Theoretical linkages between well-being and tourism: The case of self-determination theory and spiritual tourism

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    79 Scopus citations

    Abstract

    Self-determination theory (SDT) offers a robust and globally adopted evidence-based foundation from which explorations of increasingly popular forms of travel, like spiritual tourism, can be analyzed for their potential contributions to well-being. This paper draws on SDT to examine outcomes of well-being within spiritual tourism. It draws on autoethnography, a thick data approach to qualitative inquiry, which allows for the emergence of experiential and self-reflective processes engendered by forms of travel like spiritual tourism. The autoethnographic narrative is based on the author's spiritual tourism experience at a yoga/meditation retreat in Rishikesh, India. The narrative is transcended through theory-based linkages to broader social phenomena (i.e., well-being, SDT), by so doing, the legacy of theoretical development, characteristic of interpretive inquiry, is sustained.

    Original languageEnglish (US)
    Article number102920
    JournalAnnals of Tourism Research
    Volume83
    DOIs
    StatePublished - Jul 2020

    Keywords

    • Autoethnography
    • India
    • Self-determination theory
    • Spiritual tourism
    • Subjective well-being
    • Yoga

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Development
    • Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Management

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