BackgroundThere has been an increasing interest in negative or ‘undermining’ motivations for reading. In this study, we aimed to strengthen knowledge on the validity of the distinction between affirming and undermining motivations. First, we examined whether the structure of a questionnaire based on this distinction could be confirmed. Second, we examined the predictive value of undermining motivations for reading comprehension. Third, we studied moderator effects of gender and age.MethodsWe administered a reading motivation questionnaire and a reading comprehension test to 324 low-achieving adolescents. The questionnaire included items on affirming and undermining motivations for school and leisure time reading: intrinsic motivation and avoidance, self-efficacy and perceived difficulty.ResultsConfirmatory factor analyses supported the assumed structure of the questionnaire. Undermining motivations, particularly perceived difficulty, explained unique variance in reading achievement. Gender and age did not moderate effects of motivational variables.ConclusionsEducators need to be aware of the role of undermining motivations. Future research should examine if interventions can lead to the reduction of such motivations.
When reading literary narratives, we assume that readers can get absorbed in the story world and in the story's artifice. Since most absorption research focuses primarily on popular media, virtually no attention has been paid to the possibility that literary devices such as deviation could elicit absorption experiences or that absorption could be aesthetic in nature. This chapter takes an interdisciplinary approach combining insights from media psychology, literary studies, and aesthetics to present a theoretical framework for two different varieties of narrative aesthetic absorption during reading: story world absorption and artifact absorption. We propose that these varieties mirror the distinction made by narratologists between story and discourse and the distinction made by emotion psychologists between F and A emotions.
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Former military fortifications are often repurposed for tourism and recreation. While some of over 100 Dutch forts are recognized as UNESCO World Heritage sites, a substantial number are currently underdeveloped, putting their cultural and natural heritage at risk. Developing these forts in a conscious and collaborative way promises to not only preserve their heritage value, but also facilitate enjoyable and healthy experiences for visitors. Moreover, under-developed forts provide an opportunity to solve another pressing challenge, namely overtourism. Visitor pressure at tourist attractions has led the Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions to call for spreading visitors to lesser-known areas. Less-developed forts are among the most promising of these. Development initiatives depend on a transition from isolation to cooperation across sites. However, for cooperation to be effective, agencies managing these forts have indicated an urgent need for data on visitor characteristics and experiences. The purpose of the present project is to measure and analyze visitor demographics, motivations, and experiences at less-developed forts, and to develop a toolkit to inspire, support, and monitor development of these forts for natural and cultural heritage preservation and improved visitor experience. This proposal builds on the previous project, “Experiencing Nature” which utilized Breda Experience Lab technologies to measure visitor experiences at Fort de Roovere. We now aim to broaden this proven approach to a broader variety of forts, and to translate visitor data into actionable advice. The consortium includes a changemaking network of the Alliantie Zuiderwaterlinie (NL), Regionale Landschappen (VL), and Agentschap Natuur en Bos (VL). This Dutch-Flemish network aims to connect formerly isolated forts to one another, and represents a broad diversity of fortified sites, each with unique challenges. The project will thus facilitate interregional collaboration, especially toward coming Interreg EU proposals, and inform interregional marketing campaigns and planning for management and conservation.
To what extent does receiving information about either popular attractions or less-visited at-tractions, presented as “highlights” of the city, influence the movement of tourists to popular or less-visited attractions, and how does this differ by information channel through which the information is presented? To what extent does receiving information about either popular attractions or less-visited at-tractions, presented as “highlights” of the city, influence tourists’ experience, including their evaluations of the destination, their visit as a whole, and the specific information channel they received, and how does this differ by information channel through which the information is presented? What implementation models and financing mechanisms are available for DMO’s to spread tourists using the information channels tested, contingent on their effectiveness as measured by the previous experiment?Societal issueDestination Management Organisations (DMOs) are looking for interventions that effectively discourage tourists from visiting crowded hotspots and entice them to visit less crowded locations. Interventions like changing infrastructure, charging entrance fees and re-serving site access are either too expensive, too invasive or politically controversial. It is much easier to intervene on tourists' behaviour by informing them about alternatives.Collaborative partnersNHL Stenden, Travel with Zoey, Amsterdam and Partners, Wonderful Copenhagen, Mobidot.
Tourism has been a growing industry in Europe in the last decades till 2020. Numerous cities were suffering from too many visitors what resulted in problems regarding support (of inhabitants) and carrying capacity of the destination. Then COVID-19 changed the world and tourism collapsed. Now, two years after the pandemic, cities and regions need to develop new strategies to rebuild tourism. Cities where there is overtourism are facing an extra challenge: to find a good balance between visitors, communities and environment. Six cities and regions (Amsterdam (NL), Krakow (PL), Tallinn (EST), Andalucía/Sevilla (ES), Rome (IT) and Brasov (RO)) that (regularly) experience over-tourism have joined forces how to develop new policy strategies to better distribute tourism in time and space. The objective of the project is to improve the performance of the local-regional strategies and policies by strengthening their contribution to find balance in tourism with a focus on spreading tourism over a wider area, making use of the opportunities offered by the city and region. The project aims to strengthen the positive effects of tourism and to reduce the negative effects of tourism. Collaborative partnersAmsterdam Municipality, Metropolitan City of Rome, Brasov Metropolitan Agency for Sustainable Development, Ministry of Tourism Regeneration Justice and Local Administration Regional Government of Andalucía, Estonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Municipality of Krakow.
