ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH Vol.IV,No.4,March/April 1977 ANOMIE,EGO-ENHANCEMENT AND TOURISM Graham M.S.Dann The University of the West Indies Barbados,West Indies ABSTRACT Dann,Graham M.S.,"Anomie,Ego-Enhancement and Tourism," Annals of Tourism Research,Vol.IV,No.4,March/April,1977,pp.184-194- The present paper attempts to provide an answer to the much neglected sociological treatment of tourist motivation,with specific reference to the question,"What makes tourists travel?"A theoretical case is suggested for concentration on"push"factors,and,in particular,those stemming from“anomie'and“ego-enhancement'”in the tourist himself.Itis further argued that the presence of such factors is conducive to the creation of a fantasy world,one to which he plans a periodic escape. At the empirical level,the study evaluates the above two concepts in the light of a recent investigation of visitors'attitudes to Barbados.The components of the typology are also briefly examined. *Dr.Dann.born in Edinburgh.Scotland,1941,graduated in social sciences in Rome.Italy. where he collaborated in severul projects with the International Center for Social Research. On returning to Britain,he presented his doctoral dissertation at the University of Surrey, England,1975.Since then he has been lecturing in Sociology at the University of the West Indies.Barbados,the center from which the present study was conducted. 184 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH,Mar/Apr'77
ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH Vol. IV, No. 4, March/April 1977 ANOMIE, EGO-ENHANCEMENT AND TOURISM Graham M.S. Dann, ~ The University of the West Indies Barbados, West Indies ABSTRACT Dann, Graham M.S., "Anomie, Ego-Enhancement and Tourism," Annals of Tourism Re~arch, Vol. IV, No. 4, March/April, 1977, pp. 184-194 -- The present paper attempts to provide an answer to the much neglected sociological treatment of tourist motivation, with specific reference to the question, "What makes tourists travel?" A theoretical case is suggested for concentration on "push" factors, and, in particular, those stemming from "anomie" and "ego-enhancement" in the tourist himself. It is further argued that the presence of such factors is conducive to the creation of a fantasy world, one to which he plans a periodic escape. At the empirical level, the study evaluates the above two concepts in the light of a recent investigation of visitors' attitudes to Barbados. The components of the typology are also briefly examined. *Dr. Dann. born in Edinburgh, Scotland, 1941, graduated in social sciences in Rome, Italy. where he collaborated in several projects with the International Center for Social Reseaxch. On returning to Britain. he presented his doctoral dissertation at the University of Surrey, England, 1975. Since then he has been lecturing in Sociology at the University of the West Indies, Barbados, the center from which the present study was conducted. 184 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Mar/Apr '77
GRAHAM M.S.DANN RESUME Dann Graham,M.S.,"L'Anomie,le rehaussement du moi et le tourisme,"' Annals of Tourism Research,Vol.IV,No.4,mars/avril,1977,pp.184-194.. On a fait tres peu d'attention a l'examination sociologique de la motivation des touristes.Le present article pose la question nettement:"Pourquoi voyagent les touristes?"Sur le plan theorique,on propose une concen- tration sur les"facteurs de poussee"et,en particulier,sur ceux qui naissent de l'anomie et du rehaussement du moi du touriste meme. On soutient de plus que la presences de tels facteurs mene a la creation d'un monde de reve auquel le touriste projette de fuir periodiquement. Sur le plan empirique,I'article contient une evaluation des deux concepts mentionnes ci-dessus a la lumiere d'ur investigation ccente des attitudes des visiteurs a Barbados.On examine aussi les composants d'une typologie. INTRODUCTION It was Lundberg who complained about the lack of adequate research concerning tourist motivation.There exists a variety of perspectives on how a tourist behaves at a given destination,but few investigations begin with the question,"What makes tourists travel?"In seeking to remedy this"lacuna"at the sociological level,an attempt to answer this question was made by a supervised team of methodology students from the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies.After a pre-test and pilot inquiry,a further 422 interviews were conducted of winter tourists in Barbados during the peak season months of January and February,1976.Visitors were stratified by country of residence,age,sex and socio-economic status,with immigration statistics acting as the basis for proportional representation of the above variables.A summary of the pertinent aspects of this research is presented here. WHAT MAKES