An Exploration Of Adventure Tourism Participation And .

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An exploration of adventure tourism participation andconsumptionPOMFRET, Gill http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1161-7703 Available from Sheffield Hallam University Research Archive (SHURA) at:http://shura.shu.ac.uk/15589/This document is the author deposited version. You are advised to consult thepublisher's version if you wish to cite from it.Published versionPOMFRET, Gill (2016). An exploration of adventure tourism participation andconsumption. Doctoral, Sheffield Hallam University.Copyright and re-use policySee http://shura.shu.ac.uk/information.htmlSheffield Hallam University Research Archivehttp://shura.shu.ac.uk

AN EXPLORATION OF ADVENTURE TOURISMPARTICIPATION AND CONSUMPTIONGill PomfretPublished works submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements ofSheffield Hallam University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy onthe basis of published worksDecember 20161

CONTENTSLIST OF PUBLISHED WORKS4ABSTRACT5INTRODUCTION61. OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH61.1. Aim and objectives of the programme of research61.2. Focal Concepts of the programme of research71.2.1. Focal Concept 1: Adventure tourism participation71.2.2. Focal Concept 2: Adventure tourism consumption72. DETAILS OF PUBLISHED WORKS113. RESEARCH JOURNEY133.1. Reflection 1: My personal and educational interests in adventure tourism153.2. Reflection 2: Mentoring and collaboration in research173.3. Reflection 3: The impact of my research184. SYNTHESIS OF THE WORK214.1 Focal Concept 1: Adventure tourism participation244.1.1. Characteristics of adventure tourists244.1.2. Motivational decisions of adventure tourists254.1.3. Risk perceptions274.1.4. Flow as a motivation for continued participation284.1.5. Lifestyles of adventure tourists294.2 Focal Concept 2: Adventure tourism consumption294.2.1. Emotional journeys experienced by adventure tourists304.2.2. Benefits of adventure tourism consumption314.2.3. Influences on adventure tourism experiences325. CONCLUSION346. REFERENCE LIST362

LIST OF TABLESTable 1: Definitive list of published works11Table 2: Contribution to co-authored publications12Table 3: Contribution to knowledge for Focal Concept 124Table 4: Motivations of adventure tourists27Table 5: Contribution to knowledge for Focal Concept 230LIST OF FIGURESFigure 1: The relationship between the tourism and recreational regionfor mountaineering10Figure 2: Conceptual framework: key influences on people’s participationin mountaineering during involvement22Figure 3: Adapted conceptual framework: adventure tourism participationand consumption233

LIST OF PUBLISHED WORKSHarlow, S. & Pomfret, G. (2007). Evolving environmental tourism experiences inZambia. Journal of Ecotourism, 6(3), 184-209.Pomfret, G. (2003). The adventure tourist. In J. Swarbrooke, C. Beard, S. Leckie & G. Pomfret(Eds.), Adventure tourism: The new frontier. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann (pp. 55-90).Pomfret, G. (2003). Greenforce. In J. Swarbrooke, C. Beard, S. Leckie & G. Pomfret (Eds.),Adventure tourism: The new frontier. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann (pp.300-306).Pomfret, G. (2003). Rock climbing in Spain. In J. Swarbrooke, C. Beard, S. Leckie & G.Pomfret (Eds.), Adventure tourism: The new frontier. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann(pp.314-321).Pomfret, G (2006). Mountaineering adventure tourists: A conceptual framework forresearch. Tourism Management. 27(1), 113-123.Pomfret, G. (2011). Package mountaineer tourists holidaying in the French Alps: Anevaluation of key influences encouraging their participation. Tourism Management, 32(3),501-510.Pomfret, G. (2012). Personal emotional journeys associated with adventure activities onpackaged mountaineering holidays. Tourism Management Perspectives, 4, 145-154.Pomfret, G. & Bramwell, B. (2014). The characteristics and motivational decisions of outdooradventure tourists: A review and analysis. Current Issues in Tourism, 19(14), 1447-1478.Pomfret, G. & Doran, A. (2015). Gender and mountaineering tourism. In G. Musa, J. Higham& A. Thompson (Eds.), Mountaineering tourism (Routledge studies in contemporarygeographies of leisure, tourism and mobility) (pp. 138-155).4

