Hofstede's cultural indices revisited: The relationship between cultural values and international tourism

Michael J. Ahn, Bob Mckercher

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

14 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This article explores the previously unexamined assumption that the cultural profile of international tourists traveling to different destinations mirrors that of the overall population of a nation. Most studies adopt a cross-sectional destination approach, comparing and contrasting visitors from different source markets that visit a single destination. This study adopts a market approach by examining a cohort of socially and demographically homogenous Koreans who have varying travel experiences. The results demonstrated that no significant differences exist among respondents when Hofstede's cultural values scale is applied. Yet, respondents themselves felt their core national cultural values did change because of traveling and also most feel they were less stereotypically "Korean" because of their travel experiences. One reason for the dichotomy is that the standard technique to measure national cultural norms "explains" less than two thirds of the variance in recorded cultural norms. In the end, one wonders how effectively Hofstede's measures really are?.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)241-250
Number of pages10
JournalTourism, Culture and Communication
Volume18
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2018

Keywords

  • Cultural values
  • International tourism
  • Words: Hofstede

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Cultural Studies
  • Communication
  • Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Management

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