ABSTRACT
The tourism industry is an essential element in the Spanish economy, reaching 11 per cent of the GDP in 2005 (National Statistical Institute, INE 2005). According to the Centre of Sociological Research (2005), in Spain most leisure trips are family related, which makes this institution a fundamental field of research. New types of tourism (rural, sports, cultural, adventure, etc.) are going from strength to strength as a response to new consumer lifestyles. In this sense, Scott and Parfitt (2004) state, “recreational trips and leisure activities have always been lifestyle choices and are becoming lifestyle purchase”. In an academic context, those facts are also reflected in new research lines. Researchers are considering new psychographic variables to understand tourist behaviour (Bigné, Andreu & Gnoth, 2005). Destination image, satisfaction and quality are common issues in tourism purchase (Bigné, Sánchez & Sánchez, 2001; Chen & Tsai, 2007). From a marketing perspective, lifestyles are seen as a way of understanding how people choose tourism services (Thyne & Laws, 2005). Consequently, it is of interest to find the relationships between holiday decisions and the lifestyles of those who make them. A revision of the literature reveals that the 1980s saw a profusion of studies related to the role of women in the family holiday decision-making process. Nevertheless, despite the evident relationship between lifestyles and tourism consumption, there is a lack of literature that separately analyses the role of such variables among women. The present study aims to bridge that gap. More specifically, we will analyse the influence of lifestyles on women’s role in holiday decisions. If such a relationship is confirmed, tourism companies will be able to improve their communication programmes, since they will know which specific decisions are made by women and to which lifestyle they can address their promotion actions, being the receivers part of their target public. The findings have a remarkable relevance for the sector managers, as they will obtain added value through the contribution of their services.
