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Mental health concerns due to excess use of technology, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, require increased research studies that explore the role of technology in users' wellbeing. This article aims to provide a conceptualization of digital wellbeing (DWB) in hospitality, or wellbeing in digital settings. An integrative literature review was used to identify three main enablers of DWB in hospitality: digital devices, digital interfaces, and digital applications. A conceptual model of DWB in the hospitality industry was created emphasizing the importance of designing digital experiences that foster positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and achievement of users to support their hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing. The paper provides insights for the hospitality sector to enhance DWB. Future research should focus on empirical analyses of users' perceptions to refine and validate the proposed model and examine ethical issues concerning digital wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a research agenda in hospitality management, utilizing positive psychology interventions to improve the wellbeing of customers and employees. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify, evaluate, and synthesize existing research. A conceptual model is proposed for integrating these interventions into hospitality management, aiming to foster both hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing. The model informs future research and practical application, extending beyond traditional social psychology theories. Industry recommendations include the application of generosity strategies, the incorporation of wellbeing models in marketing, and a collective wellbeing management philosophy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflection is a form of deep thinking that is evident in everyday lives – private and professional – and this article offers insights for key parties about reflecting on research outcomes to ensure enhanced tourism impacts post-pandemic. Using a hermeneutic perspective on reflection, the authors reflect on research outcomes since the pandemic began. Three types of reflection are deployed: anticipatory, active and recollective. While the ultimate effects of the pandemic remain uncertain, a scholarly rush to collect new data has been observed. Earlier research predictions seem unlikely to materialise. Taken collectively, the reflections suggest that researchers should slow down and allow for collection of more research data over extended time periods to generate stronger theoretical contributions. Scholars may apply anticipatory, active and recollective reflection to applicable research contexts. Documentation of the reflective process alerts practitioners to economic and social trends which may impact on global tourism post-pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Travel has been identified as a significant contributor to psychological well-being. The recent COVID-19 global pandemic disrupted travel patterns and behaviours, thereby negatively affecting the psychological health and well-being of those involved. With accelerating technology use, multiple forms of virtual tourism have emerged as alternatives to physical travel, including travel via webcam. Webcam travel has received limited scholarly attention, despite the unique capacity of global place-based webcams to offer cost-free, real-time viewing of places and destinations. Similarly, there has been limited research on how participation in webcam travel influences psychological well-being. This research note examines how the digital experience accelerates the hedonic and eudaimonic psychological well-being of webcam viewers by proposing a new model – Webcam Travel DREAMA (detachment-recovery, engagement, affiliation, meaning and achievement) model. The findings provide a better understanding of webcam travel and psychological well-being, establishing potential directions for future researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on positive psychological outcomes of tourism has experienced exponential growth. However, a critical dimension of tourist wellbeing, affiliation, remains underexplored and conceptually underdeveloped. This study draws on 26 in‐depth interviews with international tourists to Fiji to explore the influence of affiliation with nature and social connectedness on tourist wellbeing. Findings demonstrate the integral role of travel companionship, tourist affiliation with nature and connection with local people as critical determinants of positive psychological outcomes. An integrative model across the domains of gaze, practice and reflection is developed to demonstrate how affiliation with nature and social connectedness influence tourist wellbeing. Future research should explore the multi‐sensual character and the therapeutic potential of tourist social encounters and interactions with nature and subsequent implications for tourist wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual reality is providing new opportunities for health and well-being, organizational learning, and tourism management. The study reported in this paper aims to examine whether engaging in a virtual reality tourism experience could function as a restorative intervention strategy to enhance mental well-being of employees in the workplace. The study employed a lab-based pre–post experimental design to test the effectiveness of a virtual reality tourism experience, involving a nature-based marine setting, to enhance mental restoration and reduce mental fatigue. The results show that 3 minutes of a virtual tourism experience can lead to enhanced concentration while boosting the mental well-being of employees, while, at the same time, providing destinations with an opportunity to promote "real" experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite a substantial history of research on the well-being of host communities at tourism destinations, the individual psychological well-being of local residents remains an underexplored topic. This study explores the psychological well-being of tourism host community