Seyed Mehdi Hosseini; Aliasghar Davodi
Abstract
Hajj pilgrimage is one of the divine duties that is held every year by pilgrims. In addition to the jurisprudential issues of Hajj, the pilgrimage of Hajj has many individual, social, and political effects. This pilgrimage provides an opportunity for the pilgrims to gain spirituality. Anther role of ...
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Hajj pilgrimage is one of the divine duties that is held every year by pilgrims. In addition to the jurisprudential issues of Hajj, the pilgrimage of Hajj has many individual, social, and political effects. This pilgrimage provides an opportunity for the pilgrims to gain spirituality. Anther role of Hajj is to create a platform for Muslims around the world to get to know each other. Professor Morteza Motahhari, as an Islamic thinker, believes that Hajj pilgrimage has great potentials for creating spirituality among Muslim societies. There is an international place (Kaaba) that belongs to all the believers of the world and also the same religious identity of the pilgrims of this holy house and some of the practices of this pilgrimage have the capacity to create real unity among Muslims. This research tries to study the role and position of Hajj pilgrimage in Professor Morteza Motahhari's thoughts by descriptive-analytical method and review the capacities of Hajj pilgrimage in creating spirituality from the perspective of Professor Morteza Motahhari.
Sayedmahdi Rahmati; Mojtaba Rajabi
Abstract
Pilgrimage can be considered as one of the oldest manifestations of religious tourism history and it is coupled with the formation of religions among human beings. On the one hand, the shrines of the religious personalities enjoy a special place in religious convergence, and on the other hand, it is ...
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Pilgrimage can be considered as one of the oldest manifestations of religious tourism history and it is coupled with the formation of religions among human beings. On the one hand, the shrines of the religious personalities enjoy a special place in religious convergence, and on the other hand, it is considered a suitable platform for cultural and spiritual awareness among pilgrims. Nowadays, proper management of pilgrimage and recognition of the capacity to convert these centers into cultural hubs of the country, especially with the geographical distribution of their influence, is very important. Accordingly, it is necessary to describe and analyze religious propositions and pay attention to the potential facilities and talents of religious tourism. This research uses the descriptive-analytical method based on library documents to investigate the impact of pilgrimage institutions as an effective mechanism on spirituality and cultural life.
Richard Sharpley
Abstract
A connection has long existed between tourism and spirituality. More specifically, travel for spiritual purposes has for centuries been a popular manifestation of human mobility. Pilgrimage and other spiritually-motivated travel is widely considered to be one of the earliest forms of tourism and nowadays, ...
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A connection has long existed between tourism and spirituality. More specifically, travel for spiritual purposes has for centuries been a popular manifestation of human mobility. Pilgrimage and other spiritually-motivated travel is widely considered to be one of the earliest forms of tourism and nowadays, religious tourism, in all its forms, has evolved into a major sector of the global tourism market. Over the last three decades, however, an alternative perspective on the tourism-spirituality relationship has emerged. Focusing on the meaning or significance of contemporary tourism, it is argued that tourism is a sacred journey, a secular spiritual experience; in other words, tourism has become a secular alternative to the institution of religion, the contemporary tourist a modern, secular pilgrim. Hence, a conceptual divide exists in the relationship between tourism and spirituality, between spiritual (religious) tourism and tourism as spirituality (religion). Moreover, that divide is evidenced in much of the extant research into tourism, religion and spirituality. As this paper suggests, however, such a conceptual divide over-simplifies the relationship between tourism and spirituality; not only is the distinction between spiritual / religious tourism and tourism as a secular spiritual experience becoming increasing fuzzy – some traditional religious travel experiences, for example, are taking on the aura of commoditised tourism products, with implications for the experience of participants themselves – but also the relationship can be viewed from different disciplinary and theoretical positions. A humanistic perspective, for example, questions the notion of spirituality itself, whilst varying interpretations of religion / spirituality also cast the relationship in different lights. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to explore the complexity of the spiritual dimension of tourism. Reviewing the extant literature, it highlights the dimensions of and limits to research into the relationship between tourism and spirituality and, exploring the phenomenon from a variety of perspectives, challenges contemporary understandings and points to areas demanding further research.
