Vacation Travel, Marital Satisfaction, and Subjective Wellbeing: A Chinese Perspective

ABSTRACT

Marital satisfaction is important for preserving one’s marriage and overall wellbeing. While the need to identify factors that enhance marital satisfaction is evident, contributions from the field of tourism remain scarce. This study examines several linkages between and among vacation travel, marital satisfaction, and subjective wellbeing through a thematic analysis of textual data from 22 semi-structured interviews. The results reveal that vacation travel enhances marital satisfaction and improves individuals’ subjective wellbeing. The study has identified four drivers for enhanced marital satisfaction, including Mutual Devotion, Reignited Passion, Strengthened Bond, and Open Communication. These drivers are manifested through various benefits of vacation travel, some of which also underlie the three outcomes of individual subjective wellbeing that emerged from the data. These outcomes are Social Support, Self-esteem, and Happiness. This study contributes to the knowledge on the role of vacation travel in enhancing marital relationship for Chinese couples in a society characterized by the convergence of Chinese traditions and Western values. As the evolving patterns of global mobility continue to intensify cultural interactions, the findings also shed light on the relationships between and among vacation travel, marital satisfaction, and subjective wellbeing beyond the Chinese population.

摘要

婚姻满意度对于保持一个人的婚姻和整体福祉很重要。虽然需要确定提高婚姻满意度的因素，但旅游领域研究的贡献仍然很少。本研究通过对22个半结构化访谈的文本数据进行主题分析，考察了度假旅行，婚姻满意度和主观幸福感之间的几种联系。结果表明，度假旅行可以提高婚姻满意度，改善个人的主观幸福感。该研究确定了提高婚姻满意度的四个驱动因素，包括相互奉献，重塑激情，强化身心粘合和开放式沟通。这些驱动因素体现在度假旅行的各种好处上，并且根据数据显示，其中一些也构成了个人主观幸福感的三个结果的基础。这些成果包括社会支持，自尊和幸福感。本研究有助于了解度假旅行在中国传统和西方价值观趋同的社会中，对于增强中国夫妻婚姻关系的重要作用。随着不断变化的全球人口流动模式继续加剧文化互动，这些发现也在一定程度上启发和揭示了度假旅行，婚姻满意度和非中国人口的主观幸福感之间的关系。

KEYWORDS:

• Marital satisfaction
• subjective wellbeing
• vacation travel
• Chinese couples

关键词:

• 婚姻满意度
• 主观幸福
• 度假旅行
• 中国夫妇

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Liping Cai

Liping Cai is a Professor and Director in the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Purdue University, USA (E-mail: [email protected]).

Saerom Wang

Saerom Wang is affiliated with the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Purdue University, USA (E-mail: [email protected]).

Yunzi Zhang

Yunzi Zhang is an Assistant Professor in the Business Department at Northern Marianas College, Saipan, MP 96950-1250 (E-mail: [email protected]).