The purpose of this study was to examine changes in specific positive and negative emotions during a vacation, as well as their interactions with personality. Using a questionnaire and diary, 39 American and Dutch vacationers' emotions high in both positivity and arousal exhibited an inverted U-shape curve, suggesting that they felt better during the second section rather than the end of their vacation. None of the negative emotions exhibited significant changes over time. When the impacts of personality on specific emotions were addressed, personality was found to determine the baseline levels of fear and sadness and moderate change in disgust across individuals' vacations. The results suggest that tourism managers and researchers must acknowledge and address the change of emotions tourists experience during a vacation and the role of personality in influencing that change.
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This paper attempts to identify the dimensions of nation brand personality (NBP). The concept of brand personality is well established in the branding literature, yet to date it has been little applied to the context of nation brands rather than to the product or corporate brands. Nine countries were selected for the study. The following five core dimensions of NBP were found: leadership, excitement, sophistication, tradition and peacefulness. These five dimensions were identified in perceived traits of nation brands such as country of origin for products and services, country for tourism, country for investment, country for residence. Variables exerting an influence on the formation process of NBP were tested. Theoretical and practical implications regarding the utility of NBP are discussed.
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We recently published the remarkable findings that German vacationers who planned their vacations further ahead of time, and spent more time planning, actually enjoyed their vacations less and reported lower wellbeing afterward. Furthermore, we found that this unfavorable planning behavior is driven by the personality of some people, known as “maximizers,” to “maximize” all kinds of choices in their lives. They are clearly the least satisfied with their vacations and with life as a whole, as their in-depth planning causes them to have very exact and overinflated expectations. They probably make their most satisfying choices when they have only a few options to choose from. These findings are based on a large-sample questionnaire, as well as a smaller number of in-depth interviews, as explained in our article “The Best Experiences Cannot Be Planned.”
