dimensions of the social group role in pleasure...

DIMENSIONS OF THE SOCIAL GROUP ROLE

IN P L E A S U R E VACATIONS

John L. Cromp$on Recreation and Parks

Texas A&M University College Station, Texas. USA

ABSTRACT

C r o m p t o n , J o h n L., D imens ions of the Social G r o u p Role in P leasu re Vacat ions , Anna l s of T o u r i s m Resea r ch 1981, VIII(4).550-568. In t e rv iewees were a sked a b o u t the i r p a t t e r n s of i n t e rpe r sona l assoc ia t ion in p l ea su re vaca t ions . In an ind iv idua l ' s se lec t ion of a des t ina t ion , social g roups exe r t ed four k inds of inf luence. First, s o m e r e s p o n d e n t s were d i rec t ly p e r s u a d e d to a c c o m p a n y a n o t h e r m e m b e r of the i r social g r oup on a vaca t ion . Se- cond, social g roups e x e r t e d a n o r m a t i v e inf luence bo th on cho ice of de s t i na t i ons a n d choice of a t t r a c t i ons at se lec ted des t ina t ions . Th i rd , long t e r m socia l iza t ion appea.red to have s o m e in f luence on the p red i spos i t ion to vaca t ion a n d the p red i spos i t ion to go to a pa r t i cu la r des t ina t ion . Four th , the d i s t an t phys ica l locat ion of s o m e social g roup m e m b e r s was found to in f luence des t ina t ion decis ions. K e ~ o r d s " social group, p l ea su re vaca t ion .

John Crompton Is currently an associate professor in the Department of Recrea- tion and Parks, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, at Texas A&M University. He holds a Ph.D. from Texas A&M and M.S. degrees from University of Illinois and Loughborough University of Technology in England.

550 1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII(4)

JOHN L. CROMPTON

RESUME

Crompton, J o h n . , Les dimensions du rble du groupe social dans les vacances de plaisir. Annals of Tour ism Research 1981, VIII(4):550-568, Les r tpon. dants ~talent interrog~s an suJet des associations in- terpersonnelles dans les voyages d 'agr~ment. En choisissant leur destination, les groupes sociales employalent quatre sortes d'influence: d 'abord, quelques r~pondants ~taient convaincus d ' accompagner un aut re m e m b r e de leur groupe en vacances. Deuxi~mement , les groupes socialies employaient une influence nomat ive sur les choix de destination et les choix des at- tractions l~-bas. Troisi~mement, une longue soci~disa- tion semblait d 'agir sur la predisposition ~ prendre des vacances ou a se rendre ~ une destination particuli~re. Quatr i~mement , la distance physique de quelques mem- bres dhne groupe soci~le a ~t~ constat~e d'affecter les decisions sur les dest inat ions des vacances. MotB Clef: groupe social, vacances de plaisir.

INTRODUCTION

It has long been recognized that the interactive na ture of social groups exerts a s trong influence on an individual 's behavior. Olmsted and Hare (1978) define a group as "a plurality of individuals who are in contact with one another , who take one another into account , and who are aware of some significant commonal i ty ." Individuals do not function as independent entities in society, ra ther they interact with other people. Personal motiva- tional drives are filtered and redirected by the social circles of workmates , family and friends (Burch 1969). Exposure to social influences serves to modify or reinforce psychological drives. Every group exerts pressure on the individual to conform to its part icular belief systems, values and norms. These are powerful influences. In con temporary industrial societies, individuals belong to a great variety of groups and frequent ly aspire to belong to m a n y others.

The influence of the social group, character ized by int imate face-to-face association and cooperation, was classically for- mula ted by Cooley (1909). He suggested tha t such groups are fun- damenta l in forming the social na ture and ideals of the individual. He viewed them as " the spring of life," the great socializers and in- cubators of h u m a n character . "The result of int imate association,

1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII(4) 551

DIMENSIONS OF THE SOCIAL GROUP

psychologically, is a certain fusion of individuals in a common whole, so that one's self for many purposes at least, is the common life and purpose of the group." Mead (1934} carried Cooley's analysis further emphasizing that the group influence is not superficial, but rather individuals derive their very psychic skeleton from the social environment in which they live and grow. Mead described how a child's personality is developed in relation to "significant others." The child internalizes the attitudes of others by virtue of an ability to "take on the role of the other." This role of social groups extends to later years so the primary group plays a vital part in the psychic life of an individual at all stages of development.

Several dimensions of the impact of groups on individuals have emerged from this reservoir of sociological thought. In recent years a considerable amount of research has been devoted to identifying the extent to which an individual's decisions are molded by the social influences deriving from the group {Olmsted and Hanc 1978}. The study reported here was concerned with expanding this work to the tourism field.

