“Homo Turismos” İdeal Turist Rehberi Mesleki Kimliği Paradoksu

Öz

Amaç ve Önem: Araştırmanın amacı, turist rehberliği mesleki kimliğinin doğasını anlamak ve anlamlandırmak; hedeflenen beklentiler ile mevcut koşullar arasında kalan turist rehberliği mesleğinin gerçekleştiremediği potansiyelini, güncel konumlanışını ve geleceğe bakışını araştırmaktır. Araştırmanın önemi, turizmde mobilite (mobility) paradigmasına dayanarak, turist rehberliği mesleğinin idealize edilen (idealized) mesleki kimliği ile yaşanan (lived) mesleki kimliği arasındaki varoluşsal alanın paradoksal yapısını (liminal) ortaya koymasıdır.

Yöntem: Turist rehberliğinin doğasını anlamak üzere, mevcut kaynaklardaki turist rehberliği analizlerini derinlemesine inceleyip, farklı perspektifleri sistematik olarak sentezleyerek, yeni kavramsal bir çerçeve kurmak ve gelecekteki araştırmalara gündem oluşturmak üzere bu araştırmada kavramsal literatür taraması yöntemi kapsamında tipoloji araştırma tasarımı kullanılmıştır. Kavramsal makalenin sadece literatürü özetlemekten öte geçerek, mantıksal bir çerçeveye dayalı yeni bir kuramsal katkı üretmek ve gelecekteki ampirik araştırmalara alan açmak üzere kavramları açıklığa kavuşturmak, ilişkilendirmek ve yeniden çerçevelemek üzere tipoloji tasarımı kullanılmıştır.

Bulgular: Turist rehberlerinin yaşadıkları (lived) mesleki kimlik ve koşulları ifade eden homo docilis’in, geçmişten geleceğe doğru mesleğin idealize edilen hali olarak homo turismos’a ulaşmayı zorlaştırdığı görülmektedir. Ancak aynı zamanda yaşanan mesleğin aktif, dönüşüme açık, umut ve ilerleme potansiyelli, kendini akışta yenileyerek inşa eden çok renkli kimliğini ifade eden homo liminalis’in, ideal mesleki kimliğe ulaşmanın umudu ve zamana konumlanmış olanağı olduğu görülmektedir.

Özgünlük/Bilimsel Katkı: Turist rehberliği mesleğinin doğası; anlamı, toplumsal statüsü, evrimsel, bağlamsal ve gelişimsel sürecine yönelik çok perspektifli, yenilikçi kavramlar ve paradigmalarla, mesleğin güncel konumumun derinlemesine anlaşılması, gerçekleştiremediği potansiyelinin farkına varılması ve geleceğine yönelik bakış açılarının tartışılması adına ufuk açarak turizm alanına özgün bir katkı sunması beklenmektedir. Bunun için öncelikle sosyal kimlik teorisi kapsamında ele alınan meslek ve mesleki kimlik literatürü ile turist rehberliğinin mesleki doğası, toplumsal algılanışı, sektörel konumlanışı ve mesleki koşullarını ortaya koyan turizm literatürü; mesleğin paradoksal varoluşunu, gerilimlerini ve umutlarını ortaya koymak üzere karşılaştırmalı olarak sentezlenerek analiz edilmiştir. Böylece tutarlı bir kavramsal yapı oluşturarak, literatürdeki karmaşıklığı azaltarak, birbirini besleyen kavram ağlarını düzenleyerek, mevcut bilgiyi ayırt ederek ve boyutlandırarak gelecekteki ampirik araştırmalara da yeni profil setleri sunma bağlamlarında turist rehberliği literatürüne önemli ve yenilikçi bir katkı sağlanmaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Mobilite paradigması
• idealize edilen mesleki kimlik
• liminal mesleki kimlik
• homo docilis
• homo liminalis
• homo turismos

“Homo Turismos” The Paradoks of Ideal Tourist Guide Professional Identity

Öz

Purpose and Importance: The purpose of this study is to understand and interpret the nature of the professional identity of tour guiding; to examine the unfulfilled potential of the tour guiding profession, which lies between targeted expectations and current conditions, as well as its current position and outlook for the future. The significance of this study lies in revealing the paradoxical (liminal) structure of the existential space between the idealized professional identity and the lived professional identity of the tourist guiding profession, based on the mobility paradigm in tourism.

Methodology: To understand the nature of tourist guiding, this study employed a typological research design within the framework of a conceptual literature review. This approach involved a deep analysis of existing analyses of tourist guiding in the literature and a systematic synthesis of different perspectives to establish a new conceptual framework and set the agenda for future research. The typological design was employed to clarify, relate, and reframe concepts, aiming to go beyond merely summarizing the literature and to produce a new theoretical contribution while opening the field for future empirical research.

Findings: It is observed that “homo docilis”, which expresses the lived professional identity and conditions of tour guides, hinders the transition from the past to the future toward “homo turismos”, the idealized form of the profession. However, it is also observed that “homo liminalis,” which expresses the active, transformative, hopeful, and progressive nature of the lived profession, a multifaceted identity that renews itself through the flow of time, represents the hope and temporal possibility of reaching the ideal professional identity.

Originality/Value: It is expected that this study will offer a unique contribution to the field of tourism by providing a multi-perspective, innovative conceptual framework and paradigms regarding the nature of the tourist guiding profession, its meaning, social status, and evolutionary, contextual, and developmental processes, thereby deepening the understanding of the profession’s current position, raising awareness of its unfulfilled potential, and opening new horizons for discussing perspectives on its future. To this end, the literature on professions and professional identity within the framework of social identity theory, along with tourism literature that elucidates the professional nature of tourist guiding, its social perception, sectoral positioning, and professional conditions, has been analyzed through a comparative synthesis to reveal the profession’s paradoxical existence, tensions, and hopes. Thus, by establishing a coherent conceptual framework, reducing the complexity in the literature, organizing interrelated conceptual networks, and distinguishing and contextualizing existing knowledge, this study provides a significant and innovative contribution to the literature on tour guiding, offering new profile sets for future empirical research.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Mobility paradigm
• idealized professional identity
• liminal professional identity
• homo docilis
• homo liminalis
• homo turismos

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