Mehrab Sadeghnia; Hamideh Amiryazdani
Abstract
The main motivations behind creative tourism, as a new form of tourism in the postmodern world, consist in achieving a new understanding of the “self” and the pursuit of “meaning,” “identity,” and “authenticity,” which have transformed the paradigm of tourism. ...
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The main motivations behind creative tourism, as a new form of tourism in the postmodern world, consist in achieving a new understanding of the “self” and the pursuit of “meaning,” “identity,” and “authenticity,” which have transformed the paradigm of tourism. With the development of the phenomenon of “spiritualism” in our time in which people turn away from the religion as a predetermined and organized phenomenon, in these new styles, the criterion is not to discover the religious other; it is to discover the self in the other. In this paper, we introduce the essential difference between creative tourism as an instance of postmodern tourism and cultural tourism, and we will examine the component of spirituality in creative tourism, and then elaborate the former as an opportunity for the development and understanding of religious beliefs and a ground for the creativity of the religious culture. Using historical-hermeneutical approach, this paper examines the concept of "spirituality" in lived travel experience of a creative tourists and argues that when discussing spirituality of tourism, one potential avenue is flourishment of religious creativity. A key objective of this paper therefore, is to provide an initial mapping of, and insights into this territory.
AHMAD PUAD MAT SOM
Abstract
When deliberating on the spiritual dimension of tourism, one key question is that how individuals are seeking for their life meaning and experiences of divine existence, as well as their connectedness as subjectively lived during their travel. In fact, tourism is closely connected to religion which ...
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When deliberating on the spiritual dimension of tourism, one key question is that how individuals are seeking for their life meaning and experiences of divine existence, as well as their connectedness as subjectively lived during their travel. In fact, tourism is closely connected to religion which has always been a powerful travel motivation from the time of early pilgrimages to contemporary journeys to sacred places. Religious sites, rituals, festivals and ceremonies are considered important attractions for both religious followers with special systems of belief and tourists with a casual interest. Perhaps, this characteristic of the tourism experience is the main reason for spiritual tourism experiences being recently popular among individuals who have started engaging in spiritualitydriven experiences and among persons aiming to develop their continuing sublime engagement by means of travel. There are various reasons for travelling for spiritual growth which is opposed to the traditional notions of pilgrimage and religious tourism. However, relatively few scholars have explored the multitudinous relationships between religion, spirituality, and sustainable tourism, despite the pervasiveness of religious tourism and spiritual connections to place. A subject that has received only scant attention in the literature is the negative social and ecological impacts of religious (mass) tourism. Several authors have noted the negative impacts of religious tourism on the commercialization of places and artifacts that were once held as sacred locations. The commodification of religious symbols and the economic implications of selling them should become of increased interest to researchers as the world becomes more consumption-oriented.
Ali Asghar Shalbafian; Neda Zarandian
Abstract
Spirituality in the present world has surpassed different geographical, racial, religious, gender, and etc. boundaries. The issue has emerged under such different titles as religion, originality, the meaning of life, etc., and raised a number of debates. The enthusiasm in seeking meaning has been manifested ...
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Spirituality in the present world has surpassed different geographical, racial, religious, gender, and etc. boundaries. The issue has emerged under such different titles as religion, originality, the meaning of life, etc., and raised a number of debates. The enthusiasm in seeking meaning has been manifested in various fields including tourism as much as the journey is sometimes interpreted seeking for meaning. However, it is yet unclear how the two areas are linked together in different tourism approaches and branches. Volunteer tourism, among these, is known as one of the increasingly prevalent approaches to various forms of tourism. In this regard, the present research intends to find the relationship between volunteer tourism approach and spirituality highlighting literature review. Then, relying on practically available pieces of evidence, spiritual effects of Iranian Pro-poor tourism (Travel of Iranian volunteers to deprived areas) is reviewed and emphasized on volunteer tourists as an Islamic-Iranian voluntary traveling model.
Greg Willson
Abstract
Arguably, all people are spiritual. We will, at different stages, seek meaning and connection, and seek transcendence through self-improvement. Often, this personal quest will begin or resume, or be addressed more fervently after a personal event that leads to an awakening of one’s spirituality. ...
