This research investigates the perceptions of hill tribe people in Northern Thailand of the sociocultural impacts and changes in their communities resulting from the interaction between themselves, their communities and the incoming mainly Thai, origin, external tourism actors (ETAs), such as tourism authorities, tourism businessmen / investors and tour operators. In Thailand, most studies on the impacts of tourism have been limited to economic analyses, and the socio-cultural impacts of tourism on hill tribe people has been under-researched. Of the previous studies of the socio-cultural impacts of tourism, the majority have examined the impacts from host and guest interactions, emphasising the negative social impacts resulting from the influx of tourists in general. Specific research on the interaction of local hill tribe people with incoming ETAs has not been reported. To fill this gap, this research aims to compare the perceptions of two hill tribe peoples (the Karen and Hmong), both those working for ETAs and those who do not, in terms of their employment experiences and perceived socio-cultural impacts resulting from the arrival of ETAs. In order to achieve the research aim, a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods was used. A sequential approach was adopted incorporating a mixed methods design in order to better answer the research challenge of exploring the participants' views and perceptions. Building on a thorough literature review the first phase of primary data collection adopted a qualitative approach. Focus groups were used to explore the local hill tribe perceptions towards the interaction between ETAs and themselves, and their perceptions towards socio-cultural impacts upon themselves and changes in their community. Then semi-structure interviews were used to gain more in-depth details from selected participants. Themes from this qualitative phase were then used in the second stage of primary data collection to develop an essentially quantitative questionnaire, to measure, by means of a large scale survey, the perceptions of the selected population. The fmdings suggest that exposure to the social and cultural characteristics of ETAs, have significantly influenced some of the values, beliefs and lives of tribal people. However, despite the impacts resulting from the arrival of ETAs, these hill tribe people tend to be in favour and perceive these impacts and changes as positive changes. Moreover, the fmdings also suggest that differences in ethnic background, working environment and gender can be factors that influence perceptions of these hill tribe people. However, each factor, ethnicity, working environment, gender, exerts differing degrees of influence upon the perceptions of these hill tribe people toward different issues regarding impacts from ETAs. In addition, individual's perceptions toward impacts from ETAs differ despite their having the same ethnic background. However, the evidence gathered suggests that ethnic background does still control, to a degree, these differences with the result that while people's perceptions do differ in many ways nevertheless those from the same ethnic background tend to show greater similarities in their perceptions and actions when compared to those of different ethnicities. To this end, this study has pointed out several recommendations for future research together with the implications of the findings from this research on tourism management and policy makers.

This is an inductive research project which critically evaluates the application of stakeholder theory to the analysis of tourism destination networks. It explores the dynamics of the relationships between the tourism organisations involved using the case of Agra, India. Cities and towns become tourist destinations because of the activities of a large number of organisations to provide attractions, accommodation, and accessibility. Understanding the relationships between these organisations can explain how tourism developed and is currently managed, which will in turn help not only existing and potential tourism businesses but also destination management organisations to act more effectively. This research examines the relationships of power and dependency that exist between individual and group organisations and the way in which they motivate their behaviour towards each other in a tourism industry. The review of the literature identifies the key attributes of stakeholder power in these relationships to be resource and network bases of power. However, tourism stakeholders join social networks and power can be limited by ethical constraints, either embodied in laws and regulations, or in mutually accepted codes of behaviour. These sources of influence are termed legitimacy. This research also demonstrates that urgency is an important attribute and this is examined because it is instrumental in making these relationships dynamic. Qualitative interviews were conducted with tourism stakeholders (both commercial and non-commercial) in Agra, India to identify and analyse the perceptions, attitudes and experiences of their relationships with others within their network. Consequently, these relational-attributes were further sub-classified to aid a better understanding. An analytical framework is developed to facilitate understanding and evaluate the implications of stakeholder relationships within a tourism destination scenario. Consequently, it was found that urgency is the most important attribute of all with respect to making a decision or carrying out an act.

