Comparing levels of resident empowerment among two culturally diverse resident populations in Oizumi, Gunma, Japan

Abstract

While resident empowerment has been a central aspect of the sustainable tourism literature, difficulties of putting the concept into practice have been noted given the heterogeneous nature of communities. "Community" is often divided by kinship, age, gender and ethnicity, and such division may influence the perceptions of empowerment. The goal of this study was to better understand heterogeneous perceptions of empowerment by administering the Resident Empowerment through Tourism Scale within the community of Oizumi, Japan. Oizumi has the highest concentration of Brazilian immigrants in Japan, and the town has embraced "ethnic neighborhood tourism" centered on Brazilian culture as a strategy for economic development. Oizumi's demographic makeup allowed for testing differences in perceived empowerment between members of the dominant ethnic group (Japanese) and members of the ethnic minority group (Japanese Brazilians). Analysis of 650 