TOURISTS TRAVEL? A review of the literature related to tourist motivation quickly reveals that much of what is said in answer to"what makes tourists travel?"can be seen to border on sociological assertion.One encounters statements such as: The greatest reason for travel can be summed up in one word,"Escape": escape from the dull,daily routine:escape from the familiar,the common- place,the ordinary;escape from the job,the boss,the customer,the commut- ing,the house,the lawn,the leaky faucets. Now while the above may well be pinpointing "the greatest reason for travel,"there is no empirical evidence to demonstrate this;nor is one told about the type of tourist where such a reason for travel predominates.Consequently,in designing the Barbados research,the need was felt for a theoretical frame of reference which could be tested at the level of hypothesis. ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH,Mar/Apr '77 185
GRAHAM M.S. DANN RESUME Dann Graham, M. S., "L'Anomie, le rehaussement du moi et le tourisme," Annals of Tourisrn Research, Vol. IV, No. 4, mars/avril, 1977, pp. 184-194 -- On a fair tres peu d'attention a l'examination sociologique de la motivation des touristes. Le present article pose la question nettement: "Pourquoi voyagent les touristes?" Sur le plan theorique, on propose une concentration stir tes "'facteurs de poussee" et, en particulier, sur ceux qui naissent de l'anomie et du rehaussement du moi du touriste meme. On soutient de plus que la presences de tels facteurs mene a la creation d'un monde de reve auquel ie touriste projette de fuir periodiquement. Sur le plan empirique, l'article contient une evaluation des deux concepts mentionnes ci-dessus a la lumiere d'u~. investigation ccente de~ attitudes des visiteurs a Barbados. On examine aussi tes composants d'une typologie. INTRODUCTION It was Lundberg 6 who complained about the lack of adequate research concerning tourist motivation. There exists a variety of perspectives on how a tourist behaves at a given destination, but few investigations begin with the question, "What makes tourists travel?" In seeking to remedy this "lacuna" at the sociological level, an attempt to answer this question was made by a supervised team of methodology students from the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies. After a pre-test and pilot inquiry, a further 422 interviews were conducted of winter tourists in Barbados during the peak season months of January and February, 1976. Visitors were stratified by country of residence, age, sex and socio-economic status, with immigration statistics acting as the basis for proportional representation of the above variables. A summary of the pertinent aspects of this research is presented here. WHAT MAKES TOURISTS TRAVEL? A review of the literature related to tourist motivation quickly reveals that much of what is said in answer to "what makes tourists travel?" can be seen to border on sociological assertion. One encounters statements such as: 'The greatest reason for travel can be summed up in one word, "Escape": escape from the dull, daily routine; escape from the familiar, the commonplace, the ordinary; escape from the job, the boss, the customer, the commuting, thehouse, the lawn, the leaky faucets. 5 Now while the above may well be pinpointing "the greatest reason for travel," there is no empirical evidence to demonstrate this; nor is one told about the type of tourist where such a reason for travel predominates. Consequently, in designing the Barbados research, the need was felt for a theoretical frame of reference which could be tested at the level of hypothesis. ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Mar/Apt '77 18~
ANOMIE,EGO-ENHANCEMENT AND TOURISM A further familiarization with past surveys also indicated that the distinction between"push"and "pull"factors in tourism had generally been accepted.("Pull" factors are those which attract the tourist to a given resort (eg.sunshine,sea,etc.), and whose value is seen to reside in the obiect of travel."Push"factors,on the other hand,refer to the tourist as subject and deal with those factors predisposing him to travel (eg.escape,nostalgia,etc.).Moreover,it was seen that a preference had been displayed towards"pull"factors in seeking to explain why tourists travelled. As a result,"push"factors had either been placed in abeyance or were given a minimal treatment.Here again such a manoeuvre was questioned,and this for the following reasons.First,while a specific resort may hold a number of attractions for the potential tourist,his actual decision to visit such a destination is consequent on his prior need for travel.An examination of"push"factors is thus logically,and often temporally,antecedent to that of"pull"factors.Second,and by corollary,the question"what makes tourists travel"can