members through a case study of Queenstown, New Zealand. By drawing on the self-determination theory, an innovative focus group analysis approach, microinterlocutor analysis, complemented by thematic analysis, was used to explain the psychological well-being of individual host community members in a nature-based tourism destination. Findings revealed a sense of autonomy, relatedness to people and the natural environment, feelings of competence or mastery, and beneficence-supported psychological well-being. This study extends prior research on the well-being of host communities by identifying key psychological well-being domains explicitly related to host community members. Practical implications of the findings are highlighted with reference to nature-based destinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the conceptually related fields of sustainability and psychological well-being have been informed by extensive research in recent years, efforts to integrate these fields are yet to be systematically advanced. This lack of integration has left the nexus between sustainability and well-being largely underexplored and conceptually underdeveloped. Tourism offers a novel context within which to explore the intersection. Consequently, this paper critically assesses the relationship between sustainability-related decisions and tourist well-being. It is informed by the analysis of thirty semi-structured in-depth interviews that critically explored the holiday experiences of tourists while travelling internationally. Analysis revealed that both responsible and irresponsible tourist behaviours are interconnected with tourists' psychological well-being and are influenced by external barriers and internal conflicts. Responsible behaviours were found to contribute to eudaimonic well-being through a heightened sense of perceived integrity. Conversely, irresponsible behaviours trigger negative self-appraisals, enacting coping mechanisms and generating guilt. This manuscript presents the triple helix model detailing the complex and interconnected relationship between (ir)responsible behaviour and psychological wellbeing in tourism experiences. Future research should consider the intricate connections between tourists' sustainability-related decisions and psychological well-being as central to the developing sustainable tourism research agendas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on tourists' eudaimonic and hedonic wellbeing has grown exponentially in the tourism literature. The paper re-examines the conceptualization of psychological tourist wellbeing. While there is agreement that tourist wellbeing is multidimensional in nature, it is unclear what specific dimensions, or psychological domains, underpin tourists' hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing. Models that summarize these domains seemingly overlap, notably the PERMA and DRAMMA models. Ideas on re-conceptualizing tourist wellbeing are proposed. A new conceptual model re-organizing hedonic and eudaimonic dimensions of tourists' psychological wellbeing is presented for consideration in future research. This new model is termed DREAMA. It consists of the following dimensions: detachment-recovery (DR); engagement (E); affiliation (A); meaning (M); and achievement (A). The new affiliation dimension now includes both social connections and tourists' connections with the natural environments, thus reframing tourist wellbeing conceptualization beyond human-to-human contact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines emotions generated in potential visitors through the promotional imagery used in fright tourism, a form of dark heritage tourism. In fright tourism, an unusual combination of human emotions of fun and fear are experienced by tourists through activities such as haunted house visits and ghost tours. A modified model, based on Russell's [1980. A circumplex model of affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 39(6), 1161–1178] Circumplex Model of Affect, was developed to measure emotions in fright tourism advertising. The model was constructed with empirical data from the United States and New Zealand. The data were obtained through interviews with business owners of fright tourism attractions, focus groups, and a questionnaire of potential visitors. Findings indicated statistically significant correlations exist between human emotions in different quadrants of the model (positive/pleasant and negative/unpleasant). The findings suggest, contrary to the application of the Circumplex Model in more conventional tourism settings, that fright tourism business' advertisements induce contradictory emotions. The study challenges current understandings of visitor experiences and contributes to knowledge about how fright tourism heritage experiences may best be promoted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whilst there is an increasing literature about managing local Indigenous values in land-based settings for visitor experiences there is limited knowledge around how Indigenous values contribute to tourism development in marine environments. This paper explores how Indigenous knowledge and practices are integrated into scuba diving tourism development. In-depth face-to-face conversations with 49 Indigenous tourism stakeholders in Misool, Raja Ampat, Indonesia were conducted. Following narrative analysis, findings revealed five features of Misoolese knowledge and practices of the local communities: locating and attracting marine species, reading the signs of nature, respecting sacred sites, fish taboo, and marine sasi, a form of traditional marine resource management. The findings make a theoretical contribution as they explain how integrating Indigenous knowledge into successful tourism development can be achieved. It is argued that these Indigenous practices are instrumental for culturally sustainable tourism development in marine environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generosity, a charitable and kind gesture towards others, was an integral aspect of hospitality in ancient times. The concept of generosity however has not yet been sufficiently examined in contemporary, commercial hospitality. In