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Arguably, all people are spiritual. We will, at different stages, seek meaning and connection, and seek transcendence through self-improvement. Often, this personal quest will begin or resume, or be addressed more fervently after a personal event that leads to an awakening of one’s spirituality. This paper considers how transformative life experiences lead people to engage their spiritual side, and specifically how they may seek to do so through their experience of travel. Through 18 months of in-depth phenomenological data collection, this paper analyses the personal narratives of 11 tourists who experienced volunteer tourism after experiencing life events that facilitated a spiritual awakening. This paper finds that experiences such as the death of a close family member, the facing of mortality, or existential crisis can lead to a motivation to travel, and that travel can be deeply spiritual. It posits the question: In the year 2017, with great global and personal uncertainty, is the desire for spiritual growth through travel becoming more mainstream and urgent?
Fatemeh Yavarigohar; Fereshteh Mansourimoayyed; Mehdi Karoubi
Abstract
Today, we confront forces bringing spiritual and ethical values into business which have together has a meaningful concept for each business. Nowadays, the growing attention to ethical issues in workplaces has caused the organizations tend to set ethical codes. However, the results of recent studies ...
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Today, we confront forces bringing spiritual and ethical values into business which have together has a meaningful concept for each business. Nowadays, the growing attention to ethical issues in workplaces has caused the organizations tend to set ethical codes. However, the results of recent studies show that the ethical organizations will obtain more benefits over a long period and will gain better financial and non-financial performance. So this issue has caused the ethical values of organization be an important part of the organization’s culture. Beside this, ethical issues have always been a noteworthy topic in tourism concepts. Therefore, the present research has examined the effect of ethical values and empathy on nonfinancial performance of tour operators in Tehran through the organizational commitment. The statistical population is composed of employees of tour operators and data were collected by the standard questionnaires. Results show that ethical values and empathy in workplace have a positive and significant effect on organizational commitment and following that non-financial performance of organization.
Mirfakhradini Faeze Sadat
Abstract
In the 21st century, the meaning of place is important to people. Meanings have gained symbolic importance through tourism heritage. Tourism is a powerful force in shaping the world and our individual understanding of different cultures, people and places. Using the descriptive-analytical method based ...
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In the 21st century, the meaning of place is important to people. Meanings have gained symbolic importance through tourism heritage. Tourism is a powerful force in shaping the world and our individual understanding of different cultures, people and places. Using the descriptive-analytical method based on library documents and the opinion of research experts, this research investigates the complexities of religious tourism and the management of religious destinations and obtains criteria for the management of religious goals with a detailed look. Then, using research experts and ISM-PLS hybrid approach, a three-level framework for managing religious goals in Yazd city has been presented and analyzed. According to the results, the government's decisions and actions were recognized as the most effective criteria, and the ultimate goal was to create a sense of trust and security among religious tourists. It is hoped that the findings of this research will be a starting point for the management of religious tourism destinations and a guide for examining the complexities of Islamic tourism destinations and their management.
Yazdan Shirmohammadi; Zeinab Hashemi Baghi
Abstract
Literary tourism is a sort of cultural tourism that deals with places and occasions from fictional texts and the lives of their authors. This might be related to a novel or a writer, such as going to a poet's grave. Literary tourism is, in fact, a kind of Tourism that adds to the knowledge and information ...
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Literary tourism is a sort of cultural tourism that deals with places and occasions from fictional texts and the lives of their authors. This might be related to a novel or a writer, such as going to a poet's grave. Literary tourism is, in fact, a kind of Tourism that adds to the knowledge and information of tourists and is a kind of combination of entertainment and education helping a lot to know more about society and culture as well as helping nations and cultures becoming closer and closer to each other at the international level. The present study is applied and descriptive survey research in terms of purpose and method, respectively. The statistical population of the study is literary tourists includes the city of Shiraz. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS and AMOS software programs, and a regression method was exerted to test the path analysis of hypotheses. Findings of this study indicate that literary tourism has a positive, significant effect on increasing re-visit tourism destination through the originality of the tourism destination brand, brand love, attachment, nostalgia, and loyalty of attitude and action.