This research explores the followers of the book The World’s Most Dangerous Places. These tourists deliberately travel to dangerous destinations where there is a high level of violence due to civil unrest, conflict or war. The research has focused on the Black Flag Café, an online tourism-based community created by the writer Robert Young Pelton, author of the books Come Back Alive and The World’s Most Dangerous Places. This is a case study that has made use of virtual ethnography and descriptive content analysis to explore the forum and its members. The research has identified four factors which influence the forum members’ decision to travel to a dangerous place: a search for selfactualisation through “it” or peak experiences; a desire to improve self-image and to obtain status from travelling to dangerous places; a search for an “authentic” travel experience; and finally their awareness and perception of danger and acceptance of the residual risks involved in travel to dangerous places. The study shows that the forum members enjoy pushing the boundaries of risk, undertaking a form of edgework. The research also explores the forum members’ sense that travelling to dangerous places can result in other benefits including familiarity with death, gaining arousal from risk taking (flow) and the possibility of repeat travel to increasingly dangerous places. The conceptual framework developed from the research displays the danger tourist’s approach to travelling to dangerous places. This framework identifies five benefits which participants obtain from travelling to dangerous places: flow, self-actualisation, improvement to self-esteem, the achievement and/or maintenance of status and familiarity with death. While this framework has been developed for the tourists who travel to dangerous places, undertaking danger tourism, it could equally be applied to other high-risk activities.

The present research addresses a gap in the academic literature on the transformation and development of coastal destinations in the transition economy of Bulgaria. It takes further the tradition in tourism studies that calls for the incorporation of the contextual change in the process of destination development. The purpose of this study was to determine whether, and in what ways, the nature of the socio-economic and political transition has influenced the processes of tourism development of a coastal tourism destination in the period 1989-2009 and if the tourism stakeholders have incorporated and implemented the principles of sustainability in the transformation and operation of the tourism sector, with the associated questions of why, why not, and how. In order to answer the research questions, a case study research was undertaken in the Varna-Balchik destination on Bulgaria‟s North Black Sea coast, which allowed the study of the whole spectrum of developmental processes in the period of transition. Data for the research was collected using a multi-method research approach with a combination of secondary data and primary data gathered using qualitative research techniques including a series of stakeholder interviews and observation. The semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with decision-makers, involved in tourism development in the destination studied at some time over the studied period (1989-2009), from the stakeholder groups at a local, regional and national level. This research employed the path-dependent path-creative approach to analyse the nature of transformation and conceptualise the forces which impact on tourism development on Bulgaria‟s North Black Sea coast. The research findings indicated that sustainability did not fit well into the rapidly changing CEE transition context. In spite of the increasing empowerment of the local communities and their attempts to achieve balanced development by implementing integrated and long-term planning, the primary data revealed growing concerns over the ineffectiveness of policy-making, the increasing urbanisation of the coastal strip and the competitiveness of Bulgaria‟s North Black Sea coast tourism offer. An analytical framework was developed based on the research findings to explain the specific development path(s) of the destination studied. It took into account the political (politicising), psychological (mentalities), institutional dimensions of transition (property rights, social networks and local empowerment), the role of the state (reduced state intervention) and the individual (human capital). Some of these themes (politicising and mentalities in particular) have been largely absent from previous research on tourism in transition and from the wider tourism studies.

The staging of many sport events ranging from small to mega-events, increasingly rely on the availability of a workforce of unpaid helpers. Whilst much research has been carried out in the past regarding the reason why people decide to volunteer at sport events, little is known about how this type of volunteering is experienced by the individual. Adopting an experiential focus, this study contributes to the existing body of knowledge and enhances the understanding of this particular form of volunteering by exploring the question ―What it is like to be a sport event volunteer?‖ Using different strands of the concept and theory of role to serve as parameters for this study, the lived experiences of volunteers who assisted at the World Firefighters Games 2008 are analysed and discussed. The research approach that was adopted for this study draws from the work of Hans-Georg Gadamer in form of hermeneutic phenomenology which is an interpretative approach towards collecting and analysing data about a specific phenomenon. Incorporating the hermeneutic circle that advocates the idea that understanding of a phenomenon is co-created by both the researcher and the research participants, hermeneutic phenomenology is concerned with exploring rather than merely describing contextual aspects and structures of lived experiences. A total of eighteen semi-structured interviews involving volunteers who helped with the World Firefighters Games 2008 in Liverpool, were conducted. The interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Using the approach of Van Manen towards analysing the collected data, a number of themes and subthemes emerged which are presented in the thesis in manner that reflects the nature of the hermeneutic circle. Besides providing a working definition of the term ―sport event volunteering‖, the findings of the study critically evaluate the meaning that the volunteers attach to the role and how they make sense of their role as helpers involved in staging large sporting events. The interpretation of the collected data suggests that the enactment of the volunteer role is informed by individuals expectations and needs, e.g. with regards to role allocation, trust, recognition and reciprocity, and the experience of anti-climax and loss after their volunteer engagement has come to an end. Furthermore, the critical synthesis of how the individual manages his/her volunteer role suggests that sport event volunteers can be understood as ―bricoleurs‖ who craft rather than merely take and perform this particular role. Beside contributing to existing research on sport event volunteering with these findings and by identifying further research avenues relating to sport event volunteering that can be explored in future, the findings of these studies might inform the work of practitioners in the respective research fields.

