“WE DO NOT HAVE A CRYSTAL BALL”: THE EFFECT OF FEAR OF TERROR ON TRAVEL BEHAVIOUR

Öz

Travelling is one of the daily practices which is influenced by the fear of terror. As grasping fear as a feeling which is rooted in the social realm, this study explores factors that shape travel fear of international tourists in the light of terrorism. The study applied content analysis using 719 original reviews on Istanbul posted on TripAdvisor since Istanbul is a popular destination which experienced recurrent terror acts between 2016-2017. The findings show that: (1) globalization, stereotypes, media and politics are main factors that shape international tourists’ travel fear; (2) even though these structural aspects of society are same for everyone, there are differences in their interpretations and tourists’ travel decisions. Some of the tourists develop behaviors to cancel or postpone the trip to a later date due to fear of terrorism, but it has also been found that there are tourists who choose to travel by taking the risk or resisting the atmosphere of fear created by terrorism. The study is important for excessing beyond the discourse of fear and yielding holistic insights into its social, cultural and political background.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Fear
• Terrorism
• Risk Perception
• Travel

“We Do Not Have a Crystal Ball”: The Effect of Fear of Terror on Travel Behaviour

Öz

Seyahat davranışı, terör korkusunun etki ettiği gündelik pratiklerden biridir. Bu araştırmada korku, toplumsal gerçeklikte kök salan ve toplumsal yaşam üzerinde etkili bir duygu olarak ele alınmaktadır. Bu çerçevede araştırma, terörizm ışığında uluslararası turistlerin seyahat korkusunu şekillendiren faktörleri ortaya çıkarmayı amaçlamaktadır. Çalışmada 2016- 2017 yılları arasında birden fazla terör saldırısının gerçekleştiği İstanbul, uluslararası seyahatlerde popüler bir destinasyon olduğu için seçilmiştir. Bu bağlamda, TripAdvisor’da İstanbul ile ilgili 719 entry içerik analizi tekniği ile analiz edilmiştir. Elde edilen bulgular göstermektedir ki; (1) küreselleşme, kalıp yargılar, medya ve politika, uluslararası turistlerin seyahat korkusunu şekillendiren ana faktörlerdir. (2) Yapısal benzerlikler bulunmakla birlikte turistlerin yorumlarında ve seyahat kararlarında farklılıklar söz konusudur. Turistlerin bir kısmı, terör korkusu ile seyahatlarini iptal etme veya daha ileri bir tarihe erteleme yönünde davranış sergileyeceklerini belirtmişlerdir. Ancak riski göze alarak ve terörizm ile yaratılan korku atmosferine karşı direnerek seyahat eden veya bu yönde karar beyan eden turistlerin olduğu da tespit edilmiştir. Bu araştırma, seyahat davranışına etki eden korku söyleminin arkasında yer alan sosyal, kültürel ve politik unsurlara ve bireyin davranışı üzerinde etkili olan birtakım bireysel faktörlere ilişkin bütüncül bir bakış açısı sağlamak açısından önemlidir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Korku
• Terörizm
• Risk Algısı
• Seyahat

Kaynakça

1. Ahlfeldt, G. M., Franke, B. & Wolfgang, M. (2015). Terrorism and International Tourism: The Case of Germany, Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, 235 (1), 3-21.
2. Ahmed, S. (2015). The ‘emotionalization of the “war on terror”: Counterterrorism, Fear, Risk, Insecurity and Helplessness, Criminology & Criminal Justice, 15(5), 545-560.
3. Aly, A. & Green, L. (2010). Fear, Anxiety and The State of Terror, Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 33, 268-281.
4. Appadurai, A. (1996). Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization, University of Minnesota Press, London.
5. Attride-Sterling, J. (2001). Thematic Networks: An Analytic Tool for Qualitative Research, Qualitative Research, 1 (3), 385-405.
6. Bacon, L. E. & Buzinde, C. N. (2019) Perceptions of Terror Stricken Tourism Destinations, Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change, 17(5), 594-608.
7. Beck, U. (2002a). The Terrorist Threat: World Risk Society Revisited, Theory, Culture & Society, 19 (4), 39-55.
8. Beck, U. (2002b). The Silence of Words and Political Dynamics in the World Risk Society, Logos, 1 (4), 1-18.