Mehdi Karoubi; Vahid Saat chian; Sahar PirJamadi; Ahmad Mahmoudi; Saman Mehri
Abstract
The study aims to evaluate the effective factors on creating a social bond in religious tourists using the services of recreational-sports complexes in Mashhad. The research method was quantitative with a structural equation model approach. The statistical population of the study was religious tourists ...
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The study aims to evaluate the effective factors on creating a social bond in religious tourists using the services of recreational-sports complexes in Mashhad. The research method was quantitative with a structural equation model approach. The statistical population of the study was religious tourists who used the services of recreational-sports complexes in Mashhad. A total of 388 tourists were selected as the sample by convenience sampling. The measurement tool was a modified Adamczyk 25-item questionnaire based on expert opinions, which has four subscales (intimacy, security, passion, and commitment). The face and content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by experts while the construct validity was confirmed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Reliability was also obtained by more than 0.7 using Cronbach's alpha. To analyze the data, descriptive and inferential statistical methods were used. Finally, the results revealed that the components of secure and intimate bonding are the most essential elements of creating a social bond in religious tourists using the services of recreational-sports complexes in Mashhad, respectively. Consequently, this study emphasizes strengthening indicators such as infrastructure development, equipment, and facilities to reduce risks, using new marketing methods, protecting the tourist information, attention to the opinions, interests, and values of religious tourists, creating an intimate and social atmosphere, creating a secure and reassurance environment, etc. to create a social bond in religious tourists using the services of recreational-sports complexes.
Mohammad Reza Fathi; Mohammad Hasan Maleki; Can Deniz KOKSAL; Nedim Yuzbaşıoğlu; Vahid Ahmadi
Abstract
The main purpose of this study is identifying influential factors on the future of spiritual tourism and formulation of plausible scenario for it. From philosophical point of view, this paper is pragmatic, exploratory from target’s point of view and it’s practical. It’s a survey research ...
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The main purpose of this study is identifying influential factors on the future of spiritual tourism and formulation of plausible scenario for it. From philosophical point of view, this paper is pragmatic, exploratory from target’s point of view and it’s practical. It’s a survey research in collecting data and its methodology is mixed. In this study, by studying the literature and interviewing with experts, the factors influencing the future of spiritual tourism were identified and then, using the Cross Impact analysis approach, the data was entered into the MIC MAC software and two key factors affecting the future of spiritual tourism in Qom province. It was found out that Facilitate versus Rigor and Culture policy which were selected among the eleven final effective factors. In the next step, four scenarios are presented in this study. These scenarios include Limited liberalism scenario, Liberal world Scenario, Negligence scenario and Authoritarian Spirituality scenario.
Manoochehr Jahanian
Abstract
Supposing that today’s growing range of human needs with the increasing growth of technology is not only limited to material dimensions but non-material aspects are of an undeniable role in the human self-actualization. In this regard, the concept of spirituality dramatically manifests itself in ...
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Supposing that today’s growing range of human needs with the increasing growth of technology is not only limited to material dimensions but non-material aspects are of an undeniable role in the human self-actualization. In this regard, the concept of spirituality dramatically manifests itself in different aspects of human life, even though the technological evolutions and tourism can be an important lever in this area. In this study, using content analysis techniques and using ideas of experts, we assessed the components of ‘styling the future’, ‘tourism’, and ‘spirituality’ comparing elements of these variables such that the relationship between tourism and spirituality was extracted in the form of ‘a sense of excellence’, ‘a sense of meaning’, ‘human values’ and ‘interaction with existence’. Also, the relationship between tourism and futures studies (futurology) was defined using the extracted parameters including ‘consultation prior to social and cultural reforms’, ‘future analysis and alert against challenges’, and ‘determining strategic priorities’. Eventually, in relation to these three components, the obtained results emphasized the need for taking the advantage of spirituality in the study of the tourism industry.
Mohammad Aghazadeh
Abstract
As one of the richest intellectual domains of mankind, Islamic culture has played a prominent role in the formation of diverse dimensions of Islamic community. In this regard, the rich Islamic art, which is intermixed with the elegance of Islamic architecture, is regarded as one of the aspects of Towhid ...
