arising in these accounts. The views offered here are those of a participant observer rather than an outsider. Of course, as Simmel (1950) observed, the outsider can view any community through fresh eyes. If the themes I explore in the following remarks are not entirely the same as those identified by some readers, then that can be taken as a healthy sign that this monograph has at least prompted some unique engagement. First, the chapter draws together select observations from the autobiographies and provides links to the works of others who could not participate in this endeavor. Second, the discussion considers the more immediate future for the kinds of studies and interest areas pioneered by the representative authors
Career souvenirs
No full text[Extract] In early 1974, I had my first meeting with my future social psychology supervisor at the University of Oxford. I had recently arrived from Australia, thanks to the benefits of a valuable scholarship from the University of Adelaide. He asked me what I was interested in researching. I babbled on for a few minutes about the complexities of personality, an area where I had conducted my psychology honors thesis. Boring, he commented, what else interests you? I had taken six weeks to reach Oxford, traveling for part of the way on the cheapest of cruise ships accompanied by a cast of weird and wild compatriots. Well, I suggested, somewhat nervously, this process and experience of traveling is interesting. Yes much better, he replied, do some reading and come back with some ideas. So the interest formally began, and hopefully I am still reading and coming back with ideas
A blueprint for tourist experience and fulfilment research
No full text[Extract] Both in communicating research ideas and in planning further studies it is useful to have succinct rubrics or blueprints to guide action. These summary devices can take many forms. Formal theories are usually considered to be the pinnacle of scientific and social science inquiry because they both integrate and direct action (Smith and Lee, 20 I 0). Models, road maps, frameworks, taxonomies and other analogous summary terms are less powerful but also serve as valuable integrative devices. The construction of these way-finding devices does however require abstracting generalisations from the details of the knowledge base. There are some recurring questions underlying this process. How is it possible to seek generalisations about tourist experiences and fulfilment through the lenses of positive psychology when we know there are one billion diverse tourists and numerous specific ways to seek fulfilment through tourism? Is it possible to seek cohesion in our studies when, for example, the research reported has been approached through positivist as well as non-positivist lenses? By identifying common threads in the available studies in this book, it is argued that some useful steps towards building a blueprint for further work are indeed possible
Introducing tourist experience and fulfilment research
No full text[Extract] Towards the end of 2012 the United Nations World Tourism Organisation provided a press release signifying that one billion tourists had crossed international borders during the year (UNWTO, 2012). Undoubtedly this figure will be quoted and re-quoted by tourism students and scholars as they use it to justify, albeit indirectly, the significance of their work. The attention to the statistic of one billion tourists at the start of this book is much more circumspect. It is difficult to provide coherent generalisations about even one million tourists, let alone one billion, even when they are from the same demographic segments and from the same country. It is therefore appropriate to identify our interests in the topic of tourist experience and fulfilment as consistently localised and specific. Our broad intention in this book is to highlight the way well-defined groups of tourists travelling in particular ways to specific kinds of tourist places develop their sense of well-being.
This sense of purpose is not apologetic or necessarily limiting for the scope of the work. A persistent and mindful appreciation however that each chapter describes a component part of the total tourism jigsaw is important. A prevailing awareness that each study and treatment of tourist experience and fulfilment is specific might prevent the problem of researchers seeing contradictions across studies where none really exist. A focus on the context and an awareness of tourism as a variegated phenomenon is also a healthy reminder that many tourist groups remain to be studied as we apply the concepts of positive psychology to tourists' personal growth and well-being. Couch surfing tourists and those who volunteer their time for altruistic purposes are a part of the jigsaw of fulfilment opportunities but so too and in different ways are the package tourists emerging from the growth tourism markets of India and China
- …
