Transformational Tourism

Host Perspectives

Yvette Reisinger

• Publisher: CAB International
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9781789244625
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Hospitality, Travel & Tourism Industry
• Index: Business

Transformational Tourism deals with the important issue of how travel and tourism can change human behaviour and have a positive impact on the world. The book focuses on human development in a world dominated by post-9/11 security and political challenges, economic and financial collapses, as well as environmental threats; it identifies various types of tourism that can transform human beings, such as educational, volunteer, survival, community-based, eco, farm, extreme, religious, spiritual, wellness, and mission tourism.

Part I

Initial Reflections

1 Reflections on Life Purpose

Yvette Reisinger

Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait

Searching for Purpose of Life

What is the purpose of life is a philosophical and spiritual question concerning the significance of life or human existence. Questions about the purpose of life can be expressed in a variety of ways, such as ‘Who are we?’, ‘Why are we here?’, ‘What are we here for?’, ‘Why do we live?’, ‘What sense does life have?’, ‘What is the significance of life?’, ‘What is the value of life?’, ‘What is the meaning of life?’ and ‘What is the purpose of our existence?’. The question about the purpose of life has been the subject of many philosophical, scientific, cultural, ideological, theological and spiritual discussions throughout history. There has been a large number of competing answers to these questions, and arguments from many different perspectives that have provided a wide range of explanations.

The questions about the purpose of human existence challenge and haunt every human being as we continue upon life’s journey (Kroth and Boverie, 2000). Human beings ask ourselves these questions at some point during our lives regardless of stage of life or intellectual development. Young and old, scientists and blue-collar workers, poets and ordinary people on the street wonder about the purpose of life and seek the answer to it in their own way (Kroth and Boverie, 2000). The answer to the question of life purpose has been sought in a long history of human societies and it will be asked for as long as humanity exists (Rozbicki, 2013).

Importance of Understanding a Sense of Life

The question about the purpose of life is at the core of human existence. Understanding the reason for life provides a source of meaning and motivation for action. The stronger one’s life purpose, the stronger and more focused one’s motivation and self-direction (Kroth and Boverie, 2000) and engagement in specific behaviours.

Lindeman (1926) argues that life and its purpose is about learning. Learning adds meaning to life through the collection of information and facts, the obtainment of knowledge, having different experiences, and developing the thinking that is needed for intellectual and emotional growth. Understanding life’s purpose allows one to direct learning choices and identify one’s strengths (Kroth and Boverie, 2000). Learning allows for the development of self-confidence, faith, the direction for action, and the understanding of one’s identity and role in society.

Interpretations of the Purpose of Life

There are many conflicting interpretations of the purpose of life. For example, religious doctrines focus on a non-material world, spirituality and life after death. Believers are told to follow the religious teachings to save their souls. By drawing attention to symbols, such as crests, religious paintings and sculptures, religion creates a sense of power, security and a belief in a higher presence. Religious doctrines encourage human beings to concentrate on activities and behaviours that often change their perceptions of the material world.

At the same time, modern Western society promotes a materialistic and consumption-oriented lifestyle. Importance is attached to the accumulation of material goods, making money, which determines success and power, and external appearance, which is believed to represent who people are. There is a constant focus on indulgence, self-pampering and superficial quests for feeling well, as well as egocentric and status-driven activities to create temporary pleasures. By focusing on physical existence and the surrounding material world, modern Western societies live in constant fear of physical dangers that impact their lives; they are afraid of ageing, diseases and death and they are constantly fighting for survival (Rozbicki, 2013).

The media teaches us how to live and indicates what lifestyle members of modern societies should follow. We are programmed to watch cheap TV soap operas and entertainment, enjoy mass sport and have fun. We are programmed to develop a specific vision of the world, to have specific beliefs influencing our thinking and perception of the world and to have a specific interpretation of world events. Love, empathy, personal freedom, the right to choose, freedom of speech and independence are only cheap slogans which are used to make everyone believe that by following the promoted lifestyle one can achieve fulfilment. ‘Modern’ society propagates tolerance towards all types of behaviour and lifestyles, or risks being called intolerant or discriminating. Many things that were judged a sin in the past are now accepted or promoted (Windschuttle, 2002). Human beings often equate their existence with their basic instincts and needs believing they are the purpose of their lives (Rozbicki, 2013). As a result, children are losing moral and ethical standing and becoming more violent (Windschuttle, 2002). The ‘modern’ world is faced with moral and cultural nihilism and our lives fail to address serious moral and ethical issues (Windschuttle, 2002).