9. Dolnicar, S. (2005). Understanding Barriers to Leisure Travel: Tourist Fears as a Marketing Basis, Journal of Vacation Marketing, 11 (3), 197-208.
10. Friedman, B. H. (2011). Managing Fear: The Politics of Homeland Security, Political Science Quarterly, 126 (1), 77-106.
11. Gerbner, G. (1992). Violence and Terror in and by Media. M. Raboy and B. Dagenais (Eds.), In Crisis and Democracy: Mass Communication and The Disruption of Social Order (pp. 94-107), Sage, Newbury Park, CA.
12. Gigerenzer, G. (2006). Out of the Frying Pan into The Fire: Behavioral Reactions to Terrorist Attacks, Risk Analysis: An International Journal, 26 (2), 347-351.
13. Glaser, B. & Strauss, A. (2017). The Discovery of Grounded Theory, Routledge, New York.
14. Hall, C. M. (2002). Travel Safety, Terrorism and The Media: The Significance of The Issue-Attention Cycle, Current Issues in Tourism, 5(5), 458-466.
15. Korstanje, M. E. & Clayton, A. (2012). Tourism and Terrorism: Conflicts and Commonalities, Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, 4(1), 8-25.
16. Korstanje, M. E. (2011). The Fear of Traveling: A New Perspective for Tourism and Hospitality, Anatolia, 22(2), 222–233.
17. Korstanje, M. E. (2016). The Rise of Thana-Capitalism and Tourism, Routledge, London.
18. Laqueur, W. (2000). The New Terrorism: Fanaticism and The Arms of Mass Destruction, Oxford University Press, USA.
19. Lavanco, G., Romano, F. & A. Milio (2008). Terrorism's Fear Perceived Personal and National Threats, International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2, 186-189.
20. Mansfeld, Y. (1994). The Middle East Conflict and Tourism to Israel, 1967–90, Middle Eastern Studies, 30 (3), 646-667.
21. May, D. C., Herbert, J., Cline, K. & Nellis, A. (2011). Predictors of Fear and Risk of Terrorism in a Rural State, International Journal of Rural Criminology, 1 (1), 1-22.
22. Mythen, G. & Walklate, S. (2006). Communicating The Terrorist Risk: Harnessing a Culture of Fear?, Crime, Media, Culture, 2(2), 123-142.
23. Nacos, B. L., Bloch-Elkon, Y. & Shapiro, R. Y. (2007). Post-9/11 Terrorism Threats, News Coverage, and Public Perceptions in the United States, International Journal of Conflict and Violence (IJCV), 1(2), 105-126.
24. Pain, R. & Smith, S. J. (2008). Fear, Critical Geopolitics and Everyday Life, S. J. Smith (Ed.), In Fear: Critical Geopolitics and Everyday Life (pp. 1-24), Ashgate, Aldershot.
25. Pain, R. (2009). Globalized Fear? Towards an Emotional Geopolitics, Progress in Human Geography, 33 (4), 466-486.
26. Pain, R. (2010). The New Geopolitics of Fear, Geography Compass, 4(3), 226-240.
27. Pizam, A. & Smith, G. (2000). Tourism and Terrorism: A Quantitative Analysis of Major Terrorist Acts and Their Impact on Tourism Destinations, Tourism Economics, 6 (2), 123-138.
28. Raza, S. A. & Jawaid, S. T. (2013). Terrorism and Tourism: A Conjunction and Ramification in Pakistan, Economic Modelling, 33, 65-70.
29. Riti, J. S., Song, Y., Shu, Y. & Kamah, M. (2017). Terrorism and Tourism Trend (T3): Empirical Evidence from Nigeria, Procedia Engineering, 1, 125-136.
30. Rubin, G. J., Brewin, C. R., Greenberg, N., Simpson, N. & Wessely, S. (2005). Psychological and Behavioural Reactions to The Bombings in London on 7 July 2005: Cross Sectional Survey of a Representative Sample of Londoners. Bmj, 331 (7517), 606.
31. Salazar, N. B. (2018). Momentous Mobilities: Anthropological Musings on The Meanings of Travel, Berghahn Books, Oxford.
32. Sönmez, S. F. (1998). Tourism, Terrorism, and Political Instability, Annals of Tourism Research, 25 (2), 416-456.
33. Sylvers, P., Lilienfeld, S. O. & LaPrairie, J. L. (2011). Differences between Trait Fear and Trait Anxiety: Implications for Psychopathology, Clinical Psychology Review, 31(1), 122-137.
34. Tse, D. K., Lee, K. H., Vertinsky, I. & Wehrung, D. A. (1988). Does Culture Matter? A Cross-Cultural Study of Executives’ Choice, Decisiveness, and Risk Adjustment In International Marketing, Journal of Marketing, 52 (4), 81-95.
35. Tsing, A. L. (2005). Friction: An Ethnography of Global Connection, Princeton University Press, New Jersey.
36. Tudor, A. (2003). A (macro) Sociology of Fear, The Sociological Review, 51(2), 238-256.
37. Umamaheswar, J. (2015). 9/11 and The Evolution of Newspaper Representations of Incarcerated Muslims, Crime, Media, Culture, 11 (2), 177-199.
38. Walle, A. H. (1997). Pursuing Risk or Insight: Marketing Adventures, Annals of Tourism Research, 24 (2), 265-282.
39. Yüksel, A. & Yüksel, F. (2007). Shopping Risk Perceptions: Effects on Tourists’ Emotions, Satisfaction and Expressed Loyalty Intentions, Tourism Management, 28 (3), 703-713.