The indigenous presence, and determining influence, of the social group in the leisure time milieu has been recognized in several studies. Cheek {1971} investigated differences in social characteristics between work and non-work behavior and found that while work involved behavior and actions of the social person, non-work exhibited involvement by the social group. Field (197 I} further demonstrated the importance of social groups in the non- work setting. He examined a variety of outdoor leisure activities. Categories of "alone," "with friends," and "family and friends" were established. Data suggested that regardless of leisure set- tings, participation within a group predominated. Among the social group types, "family" in each of the identified leisure set- tings emerged as the most common social unit in which leisure participation took place. Yancy and Snell cited in Cheek et al. {1976} investigating leisure activities among lower, working and middle class blacks and whites living in Nashville, Tennessee, discovered that:

...leisure activities arc social activities. Among all ur- banities and particularly among blacks, they occur in relatively small groups characterized by relatively high continuity of membership...in almost every activity that we investigated...informal groups of family and friends were involved.

552 1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII(4}

JOHN L. CROMPTON

Cheek et al. (1976) in their s tudy of behavior at a zoological park concluded that group membersh ip was more influential in channel l ing participation into part icular activities than individual needs or desires. Similarly, Burch (1969) reported that the inner social circle of acquain tances exerted greater influence on leisure activity decisions than other factors he examined. He concluded that this circle of close friends constrains an actor to remain within a given style of leisure.

This s tudy addressed three pr imary questions concerned with identifying the influence of social groups in pleasure vacation ex- perlences. First, what influence do social groups exert on the selection of a vacation destination? Second, what is the composi- tion of social groups in the vacation context? Third, what are the roles of social groups in enhanc ing the satisfaction derived from a pleasure vacation?

Methodology

Data were derived from thirty-nine uns t ruc tu red interviews, each of approximate ly two hours duration. The interviews were tape recorded, subsequent ly transcribed, classified, and their content was analyzed. The content analysis did not seek to quantify responses, ra ther it was concerned with s t imulat ing insights by identifying the range of dimensions revealed in the respondent interviews. This is a phenomenological approach which emphasizes the meaningfulness of insights gained from individual cases ra ther than through analysis based on quanitification. The qualitative case s tudy na ture of the s tudy made such quantifica- tion inappropriate. The s tudy ' s objectives were limited to identifying, and obtaining insights into. the role of the social group. Hence, the content of each interview was analyzed by exception. That is, if a respondent reported a part icular social group impact, then a similar impact noted by a subsequent respondent was not usually recorded.

The characterist ics of the sample are described elsewhere (Crompton 1979). Because of the research design, data collection technique, and the limited sample size, this s tudy was not concerned with the distribution or s t rength of these social group roles in a population.

ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION

The Influence of Social Groups on the Selection of a Vacation Ex- perience



Most r e s p o n d e n t s obse rved tha t p leasure vaca t ion expe r iences were a relat ively popu la r topic of conversa t ion . Hence, in format ion a b o u t vaca t ion des t ina t ions appea r s to be effect ively d i s s e m i n a t e d wi th in social g roups t h rough word of m o u t h communica t ion . This is cons i s t en t wi th the c o n s u m e r behav io r l i tera ture wh ich sugges t s t ha t word of m o u t h or pe rsona l com- m u n i c a t i o n f rom an i m m e d i a t e and t rus t ed source is typical ly more influential t han m e d i a c o m m u n i c a t i o n s (Berelstein and S te iner 1964). In the t ou r i sm field, Nolan (1976) repor ted tha t in overal l popu la r i t y of t ravel in format ion sources , the typical r e s p o n d e n t no ted the advice of f r iends and re la t ives first, a h e a d of nine t y p e s of m e d i a c o m m u n i c a t i o n s .

Kofler (1972) ind ica ted tha t the inf luence of social g roups in p u r c h a s e dec is ions a p p e a r s to be especia l ly po t en t in s i tua t ions w h e r e the p r o d u c t is expens ive , r isky, or p u r c h a s e d infrequent ly , and in s i tua t ions w h e r e the p r o d u c t has a s ignif icant ly social as o p p o s e d to a pr iva te charac te r . The p leasure vaca t ion p r o d u c t appears to e m b r a c e bo th of these s i tua t ions .

Severa l s tud ies have fu r the red u n d e r s t a n d i n g into the mot iva- t ions of p l easu re vaca t ione r s (e.g. D a n n 1977; C r o m p t o n 1979) by addres s ing the ques t ion , " W h y do people go on vaca t ion or go to a par t icu la r de s t i na t ion?" The ev idence in this s t u d y sugges t ed tha t social g roups m a y serve to re inforce or mod i fy b iogenic or p sychogen ic t ens ion s ta tes . T h e y a p p e a r to exerc ise at leas t four k inds of effects on des t ina t ion select ion.

