Search

Despite the fast growth of solo female travelling market, the travelling experience of solo female travellers is still lack of in-depth research. The heterogeneity of museum visitors also makes solo female visitors worthy of more discussion. Based on qualitative data collected through interviews and online travel blogs, and taking the four elements of social practice theory as theoretical framework, this study concluded that settings including the intangible assets and spatial functions of museums, constituted the basis of other elements, while the others (materials, competences and meanings) made up the practice of solo female visitors in museums. Meanings mainly included knowledge construction, social connection, and self-construction, which were linked with competences that solo female visitors obtained and also had an impact on their daily life. Practical suggestions on museum management were provided according to the element of materials, which was reflected in online and offline exhibition spaces, cultural and creative products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the influence of mobility on place attachment has received attention in the literature, this relationship varies between groups. Unlike those who move to enjoy their retirement, for example, older migrants arriving in Shenzhen come to the city 'passively,' drawn by the needs of their children. This paper advances understanding of the concept of place attachment by illustrating the relationships between its components. Analysis of interview and questionnaire responses revealed the following relationships between three focal components of place attachment. Place dependence first directly influenced affective attachment and then indirectly affected place identity. Leisure involvement had a positive impact on place dependence and affective attachment but no direct effect on place identity. Residential satisfaction was an antecedent of all three focal dimensions of place attachment. No direct relationship was found between leisure involvement and residential satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to empirically explore existential authenticity from the perspectives of visitors. Given that existentialism invites people to examine the authenticity of their personal lives and their society, an attempt was made in this study to examine the authenticity of visitors’ personal lives and their environments by conducting an empirical study concerning the Kaiping watchtowers site, a well-known Chinese heritage site. Two dimensions of existential authenticity were examined: intrapersonal and interpersonal authenticity. The results reveal that the authenticity of toured heritage sites and environments may be irrelevant to existential authenticity and that intrapersonal authenticity exerts a substantial influence on destination loyalty. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of financial policy relevant to the exhibition industry, which is emulated and learned from each other by local governments, has been recognized as a necessary requirement for competition among exhibition industries in different cities. However, research on exhibitions has mainly focused on the behavior of exhibitors and buyers, the economic impact of exhibitions, and residents' attitudes towards exhibitions. There is a lack of empirical research that evaluates the effectiveness of financial policies in China' s exhibition industries. Therefore, this study specifically focuses on the analysis and evaluation of this kind of policy, and has both theoretical and practical significance. The exhibition industries in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Dongguan represent high status levels in China. Furthermore, all three cities have implemented distinctly different financial policies regarding their exhibition industries. It is for this reason that these cities have been chosen as case studies in this research. The evaluation models and methods for policy effect used by Everton Vedung (1997), Chen Zhenming (2003), Xie Ming (2004) and Zhou Lianshi (2006) show that it is beneficial to evaluate policy from the perspectives of stakeholders. As a result, in this research, semi-structural stakeholder interviews were conducted among local governments, organizers, exhibitors, and exhibition industry associations between August 2009 and April 2010. This study mainly discusses the perceptions and attitudes of organizers and exhibitors, who are the target groups of the financial policies. Moreover, both the rent-seeking theory and subsidy theory are applied to evaluate the effect of the policies from the view of the healthy development of the whole industry. The findings of the study are as follows: 1) The tax reform policy reflects both equity and efficiency. The policy efficiently reduces the tax burden of all the organizers. 2) The rental subsidies offered to the organizers result in a paradox. On the one hand, the organizers of mature brand projects are "indifferent" to subsidies, for the subsidies mean little to them when compared with the assets of the company. On the other hand, for the organizers of new projects, the subsidy is indispensable. However, they are turned away because of a threshold that they cannot reach. 3) A subsidy is a double-edged sword. It reduces costs for companies so that more funds are available for their development; however, it also contributes to a company' s reliance/dependancy, which may make the with drawal of funds difficult in the long term. 4) The current financial policies are in effective and do more harm than good. First, subsidies to exhibitors have little positive effect, and even induce adverse effects. Second, the phenomenon of rent-seeking not only reduces the efficiency of special funds but causes a great waste of social resources. Third, policies lack fairness. The allocation of capital tends to flow into enterprises with brand projects, while weaker ones do not benefit. In the long term, mediocrity may be gradually eliminated because of path dependence, and this harms the industry as a whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]