only relate to the "push"factors as it is devoid of destination or value content,requirements of the"pull"factors.Finally, by examining"what makes tourists travel,"one is looking at a more elementary (and by implicaiton,causally prior)need than a specific reason for choice of resort (of secondary causal nature).Consequently,if one is to go beyond the level of description an investigation of "push"factors is indicated.It was further maintained that if these could be understood at the physiological and psychological levels then the theoretical framework of the research should reflect this.Consequently,it was hypo- thesised that motive for travel lay in the twin concepts of"anomie"and"ego-enhance- ment."A word about each is necessary ANOMIE Sociologically this term has received treatment from many since Durkheim's workon suicide Strictly speaking,nomie refers toa societywhosenm govern- ing interaction have lost their integrative force and where lawlessness and meaningless- ness prevail.Its derivative,anomia,however,applies to the individual,who clearly is affected by the social situation in which he finds himself.Nor is anomie a concept merely descriptive of nineteenth century Europe in the aftermath of the French and Industrial Revolutions,where increasing division of labor and its concomitant indivi- dualism had highlighted the tension of the individual in mass society.It appears to be equally applicable today,where there is conflict in wars,strikes,football hooligan- ism,muggings,highjackings and guerrilla violence.Economic instability too is often seen as being indicative of anomie,where competition demands that each indi- vidual fend for himself and the weakest go to the wall.Victims of inflation rarely see their aspirations fulfilled.A crisis of allegiance can be detected in declining religious affiliation,in increased divorce,and in the breakdown of democracy,where,in the majority of countries today,either there is sufficient lack of confidence in political leadership as to render them virtually ungovernable,or else power is held only through torture or the force of arms.Other indicators of anomie are the suicide rate and the numbers receiving psychiatric treatment.Anomie is therefore a term useful for its applicability. 186 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH,May/Apr 77
ANOMIE, EGO-ENHANCEMENT AND TOURISM A further familiarization with past surveys also indicated that the distinction between "push" and "pull" factors in tourism had generally been accepted. ("Pull" factors are those which attract the tourist to a given resort (eg. sunshine, sea, etc.), and whose value is seen to reside in the object of travel. "Push" factors, on the other hand, refer to the tourist as subject and deal with those factors predisposing him to travel (eg. escape, nostalgia, etc.). Moreover, it was seen that a preference had been displayed towards "pull" factors in seeking to explain why tourists travelled. As a result, "push" factors had either been placed in abeyance or were given a minimal treatment. Here again such a manoeuvre was questioned, and this for the following reasons• First, while a specific resort may hold a number of attractions for the potential tourist, his actual decision to visit such a destination is consequent on his prior need for travel. An examination of "push" factors is thus logically, and often temporally, antecedent to that of "pull" factors. Seconcl, and by corollary, the question "what makes tourists travel" can only relate to the "push" factors asit is devoid of destination or value content, requirements of the "pull" factors• Finally, by examining ''what makes tourists travel," one is looking at a more elementary (and by implicaiton, causally prior) need than a specific reason for choice of resort (of secondary causal nature). Consequently, if one is to go beyond the level of description an investigation of "push" factors is indicated. It was further maintained that if these could be understood at the physiological and psychological levels then the theoretical framework of the research should reflect this. Consequently, it was hypothesised that motive for travel lay in the twin concepts of "anomie" and "ego-enhancement." A word about each is necessary. ANOMIE SociologicallY4this term has received treatment from many since Durkheim's • 10 work on suicide. Strictly speaking, anomie refers to a society whose norms governing interaction have lost their integrative force and where lawlessness and meaninglessness prevail. 2 Its derivative, anomia, however, applies to the individual, who clearly is affected by the social situation in which he finds himself. 