Abstract
This paper presents a happiness approach from positive psychology for appraising tourist satisfaction. According to this approach, happiness is a product of positive emotions, engagement and meaning. Key limitations of a dominant tourist satisfaction approach are first presented. Methods for evaluating positive emotions, engagement and meaning are then mentioned. It is argued that the happiness measures can better evaluate tourist satisfaction. These measures do not depend on expectations, they asses both post hoc and immediate conscious experiences, they can be used to measure eudaimonia and can assess affective as well as cognitive dimensions of satisfaction. Results of an exploratory qualitative study suggest that the approach has merit in uncovering new layers of tourist satisfaction. However further studies are needed to test the model.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | CAUTHE 2008: Tourism and Hospitality Research, Training and Practice; "Where the 'Bloody Hell' Are We?" |
| Publisher | Griffith University |
| Pages | 13-19 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781921291333 |
| Publication status | Published - 2008 |
| Externally published | Yes |
| Event | CAUTH 2008 Conference - Gold Coast International Hotel, Gold Coast, Australia Duration: 11 Feb 2008 → 14 Feb 2008 https://cauthe.org/services/conferences/conference-2008/ |
Conference
| Conference | CAUTH 2008 Conference |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | Australia |
| City | Gold Coast |
| Period | 11/02/08 → 14/02/08 |
| Other | The CAUTHE 2008 conference, hosted by Griffith University, was held at the Gold Coast International Hotel, Gold Coast, Australia. The CAUTHE Bill Faulkner / Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre (ST-CRC) PhD workshop was held prior to the conference on 10-11 February 2008. A total of 222 delegates, including 68 international, 72 students, 12 industry representatives and 11 exhibitors attended the conference. The conference addressed research, education, and industry and practice via keynotes, panel and special interest sessions. Research paper sessions included 97 refereed papers and 95 working papers, and 70 papers were presented as oral presentations. A research information exchange session including 69 booths was held on the first day of the conference. Paper themes included indigenous Australians, women, metropolitan and regional universities, early career, established career, minority perspectives and generational diversity. Conference innovations included a CAUTHE Chair address, use of raconteur, hypothetical, research information exchange and special interest sessions. |
| Internet address |