Cultural Influence on Spatial Behaviour

This paper presents a study that investigates the spatial behavioural patterns of international tourists travelling to the City of Melbourne in Australia. It demonstrates that these behavioural patterns are influenced by the differing cultural backgrounds of the visitors. A comparative study based on Hofstede using his four cultural dimensions, power distance, individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance and masculinity/femininity was used to classify these spatial patterns. The study also investigated how the needs of tourists from different counties varied according to their cultural background. The study was based on 278 visitor surveys completed by international visitors to Melbourne city centre attractions. The participants were selected using a random intercept method and were completed at eight key tourist attractions in Melbourne. These surveys sought information with respect to their spatial movements and behaviour, as well as information relating to socio-demographic characteristics for each of the participants. Data were analysed using independent sampled t-tests, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Pearson correlate analyses. The results showed marked differences between tourists from various national cultures with respect to spatial behavioural patterns in terms of accommodation location, mode of transport to travel, length, direction, type and pattern of movements. This particular study was successful in reinforcing the important role that cultural background plays in destination planning and management.