WP4

Objectives

With this work package we aim to examine the changes in values, beliefs and behaviours after visiting Antarctica. For this we have formulated 3 objectives:

1. Examine the changes in values, beliefs, behaviours of a visit to the Antarctic under different conditions (large/small ships; different activities; different cultures; different types of guides)
2. Examine the impacts, changes values, beliefs, behaviours of a virtual visit to the Antarctic.
3. Understand the role ambassadorship and ‘rituals’ can play in encouraging pro-environmental behaviours in tourism and more widely.

Methodology

WP 4.1 Impact of visiting the Antarctic - guides and tourists

Through both quantitative (questionnaires, experimental studies) and qualitative (participant observation, in-depth interviews repeated over time and focus-group discussions) methods, we will examine how a visit to the Antarctic impacts values, attitudes and behaviours of both guides and tourists, and how this varies depending on conditions (e.g., type of ship, activities, guiding styles) . We will not only study the effects of own behaviour, but also examine whether guides and tourists are likely to motivate others to act pro-environmentally (ambassadors of change). We will compare a group visiting the Antarctic physically with a group going on a Virtual Reality (VR) trip, to examine whether physical presence is needed to yield positive impacts on behaviour.

WP4.2 Understanding of Antarctic tourism as ritualised practice, and its pro-environmental effects

Studied ethnographically as a ritualised practice, we will broaden the understanding of Antarctic tourism including the meaning(s) of Antarctic ambassadorship attributed by different actors. Such an understanding will contribute to developing tools that maximise pro-environmental impacts of the tourism industry and minimise the negative ones.