9 Nor is anomie a concept merely descriptive of nineteenth century Europe in the aftermath of the French and Industrial Revolutions, where increasing division of labor and its concomitant individualism had highlighted the tension of the individual in mass society. It appears to be equally applicable today, where there is conflict in wars, strikes, football hooliganism, muggings, highjackings and guerrilla violence. Economic instability too is often seen as being indicative of anomie, where competition demands that each individual fend for himself and the weakest go to the wall. Victims of inflation rarely see their aspirations fulfilled• A crisis of allegiance can be detected in decfining religious affiliation, in increased divorce, and in the breakdown of democracy, where, in the majority of countries today, either there is sufficient lack of confidence in political leadership as to render them virtually ungovernable, or else power is held only through torture or the force of arms• Other indicators of anomie are the suicide rate and the numbers receiving psychiatric treatment. Anomie is therefore a term useful for its applicability. 186 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH, May/Apr '77
GRAHAM M.S.DANN However,to the best of one's knowledge,anomie has not been associated with tourism.Now,given that the potential tourist lives in an anomic society along with everyone else,it is strange that the connection between his home situation and his leisure patterns has not been thoroughly investigated.A sensing of the connection between "what makes tourists travel"and the anomic society from which they come thus acts as a hallmark for the current theoretical perspective.It is claimed that a possible "push"factor for travel lies in the desire to transcend the feeling of isolation obtained in everyday life,where the tourist simply wishes to"get away from it all." Underlying the hypothesis is the need that man has for love and affection and the desire to communicate to his fellow man.However,if he lives in a large town or city, this possibility is often denied him.His commuting and his work account for most of the day,and what little remaining time he has at home is often spent in front of the television.His exhaustion permits only limited conversation with his wife and children,let alone friends and neighbors or relations.Yet the need for social inter- action is still present.Hence it can only be fulfilled away from the home environment, i.e.,when he is on holiday.A situation of anomie can thus be considered as predispos- ing him for travel.However anomie is not just present in cities.The habitant of a village may suffer from it,albeit for a different reason,namely over-personal contact and lack of privacy.In an attempt to avoid the prying and gossiping,he may isolate himself,where once more the need for social interaction manifests itself.Anomie can induce a travel-response in rural tourists too. EGO-ENHANCEMENT Like anomie,ego-enhancement derives from the level of personality needs(6,p.) Just as there is a need for social interaction,so too does man require to be recognized. Analogous to the desire for a bodily tune-up is the need to have one's ego enhanced or boosted from time to time.In sociological parlance,the desire for such recognition by others is often described in terms of"status."Where ambition is a cultural maxim,then there will also be the theoretical tendency for man to desire higher status,by means of which he will feel superior to those below him on the ladder of success.However,in the potential tourist's home situation,he has already been assigned a social position by his contemporaries,a position from which it is difficult to advance rapidly.And yet man's ego requires that such advancement be made Consequently,alternative strategies are employed to enhance the ego than that traditionally based on socio-economic status.One such strategy is that of travel. A tourist can go to a place where his social position is unknown and where he can feel superior by dint of this lack of knowledge.Additionally,on his return a further boost can be given to his ego in the recounting of his holiday experiences--trip dropping (6,p.124).If he goes to a prestige resort then he can assume greater status by paying a great deal or by mixing with an exclusive set.If he goes to a corner of the world relatively poorer than his own then he may obtain satisfaction of his need in lording it over the host community.Only travel provides such an opportunity for self recognition. ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH,Mar/Apr'77 187