First, t hey m a y direct ly p e r s u a d e the individual to visit a des t ina t ion . Second, t hey m a y exer t a no rma t ive inf luence which m o l d s an ind iv idua l ' s image and opinion of a des t ina t ion . Third , t h r o u g h the long t e rm social izat ion process , ind iv iduals acqu i re conven t iona l w i s d o m and s t e r eo type a b o u t des t ina t ions and at- t rac t ions over t ime. Four th , social g roup m e m b e r s living in d i s t an t loca t ions exer t an inf luence on des t ina t ion select ion.

i. Direct Group Inf luence on Des t ina t ion Select ion

Direct inf luence on des t ina t ion select ion occur red w h e n a r e s p o n d e n t w a s p e r s u a d e d to a c c o m p a n y a n o t h e r m e m b e r of a social g roup on a vacat ion . The i m p o r t a n c e of this inf luence w a s s t r essed b y an u n m a r r i e d responden t :

I need s o m e b o d y to give m e the i m p e t u s to go on a trip. I could p r o b a b l y afford to do more t h a n I do if I p l anned accordingly , b u t I need s o m e b o d y to pu t the b u g in me. I migh t say, "gee I wou ld like to do tha t , " b u t I do no t do it on m y own.


JOHN L. CROMPTON

A specific e x a m p l e of th is inf luence occur r ing w a s offered b y a Bos ton r e s p o n d e n t w h o recalled:"

This fr iend of m i n e in Minneapol i s cal led m e one S u n d a y m o r n i n g in J a n u a r y w h e n it w a s f reezing here in Bos ton a n d even co lder in Minneapol is . She sa id I have Jus t been looking t h r o u g h all t he t ravel pages in the n e w s p a p e r and a c ru ise to the s o u t h s o u n d s nice. H o w a b o u t going to the C a r i b b e a n ? My f r iend ' s e n t h u s i a s m for going at- t r ac t ed m e to it.

S h e t h (1968) s u g g e s t e d tha t in m a n y ins tances , in o rder to min imize the cos t a n d effort of s eek ing informat ion , ind iv idua ls s imp ly imi ta te the b e h a v i o r of the i r re fe rence group. Th is social in- f luence m a y be non-over t (Hansen 1972). Pe r son A is pos i t ive ly eva lua ted ; pe r son A is k n o w n to h a v e vis i ted des t ina t ion X (is pos i t ive ly re la ted to des t ina t ion X); the a t t r a c t i venes s of X is in- c r ea sed b e c a u s e of th is re la t ionship . T h a t is, w h e t h e r A ac t s as an in fo rmat ion sou rce or not, the fact t ha t he or she r e p r e s e n t s a pos i t ive ly e v a l u a t e d c o n c e p t a s soc i a t ed wi th an a l te rna t ive m a y inf luence the choice. Th is w a s i l lus t ra ted b y a r e s p o n d e n t w h o c o m m e n t e d t ha t a n o t h e r fami ly wi th w h o m his fami ly w a s well a cqua in t ed , w e n t to Mexico once a year: " T h e y love it d o w n the re on the Gul f of California. T h e y like to go f ishing a n d it is no t c rowd- ed. T h a t is a p lus to me, for ff t hey like it, it m u s t be ha l fway de- cen t . "

The re w a s ev idence tha t the g r o u p ' s d i rect inf luence w a s con- s t r a ined b y an ind iv idua l ' s p r ev ious expe r i ences or e s t ab l i shed se t of no rms . H o w a r d a n d S h e t h (1968) have s u g g e s t e d tha t in- d iv idua l s se lec t p u r c h a s e i t ems f rom wi th in a l imited n u m b e r of b r a n d (dest inat ion) a l te rna t ives , w h i c h t h e y t e r m the e v o k e d set. R e s p o n d e n t s in th is s t u d y conf i rmed tha t ff a des t ina t ion w a s no t a m e m b e r of the e v o k e d set, t hen in fo rmat ion p rov ided a b o u t it b y o the r social g roup m e m b e r s w o u l d no t be abso rbed . For example , one r e s p o n d e n t c o m m e n t e d :

If I h a d no t t h o u g h t of going to a p lace before, I don ' t t h ink s o m e b o d y m e n t i o n i n g it and s a y i n g t h e y had a fan tas t ic t ime w o u l d conv ince m e to go. It m i g h t con- v ince m e to inves t iga te b u t u sua l ly it w o u l d be an addi- t ion to m y o w n th inking. I real ly do t end to k n o w w h e r e I w a n t to go. If y o u sa id y o u we re Jus t b a c k f rom Tahi t i and y o u sa id it w a s fantas t ic , the be s t p lace y o u had ever b e e n in y o u r whole life, t he u l t imate , a n d Tahi t i w a s no t



part of my train of thought, you could talk forever about it and it would not bother me one way or another.

Children exercised a substant ia l influence on destination decisions. This influence was exerted either by parents making decisions with their children's welfare uppermos t in mind, or more directly through persistent reques ts from the children themselves. Respondents with children observed that, in deference to their children, they frequently elected to visit places of interest to the children and they preferred to visit friends who also had children.