Thus, one part of humanity is influenced by religion and focuses on the non-material world and spirituality. The other part of humanity follows the materialistic, pseudo-rational vision of the world, rejecting the spirit and concentrating its attention on the ‘here and now’. It seems human life is self-contradictory and illogical. Unfortunately, many human beings caught up in the fast pace of modern life have no time to reflect on the meaning of their existence. Preoccupied with daily responsibilities and collecting goods they have been turned into rabbits running to nowhere and chasing nothing (Rozbicki, 2013). The constant race does not allow us to step aside and ask the fundamental question about the purpose of life. Only painful experiences and disappointment force us to stop for a moment to reflect on the meaning of life. Without understanding the sense of life and one’s role in life, it is not possible to find a sense of direction and achieve peace of mind.

Need for a Change

Human beings are not only the physical body; we have consciousness. We can create meaning and new experiences, and we can find directions and answers to the question of the purpose of life – we only need to understand what gives direction to our actions and reprogramme thinking that reduces our existence to biology. Human beings need more from life than pleasure seeking and accumulating goods; we need to understand the nature of the surrounding reality and the natural state of human existence (Rozbicki, 2013). A radical change in human beings is needed (Sri Aurobindo, [1963] 2003). We need to change ourselves and our perspective and attitudes towards the world. We need to work on ourselves and learn new life values: love, empathy, personal freedom, the right to choose and independence. Since everyone influences the surrounding environment, creates reality and is responsible for life, we need to learn and teach others to create knowledge. Knowledge generates questions and provides answers to the questions of what is life’s meaning and what is reality (Rozbicki, 2013).

Potential of Travel and Tourism

Travel and tourism have the potential to change humanity and give people what they need and seek. Although it is often argued that tourism reinforces stereotypes and causes stress (e.g. visiting ten cities in 1 week), travel, in its different forms, can take one to a variety of situations allowing the experience of different ways of living, the readjustment of current life, and meeting old and new needs (Kottler, 1997). Travel can offer physical, psychological, cognitive, affective and spiritual experiences that can change one’s assumptions, expectations, world-views and fundamental structures of the self. Travel can offer a journey to a new awareness, development and growth. This journey creates new meaning, offers fulfilment of unsatisfied needs and develops new authentic experiences. This journey can slow one down, allow for reflection, and help to find answers and new directions for behaviour. It can encourage new thinking and give a new sense of life.

Travel and tourism can influence the way we choose to live. It can encourage us to concentrate more on psychological and emotional wellbeing and look deeply into ourselves and expand our perceptions of the physical world. It can reprogramme our specific vision of the world and change beliefs influencing our thinking and interpretation of the world. The concepts of love, peace, freedom or independence can become real. By travelling, visiting other places and meeting other people we can find new rules of existence and enhance our understanding of the world. We can find the will and power to act and make a change. We can change the world and ourselves, the surrounding reality and the purpose of our existence (Rozbicki, 2013). We can give life new direction.

References

Kottler, J. (1997) Travel that Can Change Your Life: How to Create a Transformative Experience. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, California.

Kroth, M. and Boverie, P. (2000) Life mission and adult education. Adult Education Quarterly 50(2), 134–150.

Lindeman, E. (1926) The Meaning of Adult Education. New Republic, New York.

Rozbicki, M. (2013) Nowy Porzadek Swiata: Wszystko Rozgrywa sie w Naszych Umyslach. Illuminatio, Bialystok, Poland.

Sri Aurobindo [1963] (2003) Future Evolution of Man: The Divine Life Upon Earth (2nd edn; P.B. Saint-Hilaire, Comp.). Lotus, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin.

Windschuttle, K. (2002) Premises of cultural relativism and Western inferiority. In: Windschuttle, K. The cultural war on western civilization. The New Criterion 20(5), 4–16.

2 Personal Transformation and Travel and Tourism

Yvette Reisinger

Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait

Tourism is one of the world’s biggest industries. Global tourism is characterized by the development of new types of tourists, with new needs and preferences, and seeking new tourism products. Although it is widely believed that one of the main travel motivations is leisure and relaxation, new tourists seem to be seeking individuality and self-realization instead of comfort and rationality. New tourists are more interested in the educational and experiential aspects of travelling, broadening their horizons and exploring new places. For them, travelling is about discovering, an enhancing sense of self and developing an attitude of openness and open-mindedness. New tourists are not just looking and seeing, they want to feel and sense. They want to better understand themselves and the world, and to adopt new and broader understanding of the surrounding reality and life. Consciously or not, they want to undergo personal transformation.