ABSTRACTGrowing demand for and supply of adventure tourism activities, particularlypackaged adventure holidays, means there is a need to understand adventure tourists. Atthe start of my research journey, the embryonic nature of adventure tourism research andthe limited extant literature about adventure tourists provided the impetus to developunderstanding of these tourists as a unique group of adventurers. Accordingly, the aim ofthis programme of research is to demonstrate the empirical and conceptual contributionsthat my published works make to the knowledge and understanding of adventure tourismparticipation and consumption. My research ethos reflects an interpretivist approach andmy empirical publications predominantly report on qualitative data drawn from interviewsand surveys with adventure tourists. The research contribution is achieved through twoFocal Concepts. Firstly, adventure tourism participation, i.e.: the different elements whichinfluence tourists to take adventure holidays in the first place. My work explores thedistinctive characteristics of adventure tourists and how these influence their decision toparticipate in adventure tourism, their motivational decisions, risk perceptions, flow(Csikszentmihalyi, 1975) as a motivation for continued participation in adventure tourism,and their lifestyles. My publications are some of the first academic studies to develop newthinking relative to key influences which drive package tourists and independent tourists toparticipate in adventure tourism. Secondly, adventure tourism consumption, i.e.: tourists’experiences of actually consuming adventure activities while on holiday. Adventure is oftenall-consuming and challenging and this means it can prompt diverse and conflictingemotions, ranging from feelings of fear and risk to deep satisfaction and elation.Consequently, my work investigates the emotional journeys which adventure touristsexperience during activity consumption. Additionally, it examines the benefits whichtourists gain from consuming adventure, and the influences on their adventure tourismexperiences. My publications are some of the foremost studies to develop understanding ofadventure tourism consumption.5

INTRODUCTIONThis programme of research consists of a critical appraisal of my published research,followed by nine publications which underpin the contribution of my research. The criticalappraisal includes four sections. Section 1 introduces my research, the aim, objectives andFocal Concepts of the programme of research. Section 2 comprises details of my publishedwork, with information about both my sole-authored and co-authored publications. Section3 reflects on my research journey from its inception and the research philosophy I feel mostclosely aligned to. This section contains three sub-sections, which are Reflection 1: mypersonal and educational interests in adventure tourism; Reflection 2: mentoring andcollaboration in research; and Reflection 3: the impact of my research. Section 4 is asynthesis of my published work with sub-sections about the overarching contribution of theresearch, and the Focal Concepts which support this. Focal Concept 1 is adventure tourismparticipation and Focal Concept 2 is adventure tourism consumption. Section 5 concludesthe critical appraisal. Section 6 is the reference list. Section 7 presents the published worksin full.1.OVERVIEW OF RESEARCHThis programme of research makes a pertinent contribution to understandingadventure tourism participation and consumption and to the wider body of knowledge fortourism and recreation studies. It comprises a critical appraisal of my research publicationsfrom 2003 to 2015, the purpose of which is to draw together several interlinked publicationsthat reflect one consistent theme: Adventure tourism participation and consumption: apsychological exploration. In essence, this programme of research explores thepsychological aspects of adventure tourists. The critical appraisal seeks to justify the bodyof work I have developed and its subsequent contribution to the field of adventure tourismresearch. It outlines my research journey through reflecting on its different stages, myresearch philosophy, and how my thinking has evolved over time. The programme ofresearch comprises this critical appraisal, nine publications (see Table 1): five peer-reviewedjournal articles, two book chapters and two case studies. Three of the five journal articles,one of the book chapters and both case studies are sole-authored while two of the journalarticles and one of the book chapters are co-authored (see Table 2). I selected thesepublished works to include in the programme of research as they all contribute knowledgeto understanding adventure tourism participation and consumption from a psychologicalperspective.1.1.Aim and objectives of the programme of researchThis programme of research aims to demonstrate the empirical and conceptualcontributions that my published works make to the knowledge and understanding ofadventure tourism participation and consumption. In order to achieve this aim, there arefour key research objectives:1. To critically review and reflect on my research journey from its inception to thepresent to demonstrate my development as a researcher.6