It is universally recognised that, globally, the tourism industry is a noticeable contributor to the carbon footprint. The magnitudes of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from specific tourism products and services at local levels are less established and large variations in estimates exist. Diversity of the tourism sector, constraints in data procurement and under-development of methods for tourism carbon impact appraisal are the primary reasons. These hinder accurate evaluations and hamper development of reliable carbon performance indicators, thus making direct comparisons between tourism products and services difficult. The issue of the ‘indirect’ carbon impacts, additional carbon requirements from the nonuse phases of a product or service life cycle, which can be further magnified by the supply chain, is of special concern. These carbon footprints have never been comprehensively assessed in tourism, especially at the level of specific products and services. The evidence from the non-tourism literature suggests that the ‘indirect’ carbon impacts from tourism-related activities can be high, thus calling for more indepth research on this issue. The aim of this study is to contribute to the development of reliable carbon footprint assessment methodologies in tourism. It proposes an approach for more holistic estimates of GHG emissions from tourism products and services and appraises the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method whose merit in estimating the ‘indirect’ carbon impacts is broadly recognised. The evidence of the application of LCA in tourism is limited. To test the viability of a new technique in the tourism context, the study employs a case study approach and applies a simplified derivative of LCA, Life Cycle Energy Analysis (LCEA), to assess the carbon footprint from a popular tourism product, a holiday package tour. LCEA is compared against existing methodological alternatives for estimating carbon footprints from holiday travel. This is to understand strengths and weaknesses in the LCA (LCEA) approach, to critically evaluate the new technique compared to the alternatives, and to identify the most accurate and cost-effective method for holistic assessment. The assessment results demonstrate the importance of the ‘indirect’ GHG emissions in tourism. The findings also show that, despite the new outlook it brings to tourism carbon footprint appraisal, LCEA cannot effectively capture the full range of carbon impacts. This is because a number of methodological inconsistencies affect the accuracy of estimates. As limitations are also typical for the more established methodological alternatives, a new, hybrid LCEA-related assessment approach is developed. It is argued that this hybrid method can address the identified methodological shortcomings, thus representing currently the most rigorous technique for carbon impact appraisal in tourism. This study does more than reinforcing the methodological base for tourism carbon footprint assessment by developing a new method. It provides recommendations on how to improve the general quality and enhance the reliability of LCA (LCEA) for application in other industries where it has a long-standing tradition of use. Directions are also proposed on how to refine collection of the input data for carbon footprint assessment in tourism, in order to obtain more accurate results and reduce uncertainty in estimates. Last but not least, suggestions are made on how to integrate more carbon-effective practices in the design of specific tourism products and services.

This thesis begins by thoroughly reviewing classical theories of adoption such as the diffusion of innovation theory, and the technology acceptance model, and subsequently analyses literature on pertinent theories which have been highlighted as drivers of adoption such as the Resource-Based View, Firm Strategy, Culture and the Digital Divide. Prior to this however, the afore-mentioned classical adoption theories were contrasted with the Post-Internet debate which explored Information Asymetry and Disintermediation. Having conducted this review it was determined that the leadership/ownership role had not been sufficiently emphasized in technology adoption, therefore this work sought to more clearly identify these personal factors in combination with the previously explored factors. The overarching theory of Organizational Decision-Making was used to provide a framework to identify drivers of decision-making processes in general and then apply these to the internet adoption context. This thesis aims to identify the combination of antecedents of technology adoption for travel firms and distil factors to identify the key determinant of the adoption of the internet for sales and marketing purposes in small, owner-managed travel firms. It examines the firm characteristics which are associated with adoption behaviour such as strategy and resources, as well as external factors such as culture and the digital divide. In addition to external and firm factors, personal factors such as ownership and leadership are explored at various stages of adoption. A predominantly qualitative methodology was used to interview travel agencies in the context of Jamaica. All firms which have similar characteristics in terms of ownership and management structure, in particular where owners are themselves the managers and provide leadership for the organization, were interviewed. The owner-managers of these firms were interviewed to gather deep perspectives from local industry experts on industry challenges, current technology involvement and future directions. Exploratory descriptive quantitative methods were used to analyze firm characteristics and their relationships to internet adoption for sales and marketing as well as the intention to use these technologies in firms, while a deeper exploration into owner-managers was achieved through qualitative enquiry. A pilot study and 2 phases of data collection were carried out. The findings indicate that the leadership role is more significant than has been previously posited. The contribution to knowledge is new in that it takes a unique approach to an understanding of technology adoption in firms by creating a comprehensive conceptual framework for adoption based on previous research and then creates a model that shows the factors and variables that drive adoption at each stage of the adoption process from a personal leadership perspective as well as the organizational perspective. Ultimately it is hoped that this focus on each stage of adoption will provide insights into firm adoption behaviour as a consequence of leadership characteristics.