GRAHAM M.S. DANN However, to the best of one's knowledge, anomie has not been associated with tourism. Now, given that the potential tourist lives in an anomic society along with everyone else, it is strange that the connection between his home situation and his leisure patterns has not been thoroughly investigated. A sensing of the connection between "what makes tourists travel" and the anomic society from which they come thus acts as a hallmark for the current theoretical perspective. It is claimed that a possible "push" factor for travel lies in the desire to transcend the feeling of isolation obtained in everyday life, where the tourist simply wishes to "get away from it all." Underlying the hypothesis is the need that man has for love and affection and the desire to communicate to his fellow man. However, if he lives in a large town or city, this possibility is often denied him. His commuting and his work account for most of the day, and what little remaining time he has at home is often spent in front of the television. His exhaustion permits only limited conversation with his wife and children, let alone friends and neighbors or relations. Yet the need for social interaction is still present. Hence it can only be fulfilled away from the home environment, i.e., when he is on holiday. A situation of anomie can thus be considered as predisposing him for travel. However anomie is not just present in cities. The habitant of a village may suffer from it, albeit for a different reason, namely over-personal contact and lack of privacy. In an attempt to avoid the prying and gossiping, he may isolate himself, where once more the need for social interaction manifests itself. Anomie can induce a travel-response in rural tourists too. EGO-ENHANCEMENT Like anomie, ego-enhancement derives from the level of personality needs. (6' P" 118) Just as there is a need for social interaction, so too does man require to be recognized. Analogous to the desire for a bodily tune-up is the need to have one's ego enhanced or boosted from time to time. In sociological parlance, the desire for such recognition by others is often described in terms of "status." Where ambition is a cultural maxim, then there will also be the theoretical tendency for man to desire higher status, by means of which he will feel superior to those below him on the ladder of success. However, in the potential tourist's home situation, he has already been assigned a social position by his contemporaries, a position from which it is difficult to advance rapidly. And yet man's ego requires that such advancement be made. Consequently, alternative strategies are employed to enhance the ego than that traditionally based on socio-economic status. One such strategy is that of travel. A tourist can go to a place where his social position is unknown and where he can feel superior by dint of this lack of knowledge. Additionally, on his return a further boost can be given to his ego in the recounting of his holiday experiences--trip dropping (6, p. 124). If he goes to a prestige resort then he can assume greater status by paying a great deal or by mixing with an exclusive set. If he goes to a corner of the world relatively poorer than his own then he may obtain satisfaction of his need in lording it over the host community. Only travel provides such an opportunity for self recognition. ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Mar/Apr '77 187
ANOMIE,EGO-ENHANCEMENT AND TOURISM ANOMIE,EGO-ENHANCEMENT,AND FANTASY From the above descriptions of anomie and ego-enhancement,it should be clear that not only does travel represent the fulfillment of certain basic needs in the potential tourist,but that in so doing it offers him an alternative world to that in which he daily lives.It can be argued,for instance,that in the monotomy of suburbia,the faceless city or the public village,life only becomes tolerable with the thought that there are chances of periodic escape from such an existence,and that travel provides the ideal outles.Additionally,however,travel has the advantage of permitting the traveller to behave in a manner normally circumvented by the dictates of convention. When on holiday the tourist can overstep the bounds of fashion,tell a few stories normally deemed improper or inappropriate,wear flashy clothes,eat exotic food, get drunk,become more sexually permissive,alter his timetable,stay up half the night,listen to loud local music,etc.,in short,indulge in those kinds of behavior generally frowned upon in his home environment.The possibility of actually doing what he wishes in his world of travel,surely underlies that essentially such a world is one of fantasy,for fantasy is a wish or desire,expressive of a need,which cannot be fulfilled in terms of current role expectations,but which is capable of defining situa- tions once these role expectations,or the circumstances in which they are found,have been modified or removed.Related to anomie,the fantasy world of travel seeks to overcome the humdrum,the normlessness and meaninglessness of life,with more satisfying experiences.As regards ego-enhancement,travel presents the tourist with the opportu- nity to boost his ego in acting out an alien