2. To evaluate the roles of adventure tourist characteristics, motivational decisions, riskperceptions, flow as a motivation for continued participation in adventure tourism,and the lifestyles of adventure tourists in adventure tourism participation.3. To appraise the emotional journeys which adventure tourists experience duringadventure tourism consumption, the benefits of adventure tourism consumption andthe influences on adventure tourism experiences.4. To assess my contribution to the knowledge and understanding of adventure tourismparticipation and consumption and the future direction of my research.1.2.Focal Concepts of the programme of researchMy research contributes both empirically and conceptually to an enhancedunderstanding of the psychological aspects of adventure tourism participation andconsumption through two Focal Concepts (FCs):1.2.1. Focal Concept 1: Adventure tourism participationWithin this critical appraisal, the term adventure tourism participation refers to thedifferent elements which influence tourists to take adventure holidays in the first place.Adventure tourists have distinctive characteristics, relative to their demographic profiles,activity preferences and travel behaviours, and these influence their decision to participatein adventure tourism. Other key elements which encourage participation are theirmotivational decisions, risk perceptions, flow as a motivation for continued participation inadventure tourism, and the lifestyles of adventure tourists. Flow is ‘the state in whichpeople are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience itselfis so enjoyable that people will do it at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it’(Csikzentmihalyi, 1992, p.4). Several of my published works refer to adventure tourismparticipation and I use the word participation as it is a commonly used and accepted term inthe field of tourism studies. My publications are some of the first academic studies todevelop new thinking relative to key influences which drive package tourists andindependent tourists to participate in adventure tourism. They fuse together literatureabout recreational adventurers and adventure tourists, and report on notable fieldworkfindings concerned with participation influences.1.2.2 Focal Concept 2: Adventure tourism consumptionAdventure tourism consumption refers to tourists’ experiences of actually consumingadventure activities while on holiday, and the benefits gained from these experiences.Adventure is often all-consuming and challenging and this means it can prompt diverse andconflicting emotions, ranging from feelings of fear and risk to deep satisfaction and elation(Swarbrooke, Beard, Leckie & Pomfret, 2003). Accordingly, my work explores the emotionaljourneys which adventure tourists experience during adventure tourism consumption. Italso examines the benefits of adventure tourism consumption and the influences onadventure tourism experiences. My publications are some of the foremost studies todevelop understanding of adventure tourism consumption. They progress the literaturefrom focusing previously on recreational adventure consumption to package adventure7

tourism consumption. My published works do not specifically refer to the term adventuretourism consumption yet I believe that this phrase succinctly reflects the nature of myresearch about adventure tourism experiences.My work delineates the different aforementioned elements of adventure tourismparticipation and consumption, and provides new insights into adventure tourists. Table 1(Section 2) shows how each publication addresses the two Focal Concepts. These FocalConcepts and their unique contributions to knowledge will be discussed in more depth inSection 4.The following discussion briefly defines adventure tourism and adventure touristsprimarily to provide context to my research and to highlight the complex and diverse natureof this type of tourism and its participants. Adventure tourism and adventure tourists aremultifaceted and problematic to define as there are divergent perspectives, activities andparticipants. Firstly, adventure tourism comprises a broad range of land-, air- and waterbased activities which can be short, adrenalin-fuelled encounters such as wind-surfing andbungee jumping, or longer experiences such as mountaineering and cruise expeditions (CIIT2014). The disparate nature of these activities can result in widely varying experiences foreach individual adventure tourist. Secondly, and related to this, ‘adventure’ is a highlysubjective concept which individuals perceive in different ways so, while one tourist mayexperience adventure activity participation as ‘adventurous’, another may not (Weber,2001). People’s perceptions of adventure are influenced by personality, lifestyle, and levelof skill and experience (1989; Priest, 1999). Thirdly, adventure tourism sharescommonalities with other types of tourism, such as activity tourism, volunteer tourism andecotourism, making it problematic to clearly delineate adventure tourism activities(Swarbrooke, Beard, Leckie & Pomfret, 2003). Fourthly, adventure tourism participation andconsumption are thought to involve challenge, risk, uncertain outcomes, insight, excitement,stimulation, novelty, discovery and exploration, contrasting emotions, separation andescapism, focus and absorption, responsibility, commitment, anticipated rewards and play(Cater, 2006; Ewert, 1989; Swarbrooke et al, 2003; Walle, 1997). Yet, there is a lack ofconsensus about whether adventure tourists who are on commercially organised andguided adventure holidays experience these different elements during activity participation,and if so, to what extent. Fifthly, and related to this, there are two broad categories ofadventure tourist: those who go on tightly organised, packaged and guided skills-basedcourses and holidays - known as ‘package adventure tourists’ - and those who organise andmanage their own adventure holidays, sometimes using guiding services to help themachieve their goals – known as ‘independent adventure tourists’ (TM 2011). It is thoughtthat each of these categories of adventure tourist share some similarities yet they are alsodifferent.The use of language to delineate and understand adventure tourism and adventuretourists has evolved over time alongside the development of literature in this field.Accordingly, my publications reflect these terminology changes and I use differentexpressions to explicate adventure tourists and demarcate them from recreationaladventurers and other tourist types. My early work is strongly influenced by literaturewithin the fields of outdoor recreation and sport psychology. I utilise terms such as'recreational adventurers', 'risky sports participants', 'risk recreationists' and 'sensationseekers' (Ewert, 1989; Robinson, 1992; Zuckerman, 1979) to describe adventure tourists. I8

