Tourism as Catalyst for Quality of Life in Transitioning Subsistence Marketplaces

Abstract

Tourism is a potential catalyst for transforming subsistence marketplaces, and the quality of life (QOL) for people who live in them. The authors share findings from a study on tourism development in Ha Long, Vietnam, a community transitioning from central economic planning and a focus on heavy and extractive industries, to one that is increasingly dominated by tourism and the industries, goods and services that support it. The authors used multiple methods to gain insights into QOL in Ha Long; those methods included site observations, depth interviews and data collection via an instrument designed and developed by the authors that quantifies perceptions of the evolution of residents’ well-being, including anticipated QOL. Findings indicate that a large majority of citizen-stakeholders in Ha Long generally feel life-quality has improved because of policy changes and subsequent tourism development. Concern is growing, however, that some environmental and societal degradation has accompanied positive economic outcomes. Marketing and policy implications, and opportunities for further research are discussed – not only for Ha Long, but for other actual or hopeful transitioning subsistence marketplaces whose leaders see tourism as a catalyst from economic hardship and subsistence-living toward enhanced QOL.

Envisioning a community‐centric approach to impact assessments in subsistence marketplaces

“…Such a pluralistic approach spans not just qualitative and quantitative methods, as exemplified in Mai et al . (2014), but also unconventional modes that extend into the domain of art such as photography, cinema, and role playing (Ozanne et al ., 2013; Elliot et al ., 2018; DeBerry‐Spence et al ., 2019). In addition to methodological plurality, phenomenological approach also accounts for plurality in social experiences based on an actor's social location.…”

“…Such violations are immensely problematic because they accentuate the vulnerabilities of communities that are disadvantaged and impoverished to begin with (Hill and Rapp, 2009; Mason et al ., 2017). Cognizant of this all‐too‐common pitfall, researchers have begun to put forward modes of academic engagement in subsistence marketplaces that place community well‐being front and center in their efforts, without abandoning the academic rigor demanded by their disciplines (Viswanathan, 2012; Mai et al ., 2014; Blocker and Barrios, 2015; Viswanathan and Venugopal, 2015; Corus et al ., 2016; Davis et al ., 2016; Mason and Chakrabarti, 2017; Sridharan et al ., 2017; Mwiti and Onyas, 2018; Steinfield and Holt, 2019). Collectively, a core tenet espoused by these researchers is the fact that subsistence marketplaces deserve to be studied in their own right (Viswanathan, 2012).…”

“…(2009) and Mai et al . (2014) demonstrate multi‐year relational engagement in India and Vietnam, respectively, resulting in rich insights for theory and practice. This stands in contrast to one‐time impact validation RCTs that conduct one field experiment to declare whether an intervention worked or failed (Banerjee et al ., 2010).…”

Uma proposta de visualização do sistema agregado de marketing turístico

“…Assim, o argumento de Mai et al (2013) de que há um crescimento da necessidade de se monitorar como o desenvolvimento econômico de uma comunidade interage com o bem-estar individual e comunitário adiciona um outro fator a ser considerado como saída de um sistema de marketing turístico que vai além do desenvolvimento econômico e leva em consideração o desenvolvimento social do lugar. Os mesmos autores observam ainda que há várias avaliações, métricas e modelos desenhados para incorporar medidas subjetivas de bem-estar para indivíduos, comunidades e sociedade como um todo, que estão substituindo e/ou complementando as medições meramente econômicas.…”

“…Além disso, a autora apontava uma tendência crescente em nível global no sentido de questionar a natureza e a velocidade desse crescimento, pois, embora não houvesse dúvidas de que o turismo pode trazer inúmeros benefícios econômicos a um lugar, há inúmeros aspectos negativos em potencial. É o que Mai et al (2013) entendem quando afirmam que o turismo pode ampliar as desvantagens sociais e econômicas para a população receptora da atividade, principalmente em países em desenvolvimento.…”