Social impacts as a function of place change
Introduction
More than 140 academic papers have been published examining the impacts of tourism on host communities (Nunkoo, Smith, & Ramkissoon, 2013). Deery, Jago, and Fredline (2012, p. 65), though, note that much of this work is derivative, leading them to conclude “research into the social impacts of tourism appears to be in a state of ‘arrested development,’ [where] there is a sense that the advances in understanding the impacts of tourists on host communities is incremental at best, or potentially circular.” The causes are twofold: much of the research is descriptive and atheoretical; and most studies adopt similar methods, metrics and analytic techniques (Nunkoo et al., 2013). Essentially, the literature demonstrates that attitudes are a function of impacts felt. When the impacts of tourism are seen to be beneficial, attitudes are generally positive and when impacts are perceived to be detrimental, attitudes are negative.
These conclusions raise two fundamental questions that are not answered well in the existing body of research. The first is ‘what causes impacts to be perceived as positive or negative? ’ Impacts are not absolute. Instead they reflect emotive responses to some action. The literature does not provide a deep understanding of what causes a factual condition or event (such as increased traffic) to be perceived as negative (congestion) or positive (rejuvenation brought about by new visitors). The second question is ‘why do attitudes change over time, when the underlying triggering event may not change? ’ As shown in this paper, when the body of literature is examined holistically, attitudes are generally positive during the pre-development and early lifecycle stages, decline during periods of rapid growth and then return to being positive in the maturity and late maturity stages, even though the initial trigger event remains unresolved. The best explanation offered is that residents get used to these changes. But, the process of adjustment is rarely explained convincingly.
This paper proposes that the answer to both questions may be found in the concept of place and the evolving social structure of destinations brought by place change. Place is a socially constructed idea, scripted with certain rules of accepted behaviour (Crang, 2004, Tuan, 1979) that must be adhered to in order for the occupant to feel he or she belongs. Because place is dynamic (McCabe and Stokoe, 2004, Urry, 2001), it becomes a site of negotiation, as movements by individuals and social groups through and use of place ebb and flow (Shaw & Williams, 2004). Since tourism is recognised as an agent of change in destinations (Deery et al., 2012), then it follows it is also be an agent of place change.
The study has three broad objectives. First, the authors argue that destinations consist of three types of dynamic place that sometimes exist in equilibrium and sometimes are subjected to sudden change. ‘Tourism Place’ is signalled and signposted as locations where tourists are welcome. Both tourists and locals coexist in ‘Shared Place,’ while ‘Non-tourism Place’ is designated exclusively for residents and where tourists are not welcome. Changes in the balance among the three types of place can disrupt local communities. The second objective is to determine if an association exists between place change and tourism impacts. The third objective is to determine if changes in attitudes across the destination lifecycle are related to place change and/or place change adjustment. Here we refer to Butler’s (1980) work. These propositions are tested through a meta-analysis of 92 journal articles that examine the impacts of tourism on host communities.
Section snippets
Place and place change
Historically space and place have been theorized as bounded geographic entities (Tapsell & Tunstall, 2008). However, a series of studies illustrate that while both are related, geographic space is also clearly differentiated from social place. Tuan (1975) popularized the idea of place by arguing that while space contains both physical and social dimensions, the socially constructed meaning people ascribe to space transforms it into place and gives it value. As Tuan (1975, pp. 164–165) states
Place within destinations: tourism place, non-tourism place and shared place
The UNWTO (2002) defines a local destination as “a physical space that includes tourism products such as support services and attractions, and tourism resources. It has physical and administrative boundaries defining its management, and images and perceptions defining its market competitiveness. Local destinations incorporate various stakeholders, often including a host community, and can nest and network to form larger destinations.” This definition provides insights into destination minima
Method
A meta-analysis of journal articles analyzing community attitudes to tourism was undertaken to answer the research questions. More than 160 prospective papers was identified from works by Easterling (2004) and Deery et al. (2012), and supplemented by a Google Scholar and Scopus search. Each paper was then read by at least two authors to determine if it met criteria for inclusion. To be included in the study, papers had to be empirical, identify the lifecycle stage of the study area, specify a
Findings
The findings section is divided into two parts. The first part tests whether observed impacts can be attributed to place change. The second part evaluates the relationship between overall attitude to tourism, place change and destination lifecycle stage.
Impacts as a function of place change
Reinterpreting impacts as a function of place change led to the identification of nine major place change thematic domains. The findings suggest that ‘place’ within a touristic sense has multiple social, spatial and economic connotations. Some forms of place change affect individuals directly (personal lifestyle, congestion, dislocation), others were felt indirectly at a community level (generic community, economic, structural), while some represented a hybrid of both (inflation, resource,
Place change, attitude change and destination lifecycle
Perceived impacts of tourism, then, can be argued to be a function of different types of place change. As discussed previously, social disruption theory suggests communities experiencing rapid growth typically enter a period of generalized crisis, but that over time communities adapt to place change. If so, changes in both the frequency and type of place change should be evident throughout a destination’s life cycle, and should relate to changes in overall attitudes to tourism. To test these
Discussion and conclusion
The study argues that destinations consist of different types of place and that an association exists between place change and both observed impacts of and attitudes to tourism. Each of the three types strives to exist in equilibrium, but is occasionally subjected to shocks. The identification of nine thematic domains of place change suggests that the concepts of place change and place attachment are complex, nuanced and have multiple social, economic connotations.
The observation that the
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