A recent popular innovation which has greatly expanded the influence of social reference groups on destination selection is the C.13. radio. Several respondents alluded to it as being something of a social group surrogate. Effectively it extended the social network to everyone within listening range who owned a C.B. The possible embar ras smen t of seeking advice in a face-to-face context was removed and social input, directly relevant to the current experience, was received at an influential stage in the planning decision. For example, one respondent s ta ted that it was his normal practice to drive into a general area on vacation and then to seek advice over the C.B. as to wha t places he should visit.

2. The Normatlve Influence of Social Groups

The normative influence of social groups was apparent both in their influence on selection of a destination, and in determining what was to be seen and done at a destination. When member s of a group discuss their vacation experiences, they communica te im- pressions to other group member s which may be absorbed for future reference. In this way they exercise a normative influence which modifies or reinforces existing destination images. For example, one respondent stated: "I would like to go to Hawaii. Everybody who has been there has said it is good. I know a lot of people who have been there. It is expensive bu t they enjoyed it." This impression emerged from the cumulat ive impact of many people saying the same thing.

Even when there is direct personal contact with a destination, other member s of a group may exercise a normative influence. They discuss their individual experiences with one another and come to share a collective image of the destination that reflects as much an internalization of their own group norms as it does a direct perception of the destination (Herman and Schild 1961).

In some instances, respondents selected a destination wi thout seeking advice from others. However, once the selection decision had been made, detailed information about its specific a t t r ibutes


JOHN L. CROMPTON

w a s s o u g h t f rom p r i m a r y groups . This n o r m a t i v e inf luence w a s il- l u s t r a t ed b y the r e s p o n d e n t w h o sa id she had no in te res t in see ing a bul l f ight w h e n she w a s in Spain, b e c a u s e she found the who le idea repuls ive . However , " E v e r y o n e sa id y o u c a n n o t go to Spa in w i t h o u t see ing a bullfight. So I w e n t to see a bullfight, b u t I w a s so r ry I w e n t and I w o u l d no t go b a c k again. '"

3. The Long T e r m Inf luence of Social G r o u p s

To this point , conce rn ha s been wi th the re la t ively sho r t t e rm in f luences of social g roups . However , the re is a lso a long t e rm m e c h a n i s m opera t ing in the form of the socia l izat ion process , t h r o u g h w h i c h the indiv idual acqu i r e s conven t iona l w i s d o m and s t e r e o t y p e over t ime. Th is p roce s s in f luences d e v e l o p m e n t of cogni t ive s t r u c t u r e a n d pe r sona l i ty wh ich m a y e n g e n d e r bas ic psycho log ica l d i spos i t ions t o w a r d par t i cu la r des t ina t ions .

Le Vine (1965) s u g g e s t s tha t each g roup of people wi th a com- m o n cu l tu re ha s a cogni t ive m a p of o the r g r o u p s a n d thei r t ra i t s a s pa r t of the i r c o m m o n cul ture . A good deal of this cogni t ive m a p is t r a n s m i t t e d to each gene ra t ion of ch i ldren b y m e a n s of di rect tui- tion. The indiv idual is an en t i ty m o v i n g t h r o u g h t ime con t inua l ly e x p o s e d to s t imuli . Hence , v a c a t i o n e r s a re l ikely to have b e e n quie t ly ass imi la t ing i m p r e s s i o n s and in fo rmat ion a b o u t par t icu la r de s t i na t i ons for a n u m b e r of years .

The long t e rm socia l iza t ion inf luence a p p e a r e d to be a s in- f luent ial in c rea t ing a p red i spos i t ion to vaca t ion as in s t imu la t ing a p red i spos i t ion to go to a pa r t i cu la r des t ina t ion . Typica l ly , it w a s observed : "If m y relat ives, a n d par t i cu la r ly m y paren t s , had no t gone on vaca t ions , I m igh t no t have b e c o m e as in te res ted . " It w a s no t iceab le t ha t s o m e r e s p o n d e n t s w h o had neve r b e e n on long p l ea su re vaca t ion t r ips as ch i ldren did no t go on s u c h t r ips today . If p a r e n t s had not gone on p l ea su re vaca t ions , t ha t opt ion h a d fre- q u e n t l y neve r b e e n se r ious ly cons ide red b y r e s p o n d e n t s b e c a u s e it w a s b e y o n d thei r exper ience . The potent ia l of s u c h expe r i ences for sa t i s fac t ion w a s u n k n o w n a n d t h u s the re w a s no des i re for them:

As a chi ld I did no t t h ink a b o u t p l ea su re vaca t ions . I w a s in a n o t h e r world. S o m e of m y f r iends w o u l d dr ive ac ros s the c o u n t r y to Flor ida or California, b u t I Jus t had no concept . I l ived in a p re t t y smal l world. As long as y o u don ' t k n o w it is o u t the re y o u c a n n o t be too c o n c e r n e d a b o u t it.