focus on sport-related forms of adventure tourism in several publications (AT 2003a; AT2003b; TM 2006), reflecting traditional notions of adventure drawn from theaforementioned fields of literature. For instance, in AT 2003a, I explore adventure touristswho partake in physical forms of adventure tourism in outdoor natural environments. Icontinue to be inspired by these original connotations of adventure in my later publications(TM 2011; TMP 2012; MT 2015), within which mountaineering tourism, an unequivocaladventure activity, is pivotal. Concurrently, my work also reflects the multidimensionalnature of adventure tourism. For example, I denote ecotourists, wildlife tourists and charitychallenge tourists as adventure tourists in AT 2003a, and I allude to volunteer tourists asadventure tourists in AT 2003b and JOE 2007. I also utilise the phrase ‘outdoor adventuretourist’ in CIIT 2014 to acknowledge that there are different types of adventure tourist.Furthermore, I have developed the terms ‘package adventure tourist’ and ‘independentadventure tourist’ to define different types of adventure tourist. I employ these phrases inTM 2011 and TMP 2012.The embryonic nature of adventure tourism research, combined with my personalinterest in adventure activities, inspired me to further investigate participation andconsumption amongst adventure tourists. I was also driven by a desire to enhanceunderstanding of adventure tourism participation and consumption to assist scholars,practitioners and students. From a scholarly perspective, I was keen to develop cuttingedge research about adventure tourists and to set them apart from their recreationalcounterparts as a distinct group of adventurers with discrete participation and consumptionbehaviours. I wanted to publish research which was accessible and useful to students ontourism, recreation and sport undergraduate and postgraduate degrees which includeadventure-related modules. Given the dramatic growth in the demand and supply ofadventure tourism, I was keen to offer the industry insights into who adventure tourists are,what drives their participation in adventure holidays and what their experiences ofadventure activities are. Like many other special interest forms of tourism, adventuretourism has become increasingly commercialised (Buckley, 2007) and developed in such away as to appeal to a wide range of mainstream tourists (TM 2011). It is important,therefore, for adventure organisations to understand their tourists so that they can‘carefully match up their clients’ skill and experience levels, and also their expectations, witha holiday that is sufficiently, but not overly, challenging’ (TMP 2012, p.153). In particular,the publications which reflect my primary research findings (TM 2011; TMP 2012; CIIT 2014)provide a comprehensive appreciation of adventure tourism participation and consumptionto assist organisations in developing fulfilling adventure holidays for tourists.When I initially began to explore adventure tourists to write my first publications inthis area (AT 2003a; AT 2003b; AT 2003c; TM 2006), I found that the literature wasfragmented and there were very few studies which recognised adventure tourists as aunique group of adventurers. Yet, the adventure tourism industry was experiencingconsiderable growth around this time, particularly in the provision of packaged adventureholidays which catered for a diverse range of adventure tourists, and the demand for suchexperiences was rising. Recent industry reports suggest that this strong growth continues(Adventure Travel Trade Association [ATTA], 2016; Outdoor Foundation, 2016). I noted that‘while there is a dearth of research tha

Adventure tourism consumption refers to tourists experiences of actually consuming adventure activities while on holiday, and the benefits gained from these experiences. Adventure is often all-consuming and challenging and this means it can prompt diverse and conflicting emotions, ranging from feelings of fear and risk to deep satisfaction and elation (Swarbrooke, Beard, Leckie & Pomfret, 2003 .

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