THE HAPPINESS FACTOR IN TOURISM: SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING AND SOCIAL TOURISM

New research is emerging on the relationships between tourism and quality of life (QOL) and subjective well-being (SWB). This paper develops a measure of SWB and reports findings from a two-step survey that measured changes in well-being amongst low-income individuals who had received financial support to access a holiday break (‘social tourists’). This is the first study to assess well-being amongst social tourists. The findings indicate that tourism contributes to social tourist’s well-being. There are greater effects in some areas including psychological resources, leisure and family life domains contributing to social well-being. Social tourists have lower levels of SWB than the general population. Further studies are needed to compare tourism’s contribution to SWB amongst mainstream tourists.

► Demonstrates link between social tourism and improvements in subjective well-being.
► Develops a measure of subjective well-being useful for future tourism studies.
► Extends the debate around tourism’s effects on quality of life and well-being.
► Contributes to social science understanding of tourism’s effects on individuals.