1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII(4} 557


558

In cont ras t , a n o t h e r r e s p o n d e n t s ta ted: "Trave l ing has been ind igenous to ou r fami ly ." This pe r son had a l w a y s t rave led exten- sively, and w e n t on p l ea su re vaca t ions f requent ly , as a child. She recal led living in California w h e r e her fa ther w a s s t a t i oned in the war: "We t raveled eve ry w e e k e n d , seeing, doing and tak ing ad- van tage of all t ha t California had to offer." This r e s p o n d e n t w a s an en thus ias t i c p leasure vaca t ione r today , going a t every oppor tuni - ty.

At the s a m e t ime, there were s o m e r e s p o n d e n t s w h o s e cu r r en t a t t i tude t o w a r d vaca t ions con t r a s t ed wi th their o w n fami ly ' s pat- tern. S o m e were n o w avid p leasu re vaca t ione r s even t h o u g h as a child thei r family had no t gone on s u c h vaca t ions :

The trip we took last y e a r was 20 ,000 mi les a n d four m o n t h s , b u t I have no t t rave led very m u c h before in m y life. As a child I t r ave led ha rd ly a t all. My folks did no t travel. The first t ime I w e n t on a vaca t ion w a s wi th m y s p o u s e in 1971. I did no t go on a vaca t ion unt i l we were marr ied .

In this case, the c h a n g e in vaca t ion pa t t e rn s w a s the resu l t of a c h a n g e in life cyc le s tage. The m o v e m e n t a w a y f rom the d o m i n a n t pa ren ta l family mil ieu a n d the n e w inf luence of a c lose o the r person, p rov ided the s t imul i w h i c h p r o m o t e d p leasure vaca t ion behavior . The inf luence of c h a n g e in life cycle s t age on chang ing behav io r w a s f r equen t ly repor ted . C h a n g e in inf luence f rom one g roup to a n o t h e r led to a c h a n g e in vaca t ion u se p a t t e r n s for m a n y re sponden t s . IVlost of t h e m identif ied the crit ical s t age a s be ing t rans i t ion f rom the pa ren ta l h o m e to a different milieu:

This vaca t ion pa t t e rn I have now, s t a r t ed in college w h e n I s t a r t ed to go b a c k p a c k i n g wi th a g roup of people. Ever s ince I s t a r t ed college I have gone on vaca t ions .

This c h a n g e pe rmi t t ed free exp res s ion of the ind iv idua l ' s des i res w i t h o u t pa ren ta l cons t r a in t s for the first t ime. One r e s p o n d e n t c o m m e n t e d :

I s t a r t ed t ravel ing the day I had e n o u g h m o n e y of m y o w n to go and psychologica l i n d e p e n d e n c e f rom m y paren ts . I had a l w a y s read all k inds of b iography , g e o g r a p h y a n d h i s to ry b o o k s s ince I w a s a chlid. My favorite g a m e w a s a puzzle of the Uni ted S t a t e s fit t ing the S ta t e s together . The re w a s s o m e t h i n g in me. W h e n l b e c a m e f inancial ly ab le to do it and had the m e a n s wi th m y o w n car, I s ta r ted .

1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII(4)

JOHN L. CROMPTON

4. The Loca t iona l Inf luence of Social G r o u p s

Major inf luence w a s exe r t ed b y the p r e s e n c e of social g roup m e m b e r s living in d i s t an t locat ions. S o m e r e s p o n d e n t s felt an obl iga t ion to u se the t ime to visi t wi th t h e m whi le o the r s pe rce ived t h e m to b e an inexpens ive b a s e f rom w h i c h to s t age a p l easu re vaca t ion . The i r inf luence s u g g e s t s tha t a t t r ac t ions a t a des t ina t ion s h o u l d p r o m o t e s t rong ly in the local a rea for local a r ea r e s iden t s b r ing ou t of t o w n vis i tors to a t t rac t ions .

In c a s e s w h e r e m e m b e r s of a social g roup were phys ica l ly loca ted ve ry d i s t an t f rom each other , per iodic vis i ts to o the r m e m b e r s were pe rce ived to be requ i red in o rder to re ta in m e m b e r - sh ip in the group. A lmos t all r e s p o n d e n t s recognized s t rong familial t ies w h i c h had to be per iodical ly reinforced. If non- r e s iden t fami ly m e m b e r s l ived s o m e d i s t ance a w a y the re w a s a feeling of obl iga t ion to u se vaca t ion t ime to visi t wi th them:

Visi t ing re la t ives is no t the t y p e of vaca t ion I n o r m a l l y like, b u t I feel once in a whi le it is neces sa ry . We have no t b e e n b a c k to Oregon for four y e a r s a n d I feel w e shou ld go b a c k to see m y mothe r . I d idn ' t see m y fa ther before he d ied a n d I have to go see m y mothe r . Once in a whi le y o u have Jus t got to fit t ha t in.