commercial hospitality, generosity can be facilitated through a generosity economy – an economy where generous acts are encouraged and nothing is expected in return. This article aims to understand the role of generosity in commercial hospitality as part of generosity economy. A model of generosity in commercial hospitality has been developed, providing a preliminary understanding of how generosity can be created in commercial hospitality contexts. Theoretical and practical implications and directions for future research are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sport tourism literature has paid limited attention to the psychological well-being benefits derived from participating in this form of tourism. This is especially the case for adventure sport tourism, which is characterised by travel to a destination to participate in an adventure sport event, such as competitive surfing or mountain biking. Through an analysis of the contemporary literature regarding adventure sport, tourism, and psychological well-being, we propose a conceptual model of the psychological processes underlying well-being outcomes for adventure sport tourists. The conceptual model explains how adventure sport tourism participation affects hedonic and eudaimonic psychological well-being via the satisfaction of basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) and nature connectedness. We argue that this conceptual model has the potential to advance knowledge in relation to the theory, practice, and design of adventure sport tourism. We outline research propositions emanating from the conceptual model and directions for future research on adventure sport tourism and psychological well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously impacted the global tourism industry, effecting the livelihoods of millions of tourism workers and disrupting host communities. Current research in tourism management has focused on understanding the economic, social and political impacts of the pandemic. This professional perspective aims to examine operational adaptations that businesses in the fright tourism industry have adopted under the COVID-19 pandemic circumstances. The study collated industry association press releases, undertaking content analysis to examine the changes businesses employed to adapt during the pandemic. Findings suggest that businesses made a variety of operational changes, such as changing queueing, diversification of props and changes to make-up hygiene, allowing these businesses to survive pandemic imperatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quality relationships are fundamental to human well-being. Friendships are voluntary relationships between autonomous individuals that can shed light on how bonding and intimacy are experienced in tourism environments. Adopting a qualitative, humanist approach, this article explores the topic of friendship in tourism. Through a thematic analysis of 12 in-depth interviews, we examine how friendships are experienced by Serbian young to middle-age adults in tourism settings. It was revealed five main dimensions underpin friendship relationships in a tourism context: intimacy of spaces, quality time, disclosure, navigation of challenges and relational realisations, and a sense of learning about oneself through shared experiences. Opportunities are suggested for researchers to extend these research findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the role of companionship in shaping memorable tourism experiences, traveller well‐being and behavioural intentions by drawing upon a conceptual framework of well‐being. Based on data collected from 430 respondents in Australia who had recent travel experience, the results from structural equation modelling (SEM) confirmed that companionship impacted on and had a significant influence on revisitation intentions and recommendations, as well as the enhancement of traveller well‐being. Differences in attitudes were evident between those accompanied by family and friends and those travelling solo. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are highlighted for researchers and practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper reports on a study which explored how a sense of love is experienced in diaspora tourist experiences. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with the Sierra Leonean community in London, England, accessing the feelings and meanings of the tourists. Following thematic analysis, it was revealed that the emotion of love manifested itself as a tourist motivator, as on-site experience emotion and as an outcome of the visiting experience. The paper adds to the body of knowledge on diaspora tourism and positive tourism, tourism and positive psychology. The article reveals the non-economic value of diaspora tourism with regards to developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Against the backdrop of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 3, good health and wellbeing, this paper reports on a study that examined how outdoor guides perceive their role in facilitating the psychological wellbeing of tourists who consume slow adventure experiences. These experiences, such as canoeing, stargazing or foraging, are characterised by a slower passage of time, immersion in the natural world and a sense of belonging to small social groups. Grounded in research on wellbeing from a positive psychology perspective, the study utilised semi-structured, in-depth, interviews with ten outdoor adventure guides in the Scottish Highlands and Islands. Following a hermeneutic interpretive approach to analyse the interview transcripts, the findings revealed how perceptions of time, meaningful moments and a sense of togetherness are choreographed by slow adventure guides to shape tourists' psychological wellbeing through immersive guided experiences, ultimately helping tourists to re-establish a much-yearned-for connection with nature. The study adds to tourism, wellbeing and sustainability literature by providing new perspectives on psychological wellbeing through guided slow adventures. In particular the findings contribute to positive tourism, or tourism and positive psychology field