The Socio-cultural Impacts Of Visiting Friends
And Relatives On Hosts: A Samoan Study
Author(s)
R. G. Taufatofua & S. Craig-Smith
Abstract
This paper considers and compares the key impacts of the visiting friends and
relatives (VFR) traveller and the holiday tourist on the socio-cultural fabric of
Pacific Island community’s. Research was undertaken in the islands of Samoa. A
socio-cultural capital approach provided recognition of the dynamic natures of
the communities considered. The VFR traveller is a particularly important yet
largely under-estimated visitor segment in many Pacific islands where VFR
travellers comprise a considerable percentage of visitors. Socio-cultural and
economic impacts can be significant on host communities, particularly as the
VFR traveller can slip beneath the cultural barrier separating the local resident
from the tourist/traveller. The current research suggested that VFR travellers
impact the socio-cultural fabric in similar ways to holiday tourists. However,
host respondents accorded less concern to VFR traveller impacts than to holiday
tourists. Impacts were largely considered positive, enhanced by the importance
of this traveller segment through overseas remittances.
Elements impacted varied in strength of impact by traveller type. For
example, reciprocity was considered impacted more so by VFR travellers,
changing the nature of reciprocity from an intrinsic value to extrinsic value
based on monetary exchanges. This research glimpses how the socio-cultural
fabric operates particular resilience mechanisms to protect its integrity from
undesirable external influences, yet embraces the more favourable influences.
The research identifies that holiday and VFR tourism in Samoa does impact
the socio-cultural fabric in a myriad of ways, some positive and others
negative.
Keywords: socio-cultural resilience, social and cultural capital, visiting friends
and relatives.
Keywords
socio-cultural resilience, social and cultural capital, visiting friends
and relatives
Related Book
Other papers in this volume
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