Th is s e n s e of obl iga t ion to o the r m e m b e r s of the fami ly m e a n t t ha t re la t ives p rov ided the essen t ia l ra t ionale for going on the tr ip a n d t h e y d e t e r m i n e d the des t ina t ion . In t he se ins tances , t he on ly dec i s ions w h i c h r ema ined , re la ted to the e x t e n t to w h i c h o the r des i red des t i na t i ons or a t t r ac t ions cou ld or s h o u l d be bui l t into the trip. M a n y r e s p o n d e n t s ind ica ted tha t t h e y vis i ted p laces of in- t e res t en r o u t e to the i r re la t ives ' des t ina t ion:

One of m y sons is n o w in Phi ladelphia . I have neve r b e e n there. I w o u l d like to dr ive the re and t ake m y two y o u n g e s t ch i ldren to see Wash ing ton , D.C., t h r o u g h Wi l l i amsburg , a n d an the a r e a s t h e y h a v e no t seen there.

A s imi la r s t r a t egy adop ted , b u t w i th different emphas i s , w a s to se lec t a p l ea su re des t ina t ion a n d t h e n to p l an the rou t e in s u c h a w a y tha t v is i ts to f r iends a n d re la t ives cou ld be incorpora ted : " W e t ry to p ick a r e a s w e have no t b e e n before, b u t w h e r e we c a n t ake in fami ly on the w a y . " In s o m e cases , t r ips to visi t d i s t an t social g roup m e m b e r s s e rved no t on ly to c e m e n t re la t ionships , b u t a lso to inc rease t he cu l tu ra l sa t i s fac t ion de r ived f rom the tr ip b e c a u s e the o the r m e m b e r s se rved a s local guides .

1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII{4} 559


The Compos i t ion of Social G r o u p s on Vaca t ion

In m o s t cases the family un i t w a s the p r i m a r y social g roup on p leasu re vaca t ions . Indeed, for s o m e r e s p o n d e n t s the potent ia l for e n h a n c i n g family u n i t y w a s a p r i m a r y func t ion of the vacat ion:

The r eason we s t a r t ed going to this is land off the coas t of Georgia was to be toge the r as a family. I w a s t ravel ing a grea t deal a lone a t tha t t ime in m y work. We w e n t as a fami ly a n d we s t a y e d toge the r for two weeks , s o m e t i m e s longer. We were t oge the r and no t d i spers ing into m a n y different direct ions. W e w e n t to one p lace and s t a y e d there.

However , o the r r e s p o n d e n t s ind ica ted tha t whi le thei r family was the p r i m a r y focal group, this g roup w a s flexible and d y n a m i c r a the r t h a n f ixed and static, for in s o m e in s t ances the g roup m e m b e r s did no t s t ay toge the r while on the vacat ion. At the s a m e t ime, it w a s u n u s u a l for the fami ly to d i saggrega te to s u c h an exten t t ha t each individual m e m b e r b e h a v e d independen t ly . The more u s u a l s i tua t ion w a s for m e m b e r s to subd iv ide into groups: " W h e n w e go on vaca t ions a n d spli t u p it is u sua l ly m e or m y wife going off s o m e w h e r e , leaving the o the r one wi th the ch i ldren ." R e s p o n d e n t s ind ica ted t ha t a s imi lar a r r a n g e m e n t occu r r ed in f r iendship a s well as family social groups . It was i m p o r t a n t tha t the opt ion w a s ava i lab le to p u r s u e w h a t e v e r desire w a s para- m o u n t w i thou t cons t r a in t f rom o the r s in the group:

I do no t necessa r i ly spl i t u p wi th the f r iends I go a w a y with, b u t the poss ibi l i ty is there. I do no t w a n t to have the feeling tha t I have to do eve ry th ing wi th tha t pe r son I a m with. At s o m e point the re m a y be s o m e t h i n g tha t t hey m a y w a n t to do and I do no t w a n t to do, and vice- v e r s a .

Severa l r e s p o n d e n t s obse rved tha t family vaca t ions of ten end- ed w h e n chi ldren r eached thei r mid- teens:

T h e y do no t w a n t to c o m e wi th u s b e c a u s e their in- t e res t s are too varied. A fami ly vaca t ion is no t w h a t t hey w a n t a n y m o r e . Also, once y o u r chi ldren, especia l ly boys , b e c o m e old e n o u g h to t ake s u m m e r jobs , y o u r family vacaHons are over or a re conf ined to the chi ldren tha t are left.

W h e n t eenage r s did elect no t to go wi th their family on vaca t ions , t hey of ten w e n t on p leasure vaca t ions wi th peers. One r e s p o n d e n t repor ted tha t his d a u g h t e r each yea r vaca t ioned wi th a c h u r c h


JOHN L. CROMPTON

group, backpacking in different areas. The church group acted as a social surrogate for the family.

