A life course perspective to understanding senior tourism patterns and preferences

Abstract

This paper explores the relationships between life course transitions and seniors'tourism behaviour with a focus on social-psychological factors. The study employs a qualitative research approach and applied biographical interviews with 23 participants (older than 60 years) from Germany. Five themes are identified and presented in this paper: "role transitions," "the loss of partners," "stressful situations and illness," "travel saturation," and "perception of age." A model is developed that integrates the impact of life course transitions, the collections of travel experiences, and the perception of age on tourism behaviour. Research findings are discussed in light of existing literature and theories on human development and ageing.

Motivation-based segmentation of Chinese senior travelers: The role of preferences, sociodemographic, and travel-related features

“…In this regard, a factor–cluster analysis is salutary. The literature also supports that the senior market is highly heterogeneous (e.g., Huber, 2019; Ward, 2014). The manner in which the specific traits of seniors differ across clusters should also be considered.…”

“…However, this group was noted to be motivated to seek time with family and experience culture/nature overseas. Theoretically, travel can be a way of avoiding boredom at home, associated with empty nest stage, because it offers opportunity for family togetherness (Huber, 2019; Sudbury and Simcock, 2009). Thus, a family-type package that enables such seniors to spend time with their children, spouses, and grandchildren is suggested.…”

Senior's travel constraint, negotiation strategy and travel intention: Examining the role of social support

“…It is generally agreed that age and stage of life influence people's perceptions of travel constraint (Gao & Kerstetter, 2016;. Becoming a senior involves several physical, psychological, and social changes that either facilitate or inhibit seniors' participation in tourism activities (Huber et al, 2018), for example, increased leisure time after retirement, loneliness due to the death of a spouse, or decreased health status (Huber, 2019;Huber et al, 2018;Nimrod, 2008).…”

Temporality and biography in tourism: a qualitative longitudinal approach

“…In the tourism context, there is often overlap between research that is framed as a 'lifecourse' perspective and research labelled as 'biographical', given that both approaches largely rely on the analysis of biographical narratives (cf. Gibson et al 2012;Gram et al 2019;Huber 2019;Huber et al 2017;Sedgley 2007;Sedgley et al 2011). The distinction between the two lies in the analytic weight given to the concept of life stages, which is more prominent in lifecourse research.…”