Japanese perspectives on transformative travel experience: humility, limitations, and dark tourism

TL;DR

This study explores how Japanese travelers experience transformative travel, finding both similarities with Western studies and unique cultural elements like humility and dark tourism.

Contribution

The study reveals culturally specific aspects of transformative travel among Japanese travelers and validates a culturally adapted measurement scale.

Findings

Japanese travelers experience transformative travel through exposure to different values and reflective moments, similar to Western studies.

Culturally distinctive outcomes include enhanced humility and recognition of personal limitations.

Dark tourism destinations were found to promote transformative travel experiences among Japanese travelers.

Abstract

Although prior research has suggested that cultural background may influence the nature of transformative travel experiences, empirical studies conducted outside Western contexts remain limited. This study aims to explore how Japanese travelers experience transformative travel and to examine the cultural specificity of such experiences.

A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 864 Japanese adults, including both individuals who had experienced transformative travel and those who had not. Participants provided open-ended responses and completed the Japanese version of the Transformation Scale, which was examined for its validity and factor structure.

The findings indicated that Japanese travelers experienced transformative travel triggered by factors similar to those identified in Western studies, such as exposure to different values and reflective moments during travel. However, culturally distinctive outcomes also emerged, including enhanced humility and a deeper recognition of personal limitations. In addition, visits to destinations associated with dark tourism were found to promote transformative travel experiences. The factor analysis of the Japanese version of the Transformation Scale revealed a structure that differed from the original, suggesting cultural differences in how personal transformation is perceived and expressed.

These findings highlight the influence of cultural context on the nature and outcomes of transformative travel. The study contributes to a broader understanding of transformative travel experiences by revealing culturally specific elements among Japanese travelers and by validating a culturally adapted measurement scale. Future research should continue to explore cross-cultural variations in transformative travel in order to develop more inclusive theoretical frameworks.

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