The family uni t was somet imes expanded to embrace as m a n y others as were necessary to reduce the need for intra-family compromise on vacation preferences. This s t rategy appeared to be particularly prevalent as an alternative to having teenagers break with the family. In this si tuation their friends were somet imes in- vited to Join in the family vacation and form a subgroup within the p r imary family group: "We found last t ime we went on a vacation trip, the chi ldren wan ted to go, but they wanted to take their friend J i m m y or Susie." This enabled the children to take friends with compatible interests on the trip and extended the period of t ime over which the family could vacation together. It recognized the disparity of interests which emerge within the family uni t and took some positive action to resolve it.

The s trategy of extending a family uni t to incorporate others was not confined only to embracing other young chlidren or teenagers. In some instances, a family uni t sought out a complete other family uni t as a s t ra tegy for reducing intra-family conflicts in vacation preferences. For example, one respondent part icularly enjoyed challenging physical activities on vacation and so did the husband in ano ther family with which he was acquainted. Hence, the two families a r ranged to vacation together. The husbands went off and did things together. Similarly, their wives enjoyed sit- ting a round the c a m p and shopping together in the local towns, while the children from each family enjoyed playing with each other. The extended group was more efficient than the family group alone. It avoided intra-family conflict by extending the family to bring in carefully selected others whose interests were compatible.

The development of an extended family as the necessary uni t for a pleasure vacation was not uncommon . A respondent , who was a travel agent by profession, observed tha t some cus tomers could not conceive of having a satisfactory experience unless they were going with ano ther one or two couples: "Certain people who book with me never book as a single couple. They need to go as a par ty all the time. They need other people." The advantages of extending the family group by going with another family uni t were elaborated upon by the respondent who stated:

It is really nice to go with other people on something like skiing or biking. In skiing it works out tha t m y husband and m y girl friend are the best skiers. Her husband and I



are usually slower. We usually wind up skiing in pairs because they are really fast and really good, and we are slower and like to look at the scenery and take pictures. It usually ends up that there are two people paired up somehow. If we go on a bike trip, m y girl friend and I would probably be behind the two men.

Vacationing with another family unit appears to ameliorate the need to compromise the differing preferences of a husband and wife, enabling them both to do more of what satisfies them most. One respondent provided insight into the type of c i rcumstances in which this type of extended group appeared to be most ap- propriate:

Especially ff there are skills involved or if there are opportunities to go shopping. I enjoy clothes shopping with my girl friend whereas m y husband and her husband m a y like to go out and do something else. I t removes some of the tensions from the two of us.

Some respondents reported that individual family members went on separate pleasure vacations and that the family did not vacation together as a unit. This tended to occur when one m e m b e r had a particular interest which was not followed by the others. For example, one respondent reported that his father went hun t ing for two weeks every year but his mother never went with him. When this occurred, others, such as non-nuclear family or friends, us, rally were sought and served essentially as family surrogates.

The tourist indust ry has a t tempted to provide these surrogates by developing vacations for special interest groups and the use of organized tours.

The extended family group may be extrapolated to include all participants on an organized tour. One respondent went on an organized tour with three other ladies, but if they were tired and did not want to go somewhere, she found somebody else on the tour with whom to go. She provided two specific examples:

When we were in Puerto Rico, I wanted to go shopping and they did not want to go shopping. Some women down the hall were going shopping and asked if I wanted to go with them. I said sure, and went off with them, while the other three laid in bed and rested. But nobody minds that, we all start out that way. When we were aboard ship, I wanted to go into Freeport to see a floor show. They didn' t want to go because the show started

562 1981 ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH VIII(4}

JOHN L. CROMPTON

at midnight and it was too late. This other woman, who was at the table at supper with us, said she had been want ing to see the floor show too. So the two of us took a cab and went to see the floor show. Her group did not wan t to go and mine did not wan t to go.

It seems tha t the greater the n u m b e r in the group, the more likely it is tha t an individual will find compatibili ty and the less require- m e n t there is for the individual to have to compromise desires.

The Role of the Social Group in Enhanc ing a Pleasure Vacation

Respondents reported tha t the social group played four roles which were impor tan t in facilitating a satisfying vacation experience. They were saving money, ameliorat ing loneliness, s t imulat ing additional perspectives, and providing a sympathe t ic forum for recalling and reminiscing about vacation experiences.

First, the pragmat ic financial advantages of traveling with others to save money were recognized. A double room is cheaper per individual than a single room, and other economies accrue by shar ing automobile costs, camping fees, and so on.

Second, the presence of companions on a pleasure vacation removed the risk of u n w a n t e d loneliness. Plog (197.6) in his em- pirically der ived compos i te profiles, descr ib ing typical characteris t ics of peoples' viewpoints towards travel at different stages in their life cycle, por t rayed the typical 35 to 50 year old single female as thinking:

After all who really wants to travel if there is no one to go along with? How can she enjoy the exc i tement and g lamour of Rome, Paris, or London if there 's no one to talk to about it while she 's there? And that re turn trip home! How dreadful it would be for her to step off the plane and find there 's no one to greet her and say, "Hi, welcome back. I 'm so glad tb see you."