of research, by revealing how mindful and eudaimonic visitor experiences are organised by adventure tour guides in natural settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite limited recent contributions, explorations of the human emotion of love are underexplored in tourism studies. Love can be defined as both companionship (such as friendship) and as passion (romance and sexual connection). The aim of this article was to explore how the concept of love can be integrated into tourist motivation and satisfaction research. With this aim in mind, a literature review of tourist motivation, satisfaction, and types of love was conducted. The findings, as summarized in a table, show that love is a motivator for tourist experiences, because love resembles established tourist motives, such as the motives for social interaction, kinship and relationship enhancement. As a powerful human emotion, the concept of love helps in better interpreting fulfilling, on-site tourist experiences, and in better understanding post hoc tourist satisfaction. The article proposes research directions for future examinations of love in tourist motivation and satisfaction research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the institutional forces behind the uptake of corporate social responsibility in the Tanzanian tourism industry. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with 40 managers of tourism businesses. We identify six main motivations for businesses' engaging in corporate social responsibility: maintaining social legitimacy; influence of the parent company; meeting community expectations; attracting tourists; caring for the environment; and the personal values of managers. Barriers to engagement with responsible practices include conflict with local communities over resource use and a tax and regulatory regime that hinders the growth of tourism businesses. Using institutional theory as our analytical framework, the paper indicates that understanding embedded local institutional conditions is critical not only in shaping the uptake of responsible tourism practices but also in enhancing businesses legitimacy and social license to operate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourists are increasingly seeking personal development through spiritual, or mystical and divine, tourist experiences. Yet, spiritual tourism research is still largely in its infancy. This paper reports on a research study that aimed to investigate how spiritual tour guides manage and organise, or broker, spiritual tourists' experiences. To address the aim, research was conducted with eleven spiritual tourism guides via semi-structured, in-depth, interviews. Thematic analysis of the interview data revealed that spiritual tourism guides broker the experiences of tourists through provision of physical access to sites, facilitating encounters within and beyond the travel group, and through facilitating understanding, empathy and self-development. Within the self-development theme, data were further categorised into five chronological brokering stages, ranging from pre-tour to post-tour. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to developing spiritual tourism and tour guiding theory and practice. Suggestions for future research are also proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, tourism and positive psychology has developed as a humanist-inspired study of individual flourishing in tourism. This conceptual article aims to elaborate on epistemological foundations of tourism and positive psychology research and presents an overview of current trends and future directions for this field. The rapid rise of positive psychology within and outside tourism studies is analyzed, noting similarities and tensions between positive psychology and its predecessor, humanistic psychology. We present research highlights from the emerging field in tourism, review extant literature, discuss the limitations of this approach and suggest directions for future research. Greater focus on research about eudaimonic tourist experiences is recommended, through positive psychology lenses. Suggestions are also made to further expand the traditional focus on tourist behavior to include the well-being of host communities and tourism workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, participation in flamenco, as a cultural art form, has gained momentum within Spain and internationally. Engagement in flamenco music and dance workshops in Spain has also become an increasingly significant tourism activity. Despite this trend, little research has looked into the nature of leisure experiences of flamenco. This paper seeks to address this knowledge gap by exploring how tourists experience flamenco music and dance courses in the city of Seville. Through a grounded theory research strategy in which in-depth interviews were conducted with 20 participants, the study reveals that four key themes characterise tourists’ experiences of flamenco. These are: the social and physical environment, which refers to physical flamenco spaces in Seville and tourists’ interactions with instructors and peers; secondly, the experience of challenge, characterised by hardship and sacrifice in the pursuit of flamenco; thirdly, activation of the sensual body or a sense of arousal; and lastly, an intrinsic and deep desire for self-discovery. The study demonstrates that the flamenco tourist experience strongly contributes to self-realisation and fulfilment of those who engage in it, or in other words, that the flamenco tourist experience is eudaimonic in character. The interview findings were linked to literature on self-realisation, self-fulfilment, true self, stress-related growth and related eudaimonic themes. Eudaimonia, or a sense of personal expressiveness and self-realisation, has not been previously established in this context. Therefore, the research findings provide a theoretical understanding of what a eudaimonic tourist experience of dance and music may look like. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article profiles Philip L. Pearce, the tourism foundation professor and one of the founding member of the famous International Academy for the Study of Tourism, in Australia. Topics discussed include his educational and teaching background, his family background, and his scholarship at the Oxford University. Moreover, it also cites his research in tourism.