This research aims to explore the ways in which people understand and value heritage through a focus on the lay rather than the expert view. This focus was considered important in order to move beyond the emphasis on expert knowledge within heritage discourses and in turn, privilege lay understandings of heritage. This study adds to current knowledge by offering an in-depth understanding of the non-expert view of heritage and the multiple meanings and values that heritage represents within this context. The rationale for this research is based on the increasingly important role heritage plays within the wider visitor economy and the recognised interrelationships between heritage and tourism. In order to develop long-term, meaningful relationships with current and potential heritage audiences, there is a need to appreciate the ways in which people engage with heritage in a much broader sense and to understand the meanings and relevance that heritage may represent within this context. In order to meet the aim of this research, an inductive qualitative methodology was designed which prioritises the emic or insider perspective of heritage. To further enhance the inductive nature of this study, the primary research took place away from a pre-defined „heritage’ context in order to allow the participants themselves to define and shape heritage as they understand and value it. Eight focus groups were carried out with forty-seven members of the public and the data was analysed through a thematic framework. Nine themes and related sub-themes were constructed to represent the lay understandings, meanings and values of heritage. The social nature of the focus group method, along with the interaction it fosters between participants, led to a range of insights about the relevance of heritage. The majority of heritage research to date has taken place within a pre-defined heritage context, which inevitably limits the scope for accessing and understanding the views of those who do not typically engage with heritage in this way. Therefore, this study further contributes by incorporating the views of those who do not typically fall within heritage user or visitor categories. By exploring the views of the so called non-user or non-visitor of heritage the barriers that prevent engagement with „heritage‟ and „heritage tourism‟ as it is defined and presented by the industry are identified. The implications of this study relate to the need for more engaging and personally relevant heritage narratives that build from an understanding of the meanings and values that shape engagement with heritage beyond a personal level. Heritage practitioners and academics need to embrace lay understandings of heritage within their activities and seek to empower current and potential audiences to critically engage with and actively interpret meanings from the heritage they present.

