A phenomenological view of the behavioural tourism research literature

Abstract

Purpose – This paper aims to discuss a framework in which the behavioural tourism and leisure literature is organised. It seeks to demonstrate the practical use of Gnoth's Tourism Experience Model (TEM), and provide future directions in holiday tourism research. Design/methodology/approach – The paper takes a phenomenological approach to tourists' experiencing as a critical and productive tool for tourism development. The literature reviewed is structured through the four modes of experiencing outlined in the TEM: experience as pure pleasure, as re-discovery, as existentially authentic exploration, and as knowledge seeking. Findings – The TEM provides a model for all potential experiencing, that is, it models the boundaries of what experiencing could be throughout the tourist journey. The discussion of the literature also shows that, in many occasions, different experiential stages, states and modes of feeling await far more detailed research. Originality/value – The paper highlights not a particular mode or phase within an experience but better captures the latency of experiencing. The paper argues that the model helps to better distinguish the processes of experiencing and challenges research to identify phases and developments, strategies and heuristics that take the tourist's potential “travel career” or self-developmental trajectories into consideration.