INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM RESEARCH

Int. J. Tourism Res. 12, 4964 (2010)

Published online 21 June 2009 in Wiley InterScience
(www.interscience.wiley.com) DOI: 10.1002/jtr.736

Ceorcan Oana
Bucur Gabriel

Sangwon Park1 and Dae-Young Kim2,*

O comparatie a diferitelor tehnici de segmentare a

informatiei referitoare la calatoriile studentilor in USA:
Experienta, Cunoastere,Implicare si Definitivare.
Keywords: specialisation concept;
involvement; past experience; prior
knowledge; information search behaviour.
Cuvinte cheie:
Conceptul de specializare ;
implicare ;
experiena trecuta;
cunoatere ; Informaii
comportament de cutare a informatiilor

ith college enrolment reaching a record of 17.5 million in the fall of

2005 and with expected increases of 0.1 million per year, college students
have become a major travel market in the USA. In addition, the anticipation
is for college enrolment to increase an additional 13% from 2006 to 2015
(National Center for Education Statistics, 2006). According to the report of
the Federation of International Youth Travel Organizations (2003), the
average trip expenditure of college students in the USA is $1200, which is
more than that of other high-spending tourists during shorter stays.
Besides, substantial data reveal an increase of college students and trip
expenditures, which suggests that college students are a major tourism
market for the tourism and hospitality industries. Following this trend, over
5000 travel organisations in about 100 countries promote destinations
targeting student travellers (International Student Travel Confederation,
2003).

Introducere:

Odata ce inscrierile la facultate au atins un record de 17.5 milioane de

studenti,in toamna lui 2005,si de asemenea data fiind expectativa de
crestere de 0.1 milioane pe an,studentii au devenit o adevarata piata in
domeniul turistic,in USA.Pe deasupra se anticipeaza ca inscrierile la
facultate sa creasca cu 13% din 2006 si pana in 2015 (Centrul National al
Statisticii Educationale,2006 ). Potrivit raportului Federatiei Internationale
al Calatoriilor Organizate intre Tineri (2003) , profitul mediu al unei
calatorii a studentilor in SUA este de 1200$, mult mai crescut decat cel
obtinut in urma turistilor sezonieri.

Pe langa asta ,date substantiale releva o crestere a studentilor si al

costului calatoriilor ,ceea ce inseamna ca studentii au devenit o parte
majora pe piata turismului .
Conform acestor statistici,peste 5000 de organizatii turistice din
aproximativ 100 de tari promoveaza destinatii ce au in vedere necesitatile
studentilor care calatoresc.
The research for understanding college students tourism behaviour has
been investigated with regard to activity preferences for both international
and domestic students (Sung and Hsu, 1996; Kim and Jogaratnam, 2003),
travel behaviours (Hobson and Josiam, 1996; Field,1999), travel
motivations (Kim et al., 2006), tourism attribute selection (Klenosky,
2002;Michael et al., 2003), tourism involvement(Josiam et al., 1999),
tourism destination image(Sirakaya et al., 2001), and the selection criteria
of fast food restaurant (Baek et al., 2006).
Some researchers have examined the perspectives of college students with
regard to travel sites
In a study focusing on online information channels, Bai et al. (2004)
explored college studentsonline behaviour in vacation planning through a
study of selected websites.
As reported, due to the intangible nature of tourism products, a critical
aspect of travellers awareness is sufficient information about the products
and services they will purchase. Thus,information search behaviour is a
significant factor infl uencing tourism behaviour such as selecting
destinations, spending money, visiting duration, experiencing attractions,
and so on(Fodness and Murray, 1999; Gursoy and Chen,
2000; Gursoy and McCleary, 2004).
The research efforts to understand students information search
behaviours, particularly related to the
usefulness of information contents and preferences for information
channels, are parsimonious.
Due to the lack of understanding of college student travellers information
search behaviours,destination marketing organisations(DMOs) have
difficulty designing contents and utilising appropriate information
channels.

Studiile facute in vederea intelegerii caracterului turismului printre

studenti, au inclus atat studentii internationali cat si pe cei originari din
zonele respective. Aceste studii au in vedere comportamentului
studentilor,preferintele lor,motivatia lor, felul in care este privita destinatia
respectiva,cat si criteriile de alegere a restaurantelor etc. Unii cercetatori
au examinat perspectiva studentilor in legatura cu site-urile cu caracter
turistic, iar conform acestor studii studentii se intereseaza de
oportunitatile destinatiilor prin intermediul acestor site-uri.

