An analysis of destination attractiveness and the use of psychographics and demographics in segmentation of the within-state tourism market /
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| Other Authors: | , , |
| Format: | Thesis Book |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
1990.
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Link to OAKTrust copy |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this study was to identify an appropriate model by which the relative attractiveness of Texas' vacation destinations to the within-state travel market could be assessed, and to collect the necessary data from a representative sample in order to conduct such an assessment. The study was also designed to facilitate comparison of market segmentation strategies by analyzing the destination preferences and vacation travel behaviors of sub-samples differentiated on the basis of demographic and psychographic variables. A conceptual model of the vacation destination choice process was presented and used in the development and testing of research hypotheses. The model outlined theoretical relationships between the destination elements in a vacation traveler's cognitive domain and those destination attributes that are significant to the potential traveler in the destination choice process. The perception of construct centrality and the process of attribute evaluation were also related to the notion of destination attractiveness. The model proposed that attractiveness was relevant to market segmentation, and to destination choice behavior. Using data collected from several pre-test samples and a randomly selected sample of 433 adult Texas residents, the study identified 13 types of vacation destinations that the within-state travel market could perceive and evaluate with respect to their relative attractiveness. Attractiveness was quantified through the application of a compensatory multi-attribute utility model to data about the subjects' affect towards and perception of 8 classes of determinant attributes. The data were collected by means of a mail questionnaire. Differences were observed between population segments in both affect towards and perception of certain attributes within the destination types. The relative effectiveness of segmentation criteria was also studied and several independent variables were identified as being significant in explaining variation in destination preference and vacation travel behavior. |
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| Item Description: | Typescript (photocopy). Vita. "Major subject: Recreation and resources development." |
| Physical Description: | xii, 193 leaves : illustrations ; 29 cm |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references. |