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Vacationers not only read and use information from the Internet during their choice process, but also post information on the Internet. This posted information is described as eWOM (electronic word of mouth). The central questions are, which type of vacationers do post, with which motivations do they post reviews, on which type of site, and what are the message characteristics? These questions are approached in a way that differs from the usual site-centered approach. It is topiccentered and independent of a specific review site, and it focuses on motivations for all vacation sites. The conclusion is that why a vacationer makes a contribution influences the choice of a site to which he or she contributes and what he or she contributes. The main discriminating motivational factor is the one that sets vacationers with a primarily self-directed motivation apart from those with a more other-directed help motivation. Implications for tourism research and vacation marketing are discussed.

W H E N THE RESEARCH THAT led to CommonKADS was conceived as part of the European Esprit program in 1983, the AI community as a whole showed little interest in methodological issues. At the time, the prevailing paradigm for building knowledgebased systems was rapid prototyping using special purpose hard-and software, such as LISP machines, expert system shells, and so on. Since then, however, many developers have realized that a structured development approach is just as necessary in knowledgebased systems as it is in conventional software projects. This structured development approach is the aim of CommonKADS.Traditionally, knowledge engineering was viewed as a process of "extracting" knowledge from a human expert and transferring it to the machine in computational form. Today, knowledge engineering is approached as a modeling activity. In the CommonKADS methodology, KBS development entails constructing a set of engineering models of problem solving behavior in its concrete organization and application context. This modeling concerns not only expert knowledge, but also the various characteristics of how that knowledge is embedded and used in the organizational environment. The different models are a means of capturing the different sources and types of requirements that play a role in realistic applications. A KBS, then, is a computational realization associated with a collection of these models. Figure 1 summarizes the suite of models involved in a ComrnonKADS project. A central model in the CommonKADS methodology is the expertise model, which models the problem solving behavior of an agent in terms of the knowledge that is applied to perform a certain task. Other models capture relevant aspects of reality, such as the task supported by an application; the organizational context; the distribution of tasks over different agents; the agents' capabilities and communication; and the computational system design of the KBS. These are engineeringtype models and serve engineering purposes. The models are considered not as "steps along the way," but as independent products in their own right that play an important role during the life cycle of the KBS.Here, we give a brief overview of the Com-28 0885-9000/94/$4.00 0 1994 IEEE monKADS methodology, paying special attention to the expertise modelingan aspect of KBS development that distinguishes it from other types of software development. We illustrate the CommonKADS approach by showing how aspects of the VT system' for elevator design would be modeled (see sidebar, "The VT System" for background). Project management principlesIn CommonKADS, project management and development activities are separated. Project management is represented by a project management activity model that interacts with the development work through model states attached to the CommonKADS models. The development process proceeds in a cyclic, riskdriven way similar to Boehm's spiral model? IEEE EXPERT

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Consumer-generated versus marketer-generated websites in consumer decision making Bronner, A.E.; de Hoog, R. Published in: International Journal of Market Research DOI:10.2501/S1470785309201193 Link to publication Citation for published version (APA):Bronner, F., & de Hoog, R. (2010). Consumer-generated versus marketer-generated websites in consumer decision making. International Journal of Market Research, 52(2), 231-248. DOI: 10.2501/S1470785309201193 General rightsIt is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), other than for strictly personal, individual use, unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Disclaimer/Complaints regulationsIf you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: http://uba.uva.nl/en/contact, or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, Singel 425, 1012 WP Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. These kinds of reviews are described as eWOM (electronic Word-Of-Mouth). Our central question is: are consumers using these reviews, and what is the role of eWOM as compared with commercial-marketer-generated information and advertising on the Internet. The vacation decision process was used as the domain of investigation, but also these results are compared with four other domains. The conclusion is that the roles of both types of sites are complementary.Furthermore, it was found that overall, positive and neutral/mixed contributions to consumergenerated websites are far more frequent than negative ones. Based on these findings, the implications for marketing and advertising strategies are sketched out: additional to existing strategies, market research has to monitor the eWOM about brands and, by using this information companies should flexibly adapt their advertising to the discussion points raised at the consumergenerated sites. Consumergenerated versus marketergenerated websites in consumer decision making *Revised manuscript2 Consumergenerated versus marketergenerated websites in consumer decision making ABSTRACTInternet users are encouraged to rate and review all kinds of services and products. These kinds of reviews are described as eWOM (electronic Word-Of-Mouth). Our central question is: are consumers using these reviews, and what is the role of eWOM as compared with commercialmarketer-generated information and advertising on the Internet. The vacation decision process was used as the domain of investigation, but also these results are compared with four other domains. The conclusion is that the roles of both types of sites are complementary. Furthermore, it was found that overall, positive and neutral/mixed contributions to consumergenerated websites are f...

More than 100 years ago, the term conspicuous consumption was coined. In the economist tradition, emphasis was always on the demonstration of wealth, income, and status by material purchases. However, conspicuous consumption not only means the ostentation of wealth but also the demonstration of something symbolic that is more immaterial. There is an increasing importance of immaterial experiences over material things in the current cultural climate. This study investigates the role of conspicuous consumption for vacation decision-making as an example of an experiential purchase. The study found that communicating about vacations with others is important and increases by the ubiquitous use of social media. Two conspicuous consumption factors are found, namely those of (a) status and wealth and (b) identity demonstration. The first factor plays little or no role in holiday choice. The second is found to be of importance and is characterized by items such as having unique experiences, showing other people who you are, and visiting trendy locations. Thus, with a holiday one wants to show more of his or her personality and identity than of status and wealth. This fits into other empirical research in which it is shown that experiences make people more happy than material possessions.

Economizing and spending priorities on different types of vacations are investigated during two periods: an economic downturn and returning prosperity. Two nation-wide samples of vacationers are used: one during a downturn, the other one at the start of the recovery period. Through comparing the results, conclusions can be drawn about symmetric or asymmetric tourist demand across the business cycle.The main summer holiday has an asymmetric profile: being fairly crisis-resistant during a recession and showing considerable growth during an expansion. This does not apply to short vacations and day trips, each having a symmetric profile: during a recession they experience substantial reductions and during expansion comparable growth. So when talking about tourist demand in general, one cannot say that it is symmetric or asymmetric across the business cycle: it depends on the type of vacation. Differences in tourist demand are best explained by the role of Quality-of-Life for vacationers.