earticle

영어

Volunteer tourism is often positioned as an alternative to mass tourism. With the growing trend of volunteer tourism, it is very important to understand the travel motivations of volunteer tourists because it is the driving force behind their behaviors. In this study, Q methodology was employed to identify and categorize the types of motivations of volunteer tourists. Thirty nine of Q samples were collected and categorized through literature review, and thirty P samples who participated in tree-planting program for anti-desertification in China were interviewed. The factors are extracted by principal component analysis. Results identified four distinct types of volunteer tourists based on factors generated: (a) Type 1 is pursuing social value that emphasizes the opportunity of social participation and personal sense of responsibility. (b) Type 2 is pursuing career development that emphasizes the importance of individual development and technical acquisition (c) Type 3 is pursuing self-actualization that emphasizes the fulfil higher level of needs such as self-esteem. And (d) Type 4 is pursuing social participation that emphasizes the importance of solving a social problem through volunteering. This finding may provide useful information to related stakeholder and improve the quality of volunteer program. In the follow-up study, it is necessary to investigate the participants of various programs, and it is also needed to apply the various research methods to derive the results and actively reflect on the development of the volunteer tourism program.