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As one of the richest intellectual domains of mankind, Islamic culture has played a prominent role in the formation of diverse dimensions of Islamic community. In this regard, the rich Islamic art, which is intermixed with the elegance of Islamic architecture, is regarded as one of the aspects of Towhid (belief in the oneness of God) and divine worldview. Since the mankind is not a single-dimensional creature, and is innately inclined to beauty and innovation, architects have sought to create an original work imbued with spiritual meanings and themes within a material realm through reliance on their experience, thoughts, individual creativity as well as an aesthetic spirit on one hand, and the manifestation of spirituality and other notions on the other. The contemporary human, by setting out on journey on the earth, has made an attempt to seek knowledge and awareness, and Islamic architecture is considered as an epiphany of human nature as well as a manifestation of contemplation and existence in the depth of human spirit, which is believed to be one of the most significant elements of tourism. The present research is aimed at exploring the conceptual symbols in Islamic architecture originating from Islamic worldview, as the rich Islamic principles have inspired Muslim architects, whose thoughts and environment have been influenced by Islamic worldview. The present article has been written adopting a descriptive-analytical method. The results indicate that architectural elements in Iran have not been created without taking Islamic ideology and concepts into account, but rather all the elements applied are endowed with spirituality and divine symbols.
Larry Dwyer
Abstract
This paper highlights key characteristics of the current mindset identified as responsible for increasing costs (private and public) associated with tourism industry expansion globally. It then identifies common elements of an alternative paradigm, contrasting its features with those of the established ...
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This paper highlights key characteristics of the current mindset identified as responsible for increasing costs (private and public) associated with tourism industry expansion globally. It then identifies common elements of an alternative paradigm, contrasting its features with those of the established paradigm. It then identifies the implications of the new mindset for the attitudes and behaviour of major stakeholders in tourism-government/destination management organisations, operators, and tourists, as well as researchers. Unless a good proportion of individuals in each of these stakeholder groups change their attitudes and behaviour, no paradigm shift will succeed and the ‘business as usual’ scenario for tourism will prevail, along with its increasing social costs. The paper concludes by addressing the implications for behaviour by different groups of stakeholders.
Yazdan Shirmohammadi; Parisa Abyaran
Abstract
This paper studies a theoretical model of moderated mediation in which religious learning assists as an intervening mechanism that explains the moderated relationships between brand image and the dimensions of travel benefits (tranquility and health). The study also considers the four dimensions of direct ...
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This paper studies a theoretical model of moderated mediation in which religious learning assists as an intervening mechanism that explains the moderated relationships between brand image and the dimensions of travel benefits (tranquility and health). The study also considers the four dimensions of direct effects of a spiritual experience including (Sense of bliss, Elimination of the life concerns, Emotional involvement and Interaction). The results of the study of 384 religious tourists provide support for this integrated model across the dimensions of travel benefits. Furthermore, the results of the studies conducted on the domestic tourists verify this integrated model along with the dimensions of the religious travel advantages. The moderating effect of the religious learning is expected to have a positive impact of the brand image on the religious travel benefits as this learning strengthens the positive linkage. Additionally, the spiritual experiences enhance the positive effect of the religious travel benefits through the brand image. The present findings also indicate that the Religious travel benefit have direct effects on health and tranquility Variables via Brand image and religious learning. A model is implemented here in order to measure the strength of the findings and it is argued how this moderated mediation pattern could be shown using the empirical evidence of the religious beliefs concentrated on the various religious experiences of the tourists.
Mohammad Rasool Imani Khoshkhoo
Abstract
Recreation and entertainment are among the major objectives and intentions of tourism. The reasons put forward by tourists include escaping quotidian life and social interactions. Relying on the Muslim mystics’ view of the real nature of human being, this article offers an analysis of escaping ...
