This work examines the projected image of Romania as an emerging tourism destination. Computed content-analysis was applied to the photos, text and video materials promoted online in Romania’s last international tourism campaign. The conceptual framework used corresponds to intrinsic values (play, aesthetics, ethics and spirituality), from Holbrook’s typology of value. Being more difficult to apprehend and therefore studied less, intrinsic values allow a more sophisticated approach to value creation. The purpose here is to identify the main attributes that are promoted about Romania by destination marketing organizations. The content analysis of text (last international promotion campaign Explore the Carpathian Garden) and visual data (27 photos from the official Facebook webpage and 7 TV videos) allow to depict an experiential view of Romania’s image: natural resources (coded as aesthetics with 29% of references), epistemic value of discovery (play 25.8%), authentic and historical traditions (ethics 25.8%) and wellness and therapeutic activities (spirituality, 19.3%). Destination marketing organizations have the potential to develop some distinctive aspects such as authenticity (as an ethical value dimension) and play (as an active, self-oriented value). Findings also highlight that a complimentary approach using textual and visual data might be a suitable option to research destination brand image.

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This research was developed in the frame of the VOLTO JÁ Project, which aims to implement a senior social exchange program in Portugal, among social economy organizations to promote tourism experiences for the elderly. The main goal of the research is to present a three-stage model of designing and evaluating tourism experiences in senior mobility, named as the OEC Model. This model was established based on a set of data collection instruments, which were chosen according to the goals of each stage of the process, in the context of the VOLTO JÁ Project. The results of stage one and three of the model considered as a more integrated approach on designing and evaluating senior tourism experiences are presented. The findings highlight the importance of a pre-stage in what concerns organizing the tourism experience (supply perspective); and a post-stage assessing senior´s perceptions after the experience (demand perspective).

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There is no doubt that destination image (DI) is an important sub-field of tourism destination marketing. Several meta-analysis studies have appeared since the emergence of this construct in the 1970s, resulting in almost 300 articles related with this topic. The mainstream of DI research was clearly identified by Chon (1990) and updated by Gallarza et al. (2002). Despite the existence of such evidence after forty years of research, several authors still recognize the lack of theoretical framework, stressing the difficulty in the opera tionaliza tion of this construct. The risk of it being theoretical and non-scientific is a reality. But, at the same time, a wider scope of DI studies has emerged, and new methodologies have come to light. Considering these conclusions after four decades of research, a shift from a static to a more dynamic analysis is required. Scientific progress is not linear and cumulative but dynamic and evolutionary. Therefore, this paper attempts to explore Hirsch and Levin's (1999) life-cycle model mainly applied to 'umbrella constructs' (UC) -encompassing their birth, growth, maturity and decline -as the perfect framework for an evolutionary analysis. Implications of the model for future direction of the DI construct are explored and elaborated, in order to provide some insights to open avenues along which DI research can scientifically progress.

Resumo: A imagem é uma relevante ferramenta em pesquisas qualitativas. Este trabalho objetivou descrever a experiência do uso da imagem como método de coleta de dados por meio da Técnica de Associação Livre de Palavras, em um estudo sobre cuidados em saúde bucal de idosos hospitalizados. A pesquisa ocorreu em um hospital universitário situado em Salvador, Bahia, Brasil, tendo a equipe de enfermagem como colaboradora do estudo. Por se tratar de pesquisa com seres humanos, todos os cuidados éticos foram respeitados. O relato reflete sobre a utilização de uma imagem fixa na coleta de dados, que não foi idealmente representativa aos colaboradores, necessitando de adaptação na metodologia do trabalho. Conclui-se que a utilização da imagem como recurso em pesquisas na saúde permite maior aproximação aos sujeitos da pesquisa, alcançando mais profundamente os seus pensamentos e manifestações.Palavras-chave: Pesquisa qualitativa; Imagem; Saúde bucal; Enfermagem. Image as a tool in qualitative research in health: experience reportAbstract: Image is an relevant tool in qualitative research. This study aims to describe the experience of using the image as a method of data collection through the Free Word Association Technique in a research on oral health care of hospitalized elderly patients. The research took place in a university hospital located in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, with the nursing team as collaborator of the study. Due to this research is related to human beings, all ethical caution was respected. The report reflects on the use of a fixed image in the data collection, which was not ideally representative of the researched population, necessitating adaptation in the work methodology. It is concluded that the use of the image as a resource in health research allows a closer approximation to the subjects of the research, reaching deeper their thoughts and manifestation.Keywords: Qualitative research; Image; Oral health; Nursing.

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Purpose The literature review reveals that lake tourism and lake-destination areas (LDA) have been particularly absent from destination image (DI) studies over 45 years of research. In fact, there is a lack of research concerning the characteristics of lake tourism, particularly related to the attributes involved in the formation of lake-DI. Therefore, this paper aims to explore lake tourism and lake-DI based on the Alqueva Lake more thoroughly, it being the biggest man-made lake in Europe, as an emerging lake-destination area located in the south of Portugal. Design/methodology/approach Within this, the perceptions of stakeholders professionally involved with this type of destination were examined through 17 semi-structured interviews based on content-analysis as a qualitative technique. Framed by the important contribution of visual-based research in tourism studies, this study adopts two approaches: an attribute-based approach (textual data) and a photo-based approach (visual data), to strengthen the concept, characteristics and dimensions of lake tourism and image attributes applied to this type of destinations. Multiple techniques of extracting data were used, demonstrating the importance of using various techniques in obtaining image attributes as a first step in assessing DIs. Findings The findings revealed textual and pictorial attributes related to lake tourism and LDA, which confirms that although image attributes are universally important, depicting specific attributes is important considering particular types of tourism, such as lake tourism. Originality/value This is a very recent sub-field of DI studies, which justifies its investigation on a theoretical as well as on a practical management level.