The successful setting up and management of micro and small businesses, and tourism related businesses in particular, is dependent on a range of situational and contextual factors (Gartner 1988, 1989; Reynolds 1991; Watson et al. 1998; Jack and Anderson 2002). When very small and micro businesses are considered, the owner’s social and economic contexts are strongly inter-related, and to interpret economic action, one needs to take into account the social context where it takes place (Granovetter 1985; Aldrich and Zimmer 1986; Curran et al. 1993; Greenbank 2001; Jack and Anderson 2002). In remote rural areas, particularly in peripheral locations, tourism businesses have been widely promoted and relied upon as a means of addressing the social and economic challenges they are going through (Sharpley 2002; Shaw and Williams 2002; Getz et al. 2004). But tourism businesses have to face the typical weakness of small firms, combined with the constraining characteristics of peripheral destinations (Dahles 1997; Morrison 1998a; Morrison and Thomas 1999; Irvine and Anderson 2004; Getz and Carlsen 2005). The supporting resources base for firm setting up is considered to be much smaller and much harder to access (Smallbone et al. 1993; Stearns et al. 1995; Patterson and Anderson 2003; Skuras et al. 2003). In such circumstances, the owners’ social personal networks play very important roles, either in the provision of immediate support, or by giving access to contacts and to resources outside the local area (Jack and Anderson 2002). But social networks can either facilitate or inhibit venture development (Casrud and Johnson 1989). Particularly with micro and/or family owned businesses, the two sub-systems are so strongly embedded, that any family issue is likely to influence the business and vice-versa, both in a positive as well as in a negative way (Stafford et al. 1999; Danes 2006). Social networks are acknowledged as important sources of strength, synergies and resources to businesses (e.g. Lynch; 2000; Habbershon et al. 2003; Buhalis and Peters 2006; Sharma 2008; Tinsley and Lynch 2008), but can also lead to dysfunctional consequences, and conflict between both systems may arise (Danes 2006; Werberl and Danes 2010). Therefore, this research aims at contributing to an under researched topic: the understanding of the role and importance of social relationships, in the small business setting up and management context. Theories of social networks, social capital and social support were considered as providing an appropriate conceptual framework. To accomplish the proposed goals and objectives a sequential, multi-methods approach was adopted, because the topic of social support, and mostly social hindrance, were under-conceptualized in the small businesses context. The first stages of qualitative data collection (interviews and subsequent group discussion) informed the structure and content of a questionnaire to be used in the main stage of quantitative data collection. The quantitative research was conducted in the Alto Alentejo and Oeste regions (Portugal), with 180, face-to-face completed questionnaires, based on a stratified random selection of tourism business owners. Data collected has enabled the identification of who within business owners’ personal network has affected their business initiative, how and with what outcomes, at different moments in time. Helpful and unhelpful behaviours, both from family and people within the personal circle have been identified and submitted to uni and multi analysis. The underlying types of social support and social hindrance were identified. At the theoretical level, this research has demonstrated the benefits of combining theories of social network and social capital, traditionally widely used in small business research, with theory of social support. A richer understanding of the role of social relationships in the business’ context was achieved. This research has also contributed to the conceptualization of negative social interactions, and the term social hindrance is suggested, as opposed to social support. The multi-dimensionality and multiplexity of both constructs has been demonstrated. At the practical level, the findings indicate that social relationships, notably from family and friends, play an important role in the setting up and management of small tourism businesses, namely through the provision of emotional support, informational support and practical aid and assistance. The results demonstrate that there is, indeed, a positive relationship between social support and business performance, whilst negative social interactions, conceptualized as social hindrance, are less likely to affect business performance and success than expected. However, caution is suggested regarding the findings relating to negative social interaction considering the positive association between social desirability and reporting of social hindering behaviours. The study discusses not only the theoretical implications but also the practical ones, namely in the development of policies that aim at facilitating the setting up and management of small tourism businesses in rural areas. Future areas of research are suggested, both with regard to exploring in further detail the data collected and in terms of new and enhanced research approaches.

The notion of customers co-creating value with the firm has recently gained considerable attention within the service marketing discipline. The Service-Dominant (S-D) and the Customer-Dominant (C-D) logic in marketing in particular emphasise the active role of customers in the co-creation of value. But further theoretical insights are needed into the process of value co-creation. Specifically, customer-to-customer (C2C) value co-creation that takes place as customers come together to socialise, interact with each other and to be co-present in socially dense service settings, requires further conceptualisation. C2C value co-creation is explored in this thesis in the socially dense service setting of multi-day outdoor festivals, using the concept of value-forming social practices as a theoretical lens. The methodological design is guided by the social constructionist stance, which complements the practice-based value approach in co-creation research by emphasising the importance of social contexts. Methods adopted include ethnographic-style participant observation, document and visual materials analysis, and a total of 52 in-depth interviews at five different UK-based outdoor multi-day festivals. Interpretive analysis identifies six distinctive C2C co-creation practices: Belonging, Bonding, Detaching, Communing, Connecting and Amiability. Each practice is described in terms of the actions in which it is embodied. The practices are positioned in a two-dimensional framework, with the Value orientation and the Value immersion dimensions reflecting the complexities and ambiguities that exist in social contexts. Aspects of subject- and situation-specific practice elements are examined with regard to their role in influencing the C2C co-creation process at festivals. Practice-based segmentation and social servicescape design strategies are proposed, which can be used to support and facilitate C2C co-creation. A theoretical contribution is made to the body of knowledge in service marketing, and the S-D and C-D logics in particular, by advancing understanding of what specifically is involved in C2C value co-creation. The thesis also offers holistic insights relevant for service marketing practice. It provides tangible recommendations that could lead to more favourable social outcomes for customers and consequently, competitive advantage for the firm.