Tourism and Chinese popular nationalism

Abstract

As a complex and emerging phenomenon, nationalism presents a serious challenge to international marketers, with no exception to the field of tourism. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence in understanding the role of nationalism in tourist travel intention. A qualitative research approach with in-depth interview and on-site observation was adopted to bridge this gap during the Diaoyu/Senkaku Island Incident between China and Japan since late 2012. In particular, this study seeks to shed light on the influence of nationalism on Chinese tourists. A nationalism dynamics model has been established to explore and explain different segments of tourists based on their self-perceived level of nationalism. The findings of this paper offer important implications for both scholars and practitioners in their strategic responses to this challenging nationalism phenomenon.

Keywords:

• popular nationalism
• Chinese tourists
• Japan
• historical memory
• travel intention

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to express their great appreciation to Professor Jenny Edwards and members of the writing group at UTS Business School, University of Technology, Sydney for their constructive comments in improving the quality of this paper.