Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
utility acquired from an alternative's capacity for functional, utilitarian or physical performance'
(Sheth
et al
. 1991: 160). These authors assess the functional value as the primary driver of
consumer choice and as more often including value for money, quality, reliability, durability and
price. The emotional value echoes the product's ability to arouse feelings or affective states
(Sheth
et al
. 1991) and is of particular interest in tourist experience settings (Williams and Soutar
2009) in that emotions to a great extent affect satisfaction evaluations (Otto and Ritchie 1996).
A social value is defi ned as 'perceived utility acquired from an alternative's association with one
or more specifi c groups' (Sheth
et al
. 1991: 161), which not only refl ects conspicuous consumption
(e.g. Bagwell and Bernheim 1996) but also refl ects the need to bond and socialize (Arnould
et al
.
2002). Epistemic value, refl ecting novelty and learning, is of great importance in experience-
related consumption (Weber 2001) and mirrors consumers' curiosity and the need to learn and
to experience variety within consumption (Sheth
et al
. 1991). This value scale has been tested in
tourism contexts, such as adventure tourist experiences (e.g. Williams and Soutar 2009) and
special interest tourism/historical sites, e.g. war-related sites (Lee
et al
. 2007), and in tourist
experience settings (Gallarza and Saura 2006; Prebensen
et al
. 2012, 2013; Sànchez
et al
. 2006;
Williams and Soutar 2009). The results from these studies reveal slightly different support for the
value scale, indicating that further testing should be performed in a tourist experience setting.
Dramatizing for enhanced experience value
Goffman (1959) employed a theatrical metaphor in studying individual behaviour in public
settings resulting in a theory of impression management. The theatrical metaphors, i.e. staging,
roles and play, have been adopted in consumer research and the literature. Impression management
is about the presentation of self or management of the impression of oneself. The fundamental
idea is that the individual wants to develop congruence between his or her self-concept and
feedback from the social groups to which he or she belongs. Impression management theory
describes the process of forming and stabilizing one's identity. People participate in this process
of identity building when they enter a social setting.
Bitner's (1992) servicescape framework, demonstrating the atmospherics in service encounters,
articulates the effects of the servicescape - or service setting - on customers' behavioural
responses, such as approach/avoidance, spending money and repatronage intentions, etc. In
tourism research, the interaction between the servicescape provided by the management and the
personal drama in the dining room, and the 'superobjectives' of the customers is discussed
(Morgan
et al
. 2008). From this perspective, the tourist becomes an actor on or off stage, and the
fi rm and service provider's roles become that of providing the space in which the experience is
co-created (Morgan
et al
. 2008).
The company can thus only facilitate tourists' experience value. However, the planning,
enabling and dramatizing of the interaction scenes are of vital importance for the customer to be
motivated, involved and informed to partake in value creation processes. The change in focus on
production and consumption practices from exchange to use includes acknowledging that the
customer has valuable resources in partaking in the value creation process. Not only does
the customer have a chance to partake in the value creation process, but also the host depends
on the customer to partake in order to create value. Partaking in value creation not only requires
motivation and drive to be present in the situation, it also requires some sort of knowledge and
skills, defi ned as operant resources (Vargo and Lusch 2004). These resources are considered
capable of 'purposefully' acting on other resources (Vargo and Lusch 2008: 257). Viewing
beautiful scenery or hiking includes the customer in terms of using his or her senses and/or
physical resources in order to enjoy the experience. Consequently, it is the application of