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Recreation and entertainment are among the major objectives and intentions of tourism. The reasons put forward by tourists include escaping quotidian life and social interactions. Relying on the Muslim mystics’ view of the real nature of human being, this article offers an analysis of escaping quotidian life and environment in the discovery of real identity and studies the role of traveling in this regard. This analysis showed that from the Muslim mystics’ viewpoint, the real nature of humans is impoverishment and desperate need for a raison d’etre. Meantime, social interactions and affiliation with minor and major social groups overshadow such identity and create obstacles in the way of self-awareness. That explains why the disciples of Islamic Sufism were recommended retreatment. Even today, traveling and tourism provide such an opportunity for humans to distance themselves from the social groups and classes they belong to for some time and gain spiritual experience through a more precise perception of their own reality
Javad Madani; Rahim Zare; Ahmad Mahmoudi
Abstract
Sports tourism is one of the most attractive types of tourism that occurs in different regions and countries. This tourism type is effective in economic fields and extremely significant in cultural and sportsmanship contexts. To this end, the current research aimed to identify and explain the effective ...
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Sports tourism is one of the most attractive types of tourism that occurs in different regions and countries. This tourism type is effective in economic fields and extremely significant in cultural and sportsmanship contexts. To this end, the current research aimed to identify and explain the effective components of sport tourism in the sublimity of culture and sportsmanship, conducted through a mixed method. This research approach was sequential exploratory in two qualitative-quantitative phases, in which “thematic analysis” and “survey” methods were used, respectively. The first phase’s statistical population included experts in sport tourism, sport management, culture management, and sportsmanship, with 14 individuals participating in semi-structured interviews using a purposive sampling method. After determining the effective actors in this field, 32 experts responded to questionnaires using a systematic sampling method in the study’s second phase. According to the research findings of the first phase, the themes extracted from the semi-structured interviews comprised 39 fundamental themes, 15 organizing themes, and four global themes. Per the second phase of the study’s findings, all themes were approved by the experts, all determinants of the role of sport tourism in the sublimity of sports culture and sportsmanship. As a result, sports tourism, while creating macroeconomic benefits for residents and visitors, significantly contributes to the sublimity of sports culture and sportsmanship, where this category can strengthen the value and ethical attitudes in addition to creating recreational experiences.
Omid Behboodi; Masoomeh Arabshahi; Marziyeh Pashaee
Abstract
The growing and accelerated growth of the tourism industry has led many scholars to call the twentieth century the century of tourism. The tourism industry is one of the most important phenomena of the present century. This study aimed to investigate the effect of commemorative memoirs of tourists on ...
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The growing and accelerated growth of the tourism industry has led many scholars to call the twentieth century the century of tourism. The tourism industry is one of the most important phenomena of the present century. This study aimed to investigate the effect of commemorative memoirs of tourists on the intention to re-buy (retry) tourists in Mashhad. The research is applied in its purpose, and it is descriptive-correlational. The statistical population is the tourists who visited Mashhad in the spring of 1396, and as the sample, 384 people were selected. Lisrel software was used to analyze the data. The results showed that reminders of tourism memories have a positive and significant effect on the use of memorable leisure destinations, retreat and attachment to Mashhad city, Satisfaction of tourists with a trip to remember the memories of tourists, attachment to the city of Mashhad, and re-trips have a positive and significant effect, The use of memorable leisure destinations also has a positive and significant impact on the intention of traveling and attachment to Mashhad. Also, the attachment to Mashhad has a positive and significant effect on the intention to retreat. The combination of destinations with the inclination of tourists also has a positive and significant impact on the recollection of tourists' memories.
Akbar Bahmani; Samira Motaghi; Farshid Aslani
Abstract
In modern eras, travels with spiritual motivation have been accompanied by significant growth. The present study is aimed to investigate the role of spiritual orientation on the morale of tourists with the mediating role of spiritual wellbeing. In terms of purpose, the present study is applied research, ...