personality.Just what sub-types of fantasy are associated with anomie and ego-enhancement has been treated elsewhere.3 ANOMIE AND EGO-ENHANCEMENT PUT TO THE EMPIRICAL TEST Interspersed throughout the interview schedule were several items,which,when clustered,formed two scales,one indicative of anomie,the other of ego-enhancement. In the analysis of the data,a correlation matrix for each scale was computed and the following points noted:First,in each scale there was strong positive association among all items,Application of an F-test revealed all correlations to be significant at the 0.001 level.Second,further intercorrelation between anomie and ego-enhancement items either yielded weak or negative coefficients,thereby indicating the independence of the two sets of items.Third,calculation of the mean inter-item correlation for each item in the two scales demostrated no significant weakness of any one item.Consequent- ly there was no need for item deletion.Finally,the mean inter-item correlation for each scale was computed and from these two figures alpha coefficients of reliability calculated.The anomie scale yielded an alpha value of 0.86.For the ego-enhancement scale an alpha value of 0.804 was recorded.A degree of confidence in the two scales concerning their inherent reliability was therefore obtained.For a discussion of theoreti- cal validity,however,it is necessary to examine each of the items separately. 188 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH,Mar/Apr77
ANOMIE, EGO--ENHANCEMENT AND TOURISM ANOMIE, EGO-ENHANCEMENT, AND FANTASY From the above descriptions of anomie and ego-enhancement, it should be clear that not only does travel represent the fulf'lllment of certain basic needs in the potential tourist, but that in so doing it offers him an alternative world to that in which he daily lives. It can be argued, for instance, that in the monotomy of suburbia, the faceless city or the public village, life only becomes tolerable with the thought that there are chances of periodic escape from such an existence, and that travel provides the ideal outles. Additionally, however, travel has the advantage of permitting the traveller to behave in a manner normally circumvented by the dictates of convention. When on holiday the tourist can overstep the bounds of fashion, tell a few stories normally deemed improper or inappropriate, wear flashy clothes, eat exotic food, get drunk, become more sexually permissive, alter his timetable, stay up half the night, listen to loud local music, etc., in short, indulge in those kinds of behavior generally frowned upon in his home environment. The possibility of actually doing what he wishes in his world of travel, surely underlies that essentially such a world is one of fantasy, for fantasy is a wish or desire, expressive of a need, which cannot be fulfilled in terms of current role expectations, but which is capable of defining situations once these role expectations, or the circumstances in which they are found, have been modified or removed. Related to anomie, the fantasy world of travel seeks to overcome the humdrum, the normlessness and meaninglessness of life, with more satisfying experiences. As regards ego-enhancement, travel presents the tourist with the opportunity to boost his ego in acting out an alien personality. Just what sub-types of fantasy are associated with anomie and ego-enhancement has been treated elsewhere. 3 ANOMIE AND EGO-ENHANCEMENT PUT TO THE EMPIRICAL TEST Interspersed throughout the interview schedule were several items, which, when clustered, formed two scales, one indicative of anomie, the other of ego-enhancement. In the analysis of the data, a correlation matrix for each scale was computed and the following points noted: First, in each scale there was strong positive association among all items, Application of an F-test revealed all correlations to be significant at the 0.001 level. Second, further intercorrelation between anomie and ego-enhancement items either yielded weak or negative coefficients, thereby indicating the independence of the two sets of items. Third, calculation of the mean inter-item correlation for each item in the two scales demostrated no significant weakness of any one item. Consequently there was no need for item deletion. Finally, the mean inter-item, correlation for each scale was computed and from these two figures alpha coefficients 8 of reliability calculated. The anomie scale yielded an alpha value of 0.86. For the ego-enhancement scale an alpha value of 0.804 was recorded. A degree of confidence in the two scales concerning their inherent reliability was therefore obtained. For a discussion of theoretical validity, however, it is necessary to examine each of the items separately. 188 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Mar/Apr '77