Confucian Values and Their Implications for the Tourism Industry

The significance of understanding different cultures is well evidenced by a series of recent reports and as Australia situates itself more authentically in the Asian Pacific region of the world, and educational, business and political ties are strengthened with Asia, it is imperative that the aspiring business person and in particular, tourism professionals broaden their understanding of Asian cultures. This paper recognises Confucianism as a key philosophical underpinning to many Asian societies. Bearing in mind that approximately one quarter of the world's population has a Confucian heritage, that the Chinese diaspora around the world is notable, that a variety of scholars have predicted a revival in Confucian thought and that there are significant numbers of Confucian travellers, the clear conclusion that one is drawn to is that it may be useful, if not indeed necessary, to recognise the key elements of the Confucian value system when developing, marketing and managing tourism experiences. This paper outlines the key tenets of Confucianism that underpin human relations and interactions. It then discusses the implications of Confucian values to tourism management and marketing in three specific areas: individualism, protocol, and business and social ethics

The employability prospects of graduates in event management: Using data from job advertisements

As the higher education environment becomes increasingly competitive, prospective students are more likely to compare graduate employability prospects of different universities and different courses. Consequently, the viability of courses is being increasingly challenged with market viability based predominately on student demand, which is often based on their perceptions of workplace requirements. Event management has emerged to become a key sector of the Australian tourism industry and this has given some impetus to the need for tertiary educated event managers and for an evaluation of educational curriculum. To provide an indication of current employer requirements, a nationwide study of web-based job advertisements is being currently conducted. This paper reports the results from a content analysis of 105 job advertisements. The results reveal the range of industries that require event management specialists or skills, and a series of required skills and key attributes of event managers. The results of this study establish a platform from which to develop a classification of event management skills required by the industry. More importantly however, it can be used as the basis for curriculum evaluation and training needs, and create a better understanding and compatibility between event management education and industry practice

Linking Learning Style Preferences and Ethnicity: International Students Studying Hospitality and Tourism Management in Australia

International student enrolment at Australian higher education institutions has grown significantly over the past decade. Traditionally, many international students that study for an Australian qualification originate from Asia and a majority of these students are of Confucian culture heritage. While there is a growing body of literature that explores learning issues of Asian students involved in Australian higher education, there are examples in the literature that promote stereotypical views of the strengths and weaknesses of international students. This paper examines the individual and collective preferred learning style of a sample of Confucian heritage culture university students, analyses links between ethnic origins and preferred learning style and suggests that preferred learning styles should be taken into consideration when developing curriculum which is accessed by international students

A national government’s tourism innovation initiatives: A review of tourism development policies in Norway

Innovation in tourism has becoming increasingly important to create destination competitiveness. There is however poor understanding of the national government’s initiatives and role in tourism innovation. This study has reviewed tourism development policies in Norway using content analysis. The result indicates that the government recognises the importance of innovation in tourism and innovation is also encouraged. Nevertheless, through the three significant themes including network and collaboration, innovation in SMEs, and funding and support it has been revealed that government initiatives in developing an innovative tourism industry are not entirely new. In addition, the government may also be playing a too passive role as many of the innovation initiatives are emphasised as the responsibility of the private sector. Further studies which consider policies as well as perspectives of both Government officials and industry representatives or operators are needed in order to further understand government’s role in tourism innovation

Professionalising Event Practitioners: The Educational Role of Event Management Associations

The proliferation of events in recent decades has resulted in a burgeoning of the event management industry. As the event management industry grows and consolidates worldwide, associations play an increasingly significant role in professional support to the industry by ensuring the continued growth and success of event management professionals. This paper reviews the literature on professional associations and specifically explores the educational role of event management associations. It concludes that professional event management associations play a significant role in providing strategic direction to the event management industry. An important component of this is providing educational direction and services that aim at professionalising event management and event management practitioners

Transformational benefits from a visit to a multicultural festival: The case of South Korea

This paper investigates the benefits the dominant population has gained from a visit to a multicultural festival in South Korea. The paper aims to improve the understanding of these festivals and explores the contribution of multicultural festivals to building a better multicultural society. The transformational benefit is recognised as the greatest benefit the dominant population gained from attending a multicultural festival concerning the four factors identified (transformational, cognitive, social and affective benefits). Differences were found in the benefits from a visit to a multicultural festival between the dominant population exposed to multiculturalism and one that is not exposed to multiculturalism. It is believed that the findings of this study will help all key stakeholders to more fully understand how multicultural festivals contribute to social harmony and social integration

New directions for art galleries and museums: the use of special events to attract audiences - a case study of the Asia Pacific Triennial

The role of art galleries is changing. New social patterns and demands have changed visitors’ expectations of their experiences at art galleries. In addition, the traditional boundaries that once defined the functions of art galleries have changed as these institut ions increasingly see themselves as part of the wider leisure industry. A frequent response by art galleries to the situation of changing roles and audiences has been the mounting of special events to bring in increased visitors and to modernise their appeal and therefore competitiveness. This paper examines visitor motivations for attending the Asia-Pacific Triennial Art Exhibition, a special event at the Queensland Art Gallery, to uncover some of the factors that motivate audiences to attend special events at art galleries. The paper also discusses the attendance behaviours of these visitors

Comparing supply and demand perspectives of destination competitiveness

The measurement of destination competitiveness usually entails the adoption of either a demand or supply perspective. The former comprises of collecting data from tourists while the latter involves supply-side stakeholders such as business owners and government entities. The overall aim of this paper is to challenge the idea of a choice between the two perspectives and to propose an evaluative framework that combines both: the Supply-Demand Analysis of Competitiveness. Its application is also presented and discussed using the city of Lisbon, Portugal as a case

Chinese visitors at Australia wineries: Preferences, motivations, and barriers

China has become Australia’s most important source market and there are growing number of visitors participated in wine tourism. Using in-depth interviews, the study looked into Chinese tourists’ preferences, motivations and barriers to participate in wineries tours in Australia. The study enriched to literature on wine tourism. It offered practical implications for wineries and destinations to better understand and accommodate Chinese wine tourists’ needs and preferences

Searching for the authentic: foodservice at a medieval banquet / Cate Clifford ... [et al.]

Special event research has found that the provision of quality food and beverage services and perceived authenticity are accepted as determinants of visitor satisfaction for special events. Previous work has proposed that these objectives can be aligned to increase both visitor satisfaction and an event’s revenue. This paper has two broad aims: to draw on the authenticity literature from several fields of study to develop a broad understanding of the manifestations of food and beverage authenticity vis-à-vis special events, and to apply this conceptualization to an ethnographic study. A participant observation technique was adopted to situate the service of perceived authentic food and beverages within the milieu of various other event authenticity constructs, at a ‘staged’ Medieval Banquet. It was found that considerable efforts were made to align the food and beverage offerings, and their delivery, with other of the event’s authenticity markers. These attempts to authenticate the food and beverage service augmented the overall event. The degree of perceived authenticity at this event derived from complementary authenticating agents and so served to develop a ‘unique’ authenticity. These agents included notions of impression and image management, the consumption context, and instrumental use of history and association. This paper edges closer to developing a conceptual framework, by which the contribution of food and beverage, and its service, to an event’s authenticity might be effectively empirically evaluated