Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

INTRODUCTION 
A
 
hazard
 
is an unexpected or uncontrollable event of unusual magnitude that threatens people, their 
possessions, and / or their activities. Hurricanes, floods, and industrial accidents are some examples of natural and 
human-induced hazards. Terrorism can also be considered a hazard (Mitchell, 2003). In fact in the context of 
tourism Wall (1996, p. 148) noted this relationship in the mid-90s: “… 
terrorist events are like natural hazards in 
that, ultimately, they are outside the control of the tourist industry
.” How people perceive and respond to hazards 
has been the subject of study since the early 1960s. This stream of research has developed robust models for 
understanding how people react to hazards (Burton, Kates, & White, 1978; Palm, 1990; Tobin & Montz, 1997).
These models apply findings from the information processing literature to the problem of hazard perception and 
response (Slovic, Kunreuther, & White, 1974).
In the present study, the authors develop a framework to evaluate the response styles of a sample of 
travelers to terrorism. The framework is based on the natural hazards response framework of Palm (1990). This 
model indicates that when faced with a hazard people can: (1) deny that the risk exists; (2) passively accept the risk, 
adopting a fatalistic view, attributing their fate to powers beyond their control; or (3) respond. The trigger to this 
process is an individual’s perception of risk, and the individual’s risk perception is dependent on various social, 
emotional, and demographic factors.
The purpose of this paper is to better understand the reactions of travelers to the events of 9/11 in order to 
both improve our theoretical understanding of how people respond to the threat of terrorism within the context of 
hospitality and tourism and help develop strategies useful for hospitality and tourism managers.

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