Tourism, Security and Safety From Theory to Practice

The Role of Security Information as a Risk Control
Mechanism along the Travel Behavior Sequence
The theoretical review on the risk construct and risk reduction strategies among
potential tourists, discussed above, proved that the majority of researchers con-
fined their discussion on the perception of risk and its manifestations to the stage
where tourists are engaged in destination choice. Sönmez (1998b) was one of the
very few researchers who concluded that tourists might change their risk percep-
tion after a destination had been chosen, and attain levels that could cause drastic
changes in their subsequent travel behavior (Sönmez, 1998b, p. 125). Following
Sönmez’s (1998b) observation, it is claimed here that the relationship between
security induced risk perception and travel behavior should be studied on a travel
behavior sequence basis, rather than on a single destination choice level. Moreover,
it is argued here that tourists’ risk perception and resultant risk reduction strategies
are dynamic and change along the travel behavior sequence if risk factors have
changed too. If these postulates are correct, the role of security oriented travel
information and communication of this information should also be studied with
special reference to these possible dynamics. The following discussion will define
the concept of a travel behavior sequence and will discuss how tourists might alter
their travel behavior should security risk factors change along this sequence. Once
these ideas are formulated, the next section will explore how proactive, dynamic,
Security Information: The Missing Link
281
H7898_Ch15.qxd 8/24/05 8:50 AM Page 281

---

and comprehensive security information, generated at the receiving destination,
can be used in order to construct a substantially more balanced risk perception.
Tourists’ dynamic risk assessment takes place in four basic stages of the travel
behavior sequence. Figure 1 illustrates these stages, the possible risk levels
involved, and the perceived risk directions as the tourist moves from one travel
behavior stage to the next. The sequence of the four bases of tourist behavior stages
starts with the 
destination choice process,
which is triggered by travel motivation
and ends with a choice of the preferred travel alternative. The second stage, the 
in
between period,
starts immediately after the tourist has acted upon the destination
choice and booked the holiday, and ends when the tourist takes the actual trip. The
third stage, the 
on-site period,
starts when tourists commence their holiday at the
destination until they travel back home. The last stage, the 
pre-next trip period,
takes place upon returning home and just before starting to plan the next tourism
experience (see Figure 1).
All along this travel behavior sequence, tourists use their subjective acceptable
risk threshold (ART) and compare their dynamic perceived risk of a given desti-
nation against it. If circumstances such as the security situation deteriorate at a
given destination that is under their consideration in the first stage (i.e., the 
desti-
nation choice process
) their perceived risk of that destination might drop below
their ART. If this is the outcome, this affected destination will evidently be elimi-
nated from their destination search spectrum. In the same way, if the security situ-
ation in the chosen destination deteriorated after the choice had been made, it
might drop tourists’ perceived risk image below their ART. This will most proba-
bly compel these tourists to take some kind of drastic action such as cancellation
of their booking if they are in the in between period stage, evacuation of their hol-
iday destination if they are in the on-site period stage, or to avoid consideration of
Tourism Security and Safety: From Theory to Practice
282
Motivation