Dupa cum se cunoaste, data fiind natura intangibila a produsului turistic,

un aspect important pentru
orice turist il reprezinta amalgamul
informational despre zona respectiva.Astfel,cautarea de informatii este un
factor important care influeneaz comportamentul turistului, cum ar fi
selectarea destinaie, banii de cheltuial, durat calatoriei, i aa mai
departe
Eforturile cercetrii pentru a nelege comportamentul de cutare ale
studentilor, n special legate de utilitatea coninutului de informaii i
preferinele pentru canalele de informare, sunt restricionate.Din cauza
dificultatilor de nelegere al comportamentul de cutare de informaii pe
care studenii il prefera,Organizaiile de marketing au dificultati in
construirea design-ul perfect, apropiat de dorintele si asteptarile tinerilor.
With the emergence of the Internet, people rely a great deal on it to obtain
information, and college students are an ardent user group. According to
the Pew Report about college students Internet use (Pew Research Center,
2002), 59% of all US adults access online websites to obtain
information;however, 86% of college students use online sources for their
own purposes. In addition,apparently, about 20% of college students
beganusing the Internet between five and eight years ago; 47% of them
began utilising the Internet the first time at home before attending college,
and 85% possess their own computers (Aiken et al., 2003). In case of
tourism, the study conducted by Bai et al. (2004) revealed that about 80%
of college students answered that they prefer online travel agencies when
making trip plans, and 86.7% of students have experience in purchasing
online products. All the statistics indicate that college students are signifi
cantly involved in the Internet as an information channel, and the degrees
and efforts towards searching online information are substantially higher
than those of other age groups.

Odata cu dezvoltarea internetului, oamenii se bazeaza foarte mult pe

acesta pentru a obtine informatiile necesare studentii find si ei utilizatori
nfocati.Conform Pew Report despre studenti si felul in care utilizeaza
acestia internetul, 59% din populatia adulta din USA acceseaza internetul
pentru a obtine detalii si informatii, iar 86% din studenti fac acelasi lucru.
Pe deasupra,aproximativ 20% din studenti au inceput sa foloseasca
internetul de acum 8-10 ani iar 47% dintre acestia au utilizat internetul
pentru prima data inainte de a pleca la facultate, 85% dintre acestia avand
propriile computere. In ceea ce priveste turismul, studiul a relevant faptul
ca 80% dintre tineri au raspuns ca prefera agentiile de tursim online atunci
cand isi organizeaza calatoriile iar 86,7% au cumparat cel putin o data un
produs online. Aceste statistici indica faptul ca studentii vad Internetul ca
pe principalul mod de informare,spre deosebire de alte categorii de varsta
care apeleaza si la alte metode.

In general, it has been noted that travelers utilise various types of external
information sources in order to make plans for their trips:family and

friends, prior visits, destination specific literature, media, and travel

consultants.
A number of studies suggested that past experience is a main factor
affecting purchase intention, behavior and the future destination. Tourism
research has considered the differences between fi rst-time and
revisit visitors in terms of expenditure (Oppermann, 1997), length of stay
(Oppermann,1998),demographics
(Gitelson
and
Crompton,
1984),destination
perception
(McKercher
and
Wong,2004),
travel
motivations (Lau and McKercher, 2004), perceived value (Petrick, 2004),
andactivity pattern (Fakeye and Crompton
1992)
With regard to information search behaviour, previous studies revealed a
positive relationshipbetween past experience of a product and efficiency of
the information search process. It also reported that fi rst-time visitors
tended to use commercial information sources such as brochures/travel
guide books and advertisements;however, repeat visitors are inclined
towards not only commercial but also noncommercial
information
sources
such
as
articles/
news,
books/movies
and
friends/familygroups (Bagloglu, 2001). In a study concerning online
information search behaviour, Lehto
et al. (2006) identifi ed that travellers prior experience with destinations
influenced not only contents of information but also the degree of online
and off-line search behavior.
Prior knowledge positively affects not only consumer purchase decisions
and brand choice tactics but also assessment of product quality on the
assumption that knowledge increased as a result of past experience with a
product.In the context of information search behaviour,prior knowledge has
been regarded as arudimentary determinant to understanding an
individuals information search behaviour

In general, s-a observat c turistii utilizeaza diverse tipuri de informaii

externe
atunci
cand
isi
planifica
cltoriile:
cer
sfatul
familiei,prietenilor,apeleaza
la
consultanti,la
media,tin
cont
de
experientele anterioare. Insa experientele anterioare au o mare
insemnatate in randul turistilor. O serie de studii au sugerat c experiena
din trecut este un factor principal care afecteaz intenia de cumprare,
comportament i alegerea urmatorii destinatii. Cercetarile legate de Turism
au examinat diferenele in ceea ce priveste cheltuielile dintre prima dat i
urmatoare vizita,durata calatoriei,motivatiile de calatorie,valoarea
perceputa.
In ceea ce priveste comportamentul de cutare,studiile anterioare au
relevat un raport pozitiv ntre experiena trecuta a unui produs i eficiena
procesului de cutare de informaii;de asemenea, s-a observat c
vizitatorii in timpul primei lor calatorii au avut tendina de a utiliza surse
de informaii comerciale, cum ar fi brouri / cri de ghidare i reclame;Cu