This concern to avoid loneliness was particularly prevalent among single respondents . Often such respondents were happy enough to go by themselves for limited periods like weekends but the thought of having to sit down at meals alone and not talk with any familiar associates for a week was generally viewed as a disconcer- ting and undesirable experience.

The requ i rement for companionship was not Just a question of being accompanied by anyone, but of being with particular people. One respondent commented , "It 's not where you go or what



you do that makes a vacation, it 's who you go with." It was pointed out that compatibility with fellow travelers was not always easy to achieve. This was illustrated by a respondent who lamented his experiences on a cruise. Table seating for meals was assigned and he found himself thrus t with others with whom he had nothing in common. They were older, he considered their conversation mundane , and he came to regard meal t imes with considerable misgivings because of the incompatibility of the companions to whom he was assigned. This was an important ingre- dient in the lack of satisfaction received from that pleasure vacation. The key ingredients in compatibili ty between traveling companions appeared to be genuine commonal i ty of interest and familiarity with each other 's idiosyncracies gained over a period of time.

The third important role of the social group identified by respondents was the st imulation and additional perspectives which its members could offer. This somet imes heightened satisfactions derived from the trip. Respondents indicated they lik- ed to go with others because they enjoyed sharing wha t they see and they also appreciated the observations of friends. Typical comment s included "I Just cannot keep it in me when I see something I enjoy that is different" and "I would miss not having someone to share the experience with." In some cases shar ing a pleasure vacation experience with someone appeared to increase the en joyment of it exponentially:

I am enjoying it, they are enjoying it, and we can almost enjoy each other enjoying it too. I need people and like to be close to people. If I am enjoying myself I want to pass it on and I want to get it from them too.

The fourth way in which the social group increased satisfaction derived from a pleasure vacation was by providing an interested and sympathet ic forum within which an individual 's vacation experiences could be reported. Not all respondents were interested in discussing their vacation experience with others for some considered it a very personal, unique and private experience. However, such views were atypical. For most respondents opportunities to recall and reminisce about vacation experiences made an important contribution to the total satisfaction derived from the vacation. Although respondents usually en- Joyed discussing their vacation experiences with friends, they generally observed that such opportunities were confined primari- ly to the t ime period immediate ly after their return.


JOHN L. CROMPTON

The extent of reminiscing opportunities appeared to be depen- dent upon the degree of congruency between the vacation and the interests of the social group. Most respondents who did not enjoy listening to the vacation experiences of others rejected them because they were unable to identify with those experiences. A commonal i ty of interest was needed within the group to facilitate dialogue and social intercourse about the vacation. This commonal i ty of interest arose if others had been on the same trip; to the same dest inat ion on another occasion; or on a recent vacation to a different destination. It was observed that "'The people who travel a lot talk a lot. The people who don ' t travel don ' t talk about it." Alternatively, the focus of a vacation somet imes provided the necessary congruency:

The people I enjoy being with are the same kind of people in the sense that they are a lways reading and concerned about the historical, or have an historical con- s c iousnes s . Also s o m e of t h e m a re social- anthropological buffs, and like that sort of thing. So everybody 's ears perk up, for they like to talk and hear about other people's trips. For the most part people are not taking the kind of trips where they go for a weekend in Las Vegas. If somebody brought that up people would pooh-pooh and not listen.

Another respondent provided an illustration of an experience tha t was beyond the parameters with which her social group could identify and hence the trip aroused little interest:

They found it difficult to identify with Mexico. It is a remote place with well publicized dangers from driving, drugs and tha t sort of thing. They could not unders tand why we went at all. If we had gone to Canada they would have unders tood because both sides of the family had relatives in Canada.

Although his relatives and friends were not especially interested in details of that trip experience, this respondent reported tha t they did wan t to learn more about the specific context within which their gifts or momentoes were purchased: "The conversat ion was a round what was brought home ra ther than the actual trip." The gifts provided a congruency of interest which facilitated some oppor tuni ty for recalling the experience.

CONCLUSIONS

The potential for influence on individual 's behavior by social



groups has long been recognized. An increasing amoun t of em- pirical research is being conducted with the intent of furthering unders tanding into the motivations of pleasure vacationers. The evidence in this s tudy suggests that the answer to the question "Why do people go on vacation or go to a particular dest inat ion?" is sociological as well as psychological, for the social group reinforces, modifies, and molds the motivations of its members . It appears that research efforts in this area should be designed to ad- dress both of these dimensions ra ther than either independently.

The intended contribution of this s tudy is to provide insights into the phenomenon of social group roles in the pleasure vacation experience which will be useful for conceptualizing and developing subsequent hypotheses. No inferences are intended as to whether group influences were typical or atypical. The relative s trength and distribution in the population of social group impacts on their member s remains a subsequent research task. [] []

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S u b m i t t e d 27 May 1980 Revised version submitted 23 January 1981 Accepted 7 April 1981 Refereed anonymously


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