Academic examinations of visioning, the active imagination of possible futures, have been largely overlooked in tourism studies. While a significant tradition of research on visioning exists outside tourism, particularly within urban planning, there is a lack of knowledge on host community visioning processes in island tourism destinations and potential positive outcomes of such processes. This paper explores possible futures envisioned by residents of the Indonesian island of Bali, as well as the transformative potential of such processes. Writing templates were embraced as an appropriate mode of qualitative inquiry, through which 202 Balinese residents assessed the current state of their island and envisioned possible futures for it. Through a detailed thematic analysis of templates, visions of better transportation, education and health systems emerged. It is argued that such visions should inform efforts to address sustainability challenges when fed back to the community through wider political dialogue. Results of the study have therefore informed the development of Bali's practical tourism strategy framework, especially Bali's 2050 roadmap for sustainable tourism development. Although the current state of tourism was perceived in a more positive than negative way, respondents nonetheless imagined change for future tourism on the island. Due to soaring visitor numbers, the long-term sustainability of Bali as an important island destination depends on changes which the visions presented here may help effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although contributions from the disciplines of sociology and anthropology have shaped the foundations of event studies as an academic field of inquiry, contributions from the discipline of psychology have played a minor role in the development of events scholarship. There is an opportunity for a further development of psychology of events as part of the discipline-based discourse in the event studies field. In this conceptual article, an overview of positive psychology, a study of what makes life worth living, is first presented and the field is critically evaluated. A research agenda, based on positive psychology theories and approaches, is then presented to the events reader. It is argued that the theories and approaches from this field could enhance understandings of how people anticipate events, enjoy events, and how they acquire psychological rewards and benefits from event experiences. New directions for research about visitor motivations, humor, and cocreation of events as well as visitor well-being are proposed in the article. The role and the value of appreciative inquiry, a strength-based methodological approach, to inform future event planning and design is also discussed. It is argued that the contributions from positive psychology could help develop psychology of events scholarship in a meaningful and theoretically informed manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to highlight the implications of the indiscipline of tourism academia for a new generation of tourism academics. Generation Tourism is characterised by scholars with a multi-disciplinary education associated with a broad field of study and commonly considered to lack the advantages of a discipline-focused education with its strong theoretical and methodological foundations. The problem this article addresses relates to how new generations of scholars and their views on knowledge creation achieve ascendancy in ways that move on from existing paradigms and earlier cohorts of scholars. Our main argument is that Generation Tourism scholars would benefit from a more clearly developed and common academic identity. To begin the critical conversation around the identity of Generation Tourism we outline five possible points of departure. These points are: (1) learning from historical developments in parent disciplines; (2) spearheading inter-disciplinary scholarship; (3) working towards theoretical developments; (4) embracing mediating methodologies and (5) forming tourism nodes and networks. Recognising these as starting points rather than final statements, we hope that the conversation about Generation Tourism identity will continue in other forums. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Tourism research on topics such as happiness, quality of life of tour-ists, and tourist well-being has flourished in recent years. This literature clarifies the subjective value of tourist experiences, provides new direc-tions for tourism branding and promotion, and opens doors to fresh re-search on the potential benefits of tourist experiences to mental health. Subjective well-being theory has been typically used by tourism re-searchers to help conceptualize and measure tourist happiness. In lay terms, this theory suggests that happiness is life satisfaction and pleas-ure; the theory is popular and useful but cannot explain tourist happi-ness. To craft a more complete picture of tourist happiness, a deeper qualitative appreciation of meaningful tourist experiences and special and engaging tourist moments is required. This brief critique highlights the problems of conceptualizing tourist happiness and suggests an al-ternative approach to the subjective well-being theory. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines the relationship between reported levels of happiness, satisfaction, and risk perceptions during holiday experiences. Empirical examinations of this relationship have received limited attention by researchers, yet examining this topic has theoretical and practical value. Specifically, the purpose of our study was to examine perceptions of risk to holiday activities and hazards, levels of hedonic satisfaction and positive emotions, and sense of engagement and meaning in life as three core elements of happiness for international tourists visiting Vanuatu. The research method consisted of a 100-item self-completed questionnaire; the questionnaire items were based on consumer behavior, psychology, hazard, and risk perception literatures. Results show that our international tourist respondents report high levels of happiness and hedonic satisfaction, perceive the majority of holiday activities as safe, and regard the majority of hazards as posing no threat to their tourist experiences. The study suggests that personal characteristics may influence satisfaction, happiness levels, and risk perceptions, but significant correlations among satisfaction, happiness, and risk perceptions are limited. Theoretically, the study contributes to the growing literature on risk and satisfaction in tourism. Practical recommendations arising from this study include targeted education and awareness campaigns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Tourism is an engine of economic growth, but its capacity to contribute to good health is only starting to be documented. This paper describes a forthcoming research project with the Ethiopian immigrant community in the Australian state of Victoria. The project aims to discover if writing about positive holiday experiences that involve visits to friends and relatives improves the community's mental health – alleviates depression levels and increases levels of happiness. The role of holidays in improving mental health is of increasing interest to the tourism industry. This research note highlights the importance of understanding the benefits of holidays for individual well-being; this paper outlines a methodological approach for investigating these benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Happiness is a concept with a long tradition in philosophy and is central to understanding the meaning of human life. Research on happiness has lately flourished in many social sciences. Yet in tourism studies this concept is underexplored. This lack of attention is surprising as tourism is increasingly seen in the literature as more than a break from everyday routines. It is today more and more seen as a health and well-being activity. The discussion in this article hence complements, but differs from, recent examinations of wellness and quality of life of tourists. In this article an exploratory picture of tourists' happiness is created. The picture of tourists' happiness is created by first discussing how tourists' happiness can be interpreted; and then by discussing how tourists' happiness can be evaluated in the main phases of the travel experience--anticipatory, on site, and reflective phases. It is concluded that tourists' happiness is a state in which the tourist experiences positive emotions (joy, interest, contentment, and love), is engaged in and derives meaning from holiday activities. This conceptualization is based on a theory from positive psychology--a field from psychology that empirically assesses happiness. Tourists' positive emotions, engagement, and meaning can be evaluated through analyses of tourist motivation and satisfaction in the three tourist experience phases. Examples of analysis methods are: narratives of perfect days and cognitive maps for assessments of positive emotions, special in-depth interviews to capture engagement at tourist sites, and specific qualitative measures of meaning derived from holidays. The interpretation and the assessment approaches form an exploratory picture of tourists' happiness. This picture is important as it sheds light on the personal value and quality of tourist experiences to individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article applies models from the field of positive psychology in conceptualising and appraising visitor or tourist satisfaction. In particular, visitor engagement is explored using personal narrative essays as a means of assessing satisfaction. Twenty university study-abroad students participated in the study, writing reflective essays about their year-long overseas experience. The results suggest that aspects of flow, and other concepts from positive psychology, were part of the students' satisfaction. Exploring engagement in this way has thus uncovered a fresh layer of satisfaction that could not have been detected by a traditional tourist satisfaction approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines a newly created approach to exploring travel motivations, the Travel Career Patterns (TCP) model. Through an analysis of the TCP model, the authors advance travel motivation theory by making three contributions: a refinement of the definition of travel experience; the use and evaluation of essays as a qualitative tool for interpreting travel motives; and an extension of the TCP model to a new setting. The first contribution is made by defining travel experience as a function of general experience with a de-emphasis on the use of age as a predictor of tourist experience. As part of the second contribution, essays are used to provide an insightful and emic understanding of travel motives through descriptions of a perfect day at a destination. It is demonstrated that such descriptions can effectively replicate results from quantitative approaches. The third contribution is made by extending the TCP model to the study of the motivations of study-abroad university students. These contributions improve the TCP model in light of the following elements of a sound theory of tourist motivation: ease of communication, ability to measure travel motivation, and employment of a dynamic approach. Contextual recommendations for future research include further TCP studies with small tourist groups, studies of eccentric tourist groups, and studies of complex, higher order motives such as self-actualisation and the 'flow' state. Methodological recommendations arising from this paper encompass the application of projective techniques to study motives using TCP and the use of software for qualitative analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The increasing reliance on data driven analytics is critiqued. • We know what tourists do, how long they spend doing things, but we do not know why. • Big data studies in tourism do not pay enough attention to the individual tourist. • We advocate for greater insights into the reasons for tourist decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]