Being Chinese, being an outbound Chinese tourist an identity perspective My research is highly focused on identity. Identity is always a relative term. My identity does not only include who I am but also other’s view about me. Today I will not only focus on how self-concept influence tourist beheviour but also how other’s view about Chinese tourist influence their behaviour 15 nina Dr. Carol Xiaoyue ZHANG Senior Lecturer in Marketing Portsmouth Business School, UK

Changes in being a Chinese tourist 1990- early 2000s 2010- now Context Underdeveloped economic status Numerous barrier to go abroad Developed economic status Less barriers Increase national pride & Chinese dream Travel Expensive & inaccessible Affordable & accessible Social status The ability to travel (famous attractions) The ability to visit destination where few Chinese visited (Niche) Gaze Appreciation of advancement Admire & look up to Appreciation of differences Expected advancement vs Self-advancement I was reflecting back my past 15 years outbound travel experience for over 40 countries I find thatthere are some noticeable changes I have explained what travel mean to Chinese tourists and how this influenced by their self-identity 600 pound for visa household salary. 荷兰 免签 |xin ma tai Pround of self being Chinese Motivation not escape but gain social status Post on wechat Motivation – prestiage within community Status as keywords Package tour Frequent travelers – adventurous being like a western tourist – create status Majorca – niche Outbound xi 2013 The compoent of admiring has been significantly descrease from the early 2000 Horitazil gaze Urry’s (2002) call to attend to the existence of different forms of gazes and their implications on the tourist self and setting in tourism to in vestigate how post-Mao gazes in Chinese budget tourism are shaped by shifting discourses in contemporary Chinese society. China and does not consider the ways in which individual tourists make sense of and negotiate their tourism subjectification. Critiques of the concept of the gaze in tourism or the ‘tourist gaze’ have focused tourism academia’s attention on the Eurocentrism of the concept’s historical roots and its uncritical application to Asian tourists and tourismand the dualism—gazed and gazer—it evokes

Identity is not only about how we view ourselves : “us” & “others” Identity is not only about how we view ourselves but also include how others view ourself. Combination between us and others meakes identity intereating Being gazed by others

Identity of Chinese tourists Chinese Tourists & their perceived identities Identity of Chinese tourists When you type Chinese tourists those are the things you find What is the global image of Chinese toruists

How this perceived group identity influence Chinese tourists? Face is social anchoring of self in the gaze of others Chinese as interdependent person All people from our country are brothers Xiang xiang To understand how this perceived group identity influence Chinese tourists, I introduce the concept of face Face is ……. the concept of face is crucial as majority of Chinese report use the term diu lian (losing face) to express the reflections in relation to the perceived negative image of Chinese tourists. Why is losing face because face is not only reputation of a person but also basic dignity i If you behave inappripately in abrord , it causes the damage of a country’s reputation. so you should feel ashamed . Because the understanding of self for most Chinese are interdependent rather than independent in western sense, although majority of Chinese did not behave inappropriately this idea of lost face abroad will influence outbound Chinese tourist behaviour Care about the face of being Chinese Losing face & feel ashamed

Reflections on perceived group identity Being a Chinese outbound tourist = ideally being a civilised one Real examples: behaviour to protect the face of China Thermo bottle Please make sure the room is in right shape when you check out Being Chinese should make sure your behaviour did not lose face of your country Have you tidied up the hotel room before you check out please raise your hand? Have you feel embrassed to ask water in hotel? For those people who care about face their self image view by other – they often justified their behaviour accodingly 贪小便宜不出钱买 Who has cleaned the hotel floor before check out? Please raise your hands Who has feel embarrassed when asking hot water in hotel? In morrco desert , they do not know why you would feel embrassed you are our guest Who has felt nervous in restaurant when your order delivered wrong?

Final thoughts Face contribute substantially to Chinese tourists’ motivation & behaviour China is not the West and will never become the West Chinese tourists will never become western tourists. The key idea to understand this emerging market is to understand what does it mean to be a Chinese