11/03/2025
Author: Anna Soliguer Guix
Programme: Doctoral Programme in Economy and Entrepreneurship
Language: Catalan
Supervision: Francesc González-Reverté
Faculty / Institute: Doctoral School UOC
Subjects: Tourism
Key words: Local community, Psychosocial impacts, Tourismphobia, Social movements, Emotional response
Area of knowledge: Economy and Entrepreneurship
Abstract:
This thesis is a study of the local community and its critical review of tourism from different angles and perspectives. In order to address the research question: Is there a cultural and psychosocial basis to explain the positioning and attitude of the local community towards tourism? Three partial studies were carried out. The first consisted of an analysis of the news published in the Spanish press on the neologism tourismphobia. The second was a qualitative study of the social movements in order to find out their differences and ways of acting in relation to their protest. Thirdly, the study was completed with an analysis of the emotional response to the impacts of the sun and beach and nightlife tourist destinations of Lloret de Mar and Barcelona. The results of the research identify different narratives on tourismphobia that respond to ideological positions. On the other hand, the discourse on protest by activist groups shows a variable geometry that responds to structural and relational differences in the way they approach protest. Finally, the analysis of the emotional response among residents shows that psychosocial aspects constitute active elements in shaping residents' attitudes towards tourism and tourists. The main contribution of this thesis is to offer a transversal and multifaceted look at the analysis of the relationship between the local community and tourism in urban contexts characterised by tourist pressure, the existence of resistance and social debate that question tourism as a model of urban development.