Transformation

The term transformation means change, conversion, metamorphosis, transfiguration, evolution (Merriam Webster, 2013), forming over or restructuring (Holland-Wade, 1998). Transformation is about the changing of character, substance or function (Williams, 1991). Personal transformation is a dynamic and uniquely individual process of changing one’s view of self and the world. Therefore, the process of personal transformation is often referred to as transformation of worldview (Taber, 1983; Smith, 1984; Watson, 1989), perspective transformation (Lytle, 1990; Mezirow, 1991; Carpenter, 1994), logic transformation (Loder, 1981) and transformative learning (Mezirow, 1991; Carpenter, 1994).

Transformational Learning Theory

Transformational learning theory was introduced by Jack Mezirow (1978) to explain how adults change their interpretation of the world. According to the theory, learning is about using a prior interpretation to create a new interpretation of the meaning of one’s experience in order to guide future behaviour (Mezirow, 1996). The transformational learning is based on assumptions and expectations – a framework of reference – that frame an individual’s opinions and influence thinking, beliefs and behaviour. By critically reflecting on experiences one revises one’s frame of reference and undergoes a change called the perspective transformation. Perspective transformation is an 11-phase process during which one becomes critically aware that prior views and assumptions about the world are incorrect and one needs to develop new perspective. The process involves making a choice to change and expand personal assumptions. The process starts with a ‘disorienting dilemma’ that can take many forms: it can be a personal crisis, death, divorce, an accident, job loss, war or retirement (Mezirow, 1991). The dilemma provokes a sense of disillusionment with previous actions and practices, and calls for new problem-solving strategies. As a result, an individual begins to search for meaning or for something missing in life. The individual engages in self-examination of feelings that leads to critical assessment of prior assumptions. He or she also recognizes that others share the same discomfort. As a result, the individual associates with others who are in the same situation and explores new roles, relationships and actions. He or she plans a new course of action, acquires new knowledge and skills for implementing new plans, renegotiates new relationships and reintegrates them into his or her own life, building competence and self-confidence (Mezirow, 1994). A new attitude and identity begin to emerge. The transformation process is completed when the individual fully incorporates the new beliefs and behaviours into his or her own life.

Perspective transformation involves a structural change that leads to a more fully developed frame of reference, one that is more inclusive, differentiating, permeable, critically reflective and integrative of experience (Mezirow, 1978, 1996). Perspective transformation often occurs through a series of cumulative meaning schemes or as a result of stressful and painful personal or social crisis (Mezirow, 1997). Central to transformation are self-examination and critical reflection on one’s experiences, which can often be accompanied by ‘feelings of fear, anger, guilt or shame’ (Mezirow, 2000, p. 22). Another major part of transformation is connecting and communicating with others. Through human interactions and connections with others one can validate personal meanings and question deeply held assumptions about one’s self-identity and relationship to the world. One can develop openness and reach a common understanding, building self-esteem and self-understanding. Although the consciousness is not identified in the description of the 11-phase process of transformation, Mezirow’s model of transformation also incorporates the generation, transformation and integration of consciousness (Holland-Wade, 1998). When developing his model of transformation Mezirow was influenced by Freire (1970), who argued that consciousness is developed through growth when people feel that they need a change and take action for change (Mezirow, 1985).

Personal Transformation

The process of personal transformation is similar to the process of Mezirow’s transformational learning theory (1978, 1991). Personal transformation begins with a ‘disorienting dilemma’ (e.g. stressful life experiences or relationships, a new environment, death, life-threatening accident) that disrupts the order of one’s life (Ferguson, 1980; Loder, 1981; Mezirow, 1991). The individual becomes aware that old ways of thinking and logic do not work any longer. The cognitive and affective meaning perspectives and schemes that form one’s beliefs, judgements and feelings, and shape a particular interpretation of experiences and worldview conflict with one’s self-view, and encourage reflection and expansion of consciousness (Goodson, 1977; Ferguson, 1980; Mezirow, 1991). At this stage the process of personal growth and transformation starts. The individual evaluates the importance of the disorienting dilemma and decides to contest it (Ferguson, 1980; Busick, 1989). The individual begins to understand self-limitations and changes his or her own vision of reality; this change occurs gradually and represents a transition point in the process of transformation (Mezirow, 1991). The individual develops new ways of thinking and views his or her own experiences in a new context; s/he develops a new level of consciousness that unites the mind and heart, and forms a new self-definition (Ferguson, 1980; Mezirow, 1991). At the final stage of personal transformation an individual achieves absolute consciousness. According to Holland-Wade (1998), as individuals expand consciousness, inter-dimensional awareness is enhanced through which one can reach towards the highest levels of consciousness, absolute or divine love. This is a stage of psychic and spiritual healing that is only reached at the level of experiencing transcendence (Holland-Wade, 1998).

Experiencing transcendence, or psychic and spiritual healing, ca...