toate acestea,in cazul vizitatorilor repetati,acestia au preferat sursele

necomerciale, cum ar fi articole/tiri, cri / filme i prieteni / familie.
ntr-un studiu cu privire la comportament online de cutare, Lehto a
identificat c o experien anterioara a influenat nu doar coninutul de
informaii, dar i gradul de comportament de cutare online i off-line.
Cunoatere prealabil afecteaz pozitiv nu numai deciziile de cumprare
ale consumatorilor si metodele de alegere a unei marci, dar si evaluarea
calitii produselor pe baza ipotezei c informatiile au crescut ca urmare a
experienei anterioare cu un anumit produs.
n cadrul comportamentului de cutare a informatiilor,Cunoasterea in
prealabil a fost privit ca un determinant rudimentar de nelegere al
comportamentului individual de cutare al informatiilor.

Involvement theory, originally introduced in social psychology, has been

adopted and studied extensively in the context of marketing since
Sherif and Cantril (1947) first presented the concept. The involvement
theory has been applied to understanding consumer behaviour,
segmenting groups for increasing advertising response productivity(Wu,
2001), comprehending the decisionmaking
process (Bunn, 1993; Dimanche et al.,1994) and generating awareness
of informationprocessing (Lee et al., 1999). Of several comprehensive
involvement models, Zaichkowsky defined involvement as
a persons perceived relevance of the object based in inherent needs,
values, and interests and suggested a personal involvement inventory.
In summary, many researchers argued that past experience, prior
knowledge and involvement are essential factors influencing travellers
information search behaviour. Due to the indicated significance, the
three variables have been used as criteria to classify travel groups for
supporting advertising, information and products that can meet
travellers needs. For the sake of contributing theory building as well as
suggesting practical marketing methods, the current research proposes
a concept of specialization to combine the three recognized variables
(i.e. past experience, prior knowledge and involvement).
A substantial amount of research has applied the concept of
specialization in nature-based tourism and recreation activities such as
fishing (Bryan, 1977; Ditton et al., 1992), hunting (Miller and Graefe,
2000), bird watching (Lee and Scott, 2004), white water activities
(Bricker and Kerstetter, 2000), canoeing/boating (Donnell et al., 1986),
scuba diving (Thapa et al., 2005), wildlife watching (Cole and Scott,
1999; Martin, 1997), and camping (McFarlane, 2004). In the tourism
field, Kerstetter et al. (2001) employed the specialization concept as a
segmentation of heritage tourism.

Teoria de implicare ,introdusa intial in psihologie, a fost adoptata si

studiata si in contextual marketingului prin intermediul Sherif si Cantril
(1947).T eoria a fost aplicata pt nelegerea comportamentul
consumatorului, pt intelegerea deciziilor procesului de mk i pt generarea
gradului de contientizare a informaiilor .
Zaichkowsky a definit implicarea ca fiindgradul de relevan al unui obiect
pentru un anumit consumator n funcie de nevoile, valorile i interesele
sale.
Pe scurt, muli cercettori au susinut c experiena din trecut, cunoatere
prealabil i implicarea sunt factori eseniali care influeneaz
comportament de cutare al informatiilor. Cele trei variabile au fost
utilizate drept criterii pentru clasificarea grupurilor de cltorie pentru
sprijinirea publicitate, informaiilor i produselor care pot satisface nevoile
cltorilor. Pentru a contribui la crearea unei teorii, precum i a unor
metode practice de marketing,cercetarea actual propune un concept de
specializare care combina cele trei variabile (adic experiena din trecut,
cunotinele anterioare i implicare).
Numerosi cercetatori au aplicat conceptul de specializare n natur,prin
turism i activiti de agrement :pescuit; vntoare activiti acvatice
;canotaj / plimbare cu barca ;scuba diving; vizionarea faunei
salbatice;camping. n domeniul turismul, Kerstetter a definit Conceptul de
specializare ca o motenire a turismului.

In this study, four segmentation bases past experience, prior

knowledge,involvement and a combination of three variables were
assessed for classifying the information search behaviour and information
contents tendencies. The results of this study showed involvement, and
the specialization concept, which integrates the three bases,appears to be
relatively more effective for differentiating traveller information search
behavior in terms of the number of statistically significant mean
differences of information sources and contents.

Concluzii:

n acest studiu, patru baze de segmentare - experiena anterioar,

cunotine anterioare, implicarea i o combinaie de trei variabile - au fost
evaluate pentru clasificarea comportamentului de cutare de informaii si
pt determinarea tendinelor in ceea ce priveste continutului informational.

Rezultatele acestui studiu au artat implicare, iar conceptul de

specializare, care integreaz cele trei baze, pare a fi relativ mai eficace
pentru diferenierea comportamentului de cutare a informatiilor.