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In modern eras, travels with spiritual motivation have been accompanied by significant growth. The present study is aimed to investigate the role of spiritual orientation on the morale of tourists with the mediating role of spiritual wellbeing. In terms of purpose, the present study is applied research, and in terms of method, it is a descriptive research and a survey and correlational research. The statistical population in this study includes tourists and travelers to the sights of Tehran. The statistical sample size of the study was obtained using the Morgan table, as 384 individuals were selected using the convenience cluster sampling method. The data collection instrument is Allport’s Religious Orientation Questionnaire (short form), Lemon and Ann Wangheim Tourist Morale, and Spiritual Well-being Scale by Ellison. Thequestionnaire reliability was verified using Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability. Its validity was verified using convergent validity and content validity by the opinion of experts regarding the study topic. SPSS and AMOSsoftware were also used to determine the correlation and data analysis. At a 95% confidence interval, spiritual orientation and spiritual well-being positively and significantly affected tourists’ morale. Also, the mediating role of spiritual well-being in the relationship between spiritual orientation and tourists' morale was confirmed.
Mohammad Hossein Imani Khoshkhoo; Zahra Nadalipour
Abstract
The objective of this study is to investigate the extent of spirituality in various types of tourism, and to test the hypothesis of the existence of common spiritual experiences among all types of tourists. McKercher's typology of cultural tourists and Norman's (2012) typology of tourists' spiritual ...
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The objective of this study is to investigate the extent of spirituality in various types of tourism, and to test the hypothesis of the existence of common spiritual experiences among all types of tourists. McKercher's typology of cultural tourists and Norman's (2012) typology of tourists' spiritual experiences were applied to classify various groups of spiritual tourists participating in each type of tourism activity. The study population consisted of all individuals who have travelled with the purpose of pilgrimage, recreation, visiting cultural historical attractions, business, visiting religious sites, or participating in ecotourism and nature-based tourism. Sampling was done based on the convenience method according to the size and nature of the target population. Finally, it was concluded that most pilgrims and visitors to the religious sites were purposeful and sightseeing spiritual tourists with a deep intention to search for spiritual growth. Also, among nature-based tourists, ecotourists, business and recreational tourists, and those who had traveled to visit cultural and historical sites, a considerable number were Casual, Incidental and Serendipitous Spiritual Tourists, whilst only a small proportion had purposefully travelled for spiritual growth. Nevertheless, the research indicates the existence of at least one powerful element of spirituality in all types of tourism.
Mehrnoosh Bastenegar; Ali Hassani
Abstract
By producing the paradigm of creative tourism, the knowledge increasing discipline of tourism invites tourists to visit and interact with the unique and live culture of societies instead of just sightseeing in museums and ancient monuments. In this paradigm, tourists engage all of their senses in the ...
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By producing the paradigm of creative tourism, the knowledge increasing discipline of tourism invites tourists to visit and interact with the unique and live culture of societies instead of just sightseeing in museums and ancient monuments. In this paradigm, tourists engage all of their senses in the creation of their unique experience and improving their relations with local people from seller/buyer to a master/apprentice level. Not only the cultural capital but also the social capital would be increased from this interaction. The main goal of this research is to show that, contrary to what appears at first, the creative domain of gastronomy is a spiritual one and flourishing local communities and creative tourism based on this paradigm can evolve the wellbeing and material life of inhabitants and tourists as well. Moreover, this includes significant spiritual endowments both for guests and hosts in the creative gastronomic destinations. Creative tourism based on gastronomy regards new looks to local communities as the first step in creating unique and added value experiences including economic, human, and social values. In creative tourism, locals and tourists will open their eyes on the destination in completely new ways, so that they could see better in creating new and valuable experiences. This definition is closely related to the Quranic command of “The man must consider what he eats”. In this research, using thematic analysis and Delphi method, it is shown that the components of spiritual perception have significant overlaps with the components of gastronomic creative tourism. Factors such as “comfort and satisfaction”, “Giving meaning to life”, “interaction with others”, “friendship with nature and environment”, and “surrender and thanksgiving “, as the components of the spiritual understanding, showed common and undeniable spaces with the components of creative tourism. These components include “authentic experiences “, “active participation “, “learning”, “self-esteem and self-awareness”, “new products and processes”, and “new spaces”. Based on our results, each of these components has their own proprietary domains and non-negligible common spaces, and even in some cases are subsets of each other.
Mohammad Hossein Imani Khoshkhoo; Mahdieh Shahrabi Farahani
Abstract
Religion is the core and key element of human life and as a travel organizer, it has played an important role in human life from the past to the present. The essence of a human being has been founded based on the primordial nature and spiritual dimension, which is not merely composed of material dimensions ...
