Situational orientation of tourism consumption: tourism enclave effect and fear of consumption in scenic spots
XIE Yanjun1,2*, YU Jia3*, YANG Kun4
(1 College of Tourism, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, Hainan, China; 2 Tourism Experience and Research Design Center, Hainan University, Haikou 570228, Hainan, China; 3 College of Tourism and Hotel Management, Dongbei University of Finance and Economics, Dalian 116025, Liaoning, China; 4 Xizang Tourism Research Institute, Xizang Minzu University, Xianyang 712082, Shaanxi, China)
Abstract:
The article starts from an empirical study focusing on the economic phenomenon of tourists′consumption level and structure in the old street in Haikou Qilou, and then attempts to make a theoretical causal explanation of the tourism consumption problem in Hainan from the perspective of social geography and tourism experience theory. Tourism consumption is included in the theoretical paradigm of tourism experience. From the perspective of phenomenon, the number of tourists and the level of tourists′ consumption in the landscape block of Zhongshan Road in Haikou Qilou Old Street Area are relatively low. Tourists′ consumption behaviors differ in specific fields, and are greatly affected by the dynamics of consumption space, forming a prominent field effect. Therefore, from the perspective of tourist experience, the article uses the theoretical concepts such as scenic area consumption fear and tourism enclave effect to explain the situational consumption phenomena,such as business types and unsuitable texture of tourism consumption in the field space of Zhongshan Road Landscape Block in Haikou Qilou Old Street. The study found that the tourism enclave effect played an important role in explaining the spatial disequilibrium law of the tourism destination consumption phenomenon, and became the core category and main story line connecting the theoretical context. The tourism consumption problem of Qilou Old Street on Zhongshan Road in Haikou is not only an economic phenomenon, but also a comprehensive phenomenon based on the experience of tourists on the spot. Qilou Old Street on Zhongshan Road was experienced as a “tourist enclave” with functional contradictions in terms of image cognition and functional perception. Due to the similarity in business form between the neighboring neighborhoods, there was a significant substitution effect. Accompanying this is the phenomenon of “consumption fear in scenic spots”, which shows the reality of the unsatisfactory business situation of Qilou Old Street on Zhongshan Road. This situation only exists in the consumption field of tourism destinations. Therefore, this “enclave substitution effect” is theoretically unique and can be used to explain the consumption law in the tourism experience process from the perspective of tourism economics. This article also explores the differences in emotions and cognitions expressed by tourists in different consumption spaces, as well as the formation of consumer fear and consumption poles by identifying the dualistic unity of material consumption space and spiritual consumption space in the tourism consumption.
KeyWords:
tourism consumption; situational consumption; consumption fear in scenic spots; consumption space; enclave effect 2018年4月,时值海南建省30周年之际,中共中央国务院明确提出海南省自贸港建设的“三区一中心”战略定位,其中“一中心”指的是国际旅游消费中心。同年12月,国家发展改革委员会印发《海南省建设国际旅游消费中心的实施方案》,至此海南“国际旅游消费中心”建设正式从战略层面走向具体操作。与以往建设“国际旅游岛”提法不同的是,新的国家战略强调了“消费”的重要性,即在加大促进游客来岛旅游力度的基础上,鼓励旅游者的岛内消费,进而推动海南省经济的快速发展。在这样一个现实背景下,如何提高海南旅游消费的规模和水平是政界、业界面临的迫切问题,由此也成为学术界的热门话题。从旅游视角来看,消费是旅游者个体体验过程中暴露在外的显著特征之一,而旅游的“异地性”特征也使得旅游消费有别于人们在日常生活世界中的消费\[1-2\],构成了非日常消费空间(旅游目的地)与日常消费和生活空间的分离。因此,旅游消费的发生总是与鲜活的、特定的异地性场域或情境联系在一起。美国J·Paul Peter和Jerry C·Olson在其名著《消费者行为与营销战略》中也曾提到“购物情境”一词\[3\],由此可见情境对消费行为的重要影响。在有关旅游消费的研究文献中,最为突出的关注点是宏观视野上的消费总量和结构性规律,这种经济学探索往往将旅游消费视为相对静止的宏观经济变量,忽视了旅游消费行为发生的过程或情境。作为一种新的切入点,本文拟在海南“国际旅游消费中心”建设的背景下,尝试从具体、微观的层面来探讨旅游消费问题,将关注的对象聚焦于一个具体的场域,进而考察旅游消费行为的情境化表现。为了实现这一目标,本研究选取海口骑楼老街中山路景观街区及其周边区域作为实地调研对象。作为拥有百年历史的街道景观,骑楼老街是海口乃至全国最大的骑楼片区,具有发展文化旅游的独特优势。当地政府出自旅游发展的目的,也在近年启动了骑楼老街修缮整治项目,其中中山路一段经修缮后已经向游人全面开放。然而,“改造前,骑楼老街车水马龙,人来人往。可是经过几年的改造,这里却没了人气,商铺经常几天不开张,海口首条步行街陷入尴尬的境地”\[4\]。到目前为止,作为骑楼老街代表街区的中山路景观商业街依然游客寥寥,旅游消费低迷,经营者难以为继,与国内其他一些都市文化街区的旅游经营状况相比,差距很大。为此,本研究将游客的消费行为与所处的旅游场域联系在一起,从游客体验的视角动态地考察旅游消费问题,综合运用地理学、经济学、心理学和社会学等相关理论对骑楼老街片区内中山路景观街区的游客消费现象予以剖析和解释,审视旅游者在微观场域中经济行为的理性和非理性特征,以便为海口整片骑楼老街乃至国内同类旅游目的地制定合理的管理和开发策略提供理论依据。