Tourism Risk and Uncertainty

Abstract

The analysis of risk in tourism is fragmented and uneven and focuses relatively narrowly on risk as a set of negative outcomes to be avoided by individuals, firms, or destinations. This article contends that, because of general, and sector-specific, limitations to knowledge, systematic and unsystematic risks are central to all forms of tourism activities. There is a need for a stronger theoretical understanding of the different concepts of tourism risks and tourism uncertainties that engages with how these are manifested at different scales, and can be analyzed from competing perspectives. The contribution and potential of both rationalist and constructivist approaches are assessed, focusing on individuals, firms, intermediaries, and destinations. The article concludes by identifying priorities for future research relating to both theoretical positioning and scale-specific issues ranging from individual decision making to the securitization of national tourism policies.

Tourists’ Motivations to Travel: a Theoretical Perspective on the Existing Literature

“…In general, security perceptions play an important role in tourism and travel (Williams & Baláž, 2015), so a lack of security is considered a disadvantage for some destinations and/or countries and an advantage for others. This confirms the importance of Maslow's (1943) theory to understanding contemporary society.…”

“…However, in some cases, riskseeking may be a motivation for youth travellers, as individuals in their early adulthood are often driven by a desire for adventure, experimentation and exploration (Gibson & Yiannakis, 2002). Some backpackers and young adventure tourists look for risk and adventure to reinforce their identity or simply because of sensation seeking (Williams & Baláž, 2015). Maslow's (1943) third need in the motivational hierarchy is developing healthy relationships and forming relationships to create a sense of social belonging.…”

“…Many previous studies have focused on tourists' motivations to travel, including, among others, Plog (1974), Dann (1977Dann ( , 1981, Crompton (1979), Ahola (1982), Ragheb (1980, 1983), Virdi and Traini (1990), Baloglu and Uysal (1996), Uysal and Jurowski (1994), Klenosky (2002), Snepenger et al (2006), Biswas (2008), Ancuta et al (2011) and Simková (2013).…”

Building tourism organizational resilience to crises and disasters: A dynamic capabilities view

“…For example, hotel rooms cancelled by tourists during a disaster period are left vacant, and the revenue is lost and cannot be resold. Third, tourism products are based on the cooperation among multiple sectors (i.e., accommodation, F&B, and recreation) that provide a complementary and holistic tourism experience (Williams & Baláž, ). However, this tight industrial chain structure results in high interdependency and create a ripple effect (Ritchie, ).…”

Disaster risk, risk management, and tourism competitiveness: A cross‐nation analysis

“…Disaster risk are adverse to the business environment, safety and security conditions, and service infrastructure (Robertson et al, 2006). Also, disaster risk can directly influence a destination-s ability to establish a safe and stable environment in which tourism can thrive (Robertson et al, 2006;Williams & Baláž, 2015). Such a stable environment contributes to the good development of tourism infrastructure as well as the increase of the tourism destinations' attractiveness to tourists, both of which improve tourism competitiveness.…”