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Religion is the core and key element of human life and as a travel organizer, it has played an important role in human life from the past to the present. The essence of a human being has been founded based on the primordial nature and spiritual dimension, which is not merely composed of material dimensions and, possibly, its existential spiritual dimension is a key element of humanity. Therefore, spirituality as a type of psychological quality -that is beyond religious beliefs and motivates man and creates feelings such as understanding divine solemnity and respect for creation in a human being- is an important factor in recognizing the nature of man in the perspective of monotheistic religions. This research was done by means of a qualitative-descriptive method, in the form of library studies and field interviews in two sections besides the content analysis method. In the fall and winter of 2017, an in-depth and semi-structured interview was conducted with 60 professors, experts and scholars of Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam religions in three parts: defining the concept of spirituality, the place of travel in these religions, and the relationship between spirituality and travel. The results of the comparative studies show that spirituality is based on the human being's existential nature and its natural, spiritual, and immaterial dimension in order to help human beings to fulfill the purpose of creation as mentioned in monotheistic religions. In the meantime, human beings travel, especially do pilgrimages, as one of the sources of knowledge.
Mahdieh sabaghpour azarian; Mohammadreza Rezvani; Vajhollah Ghorbanizadeh; Mohammad Hossein Imani Khoshkhoo
Abstract
It is truly undeniable that tourism is a system leading to epistemology and resulting in spiritual growth and excellence. The mission of the journey lies in its spiritual achievements and eco-lodges provide the potential context for mutual interconnections and gaining meaning and excellence. Therefore, ...
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It is truly undeniable that tourism is a system leading to epistemology and resulting in spiritual growth and excellence. The mission of the journey lies in its spiritual achievements and eco-lodges provide the potential context for mutual interconnections and gaining meaning and excellence. Therefore, lacking emphasis on spiritual potentials of eco-lodges in the accommodation sector is the main concern of this research. The present study aims to identify the factors influencing the landscape development of eco-lodges from the viewpoint of tourists to explain and analyze the realization of the spiritual landscape of eco-lodges via the perception of the eco-lodges’ landscape. The main concern of this qualitative research is seeking what a tourist sees, what he understands, how the type of accommodation would lead him from objectivity to subjectivity and ultimately, how the perception of the spiritual landscape from tourist’s view is. Answering research questions through the qualitative method with an interpretive approach and inductive strategy has been conducted by a semi-structured interview tool. Besides, the research data is gathered via two phases of coding the general concepts and classification of concepts based on the frequency. Lastly, the findings have been analyzed and interpreted through a conceptual framework. Based on research results, staying in eco-lodge causes leading resident tourist from objectivity to subjectivity and this is derived from perception of spiritual landscape. The components of the eco-lodges’ landscape adapting with three parameters of spirituality in tourism, lead tourists to the perception of the spiritual landscape as well as the realization of the mutual understanding of nature and man in the journey and the achievement of the meaning and spirit through accommodation in eco-lodges.
Yazdan shirmohammadi; Parisa Abyaran
Abstract
This article examines how contemporary tourists visiting the mystical destinations perceive the different aspects of the mystical tours. In other words, this article attempts to investigate the role of mystical journeys and spiritual tours in improvement of tourists’ satisfaction and quality of ...
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This article examines how contemporary tourists visiting the mystical destinations perceive the different aspects of the mystical tours. In other words, this article attempts to investigate the role of mystical journeys and spiritual tours in improvement of tourists’ satisfaction and quality of life. The statistical population of this study includes the international tourists, who participated in the mystical tours and visited the attractions of the mystical elders in Iran. Therefore, 384 tourists were selected by convenience sampling method and a questionnaire survey was conducted since June 2019 to January 2020. Then, in order to determine relationships between research variables, the Structural Equation Modeling method was applied. Findings indicated that participating in the mystical tours has an impact on the increasing quality of life. This effect can be achieved through various variables. In addition, many factors and variables such as brand image, quality of services, perceived value, tourist satisfaction, reputation of destinations and tourist commitment to the destination have positive impacts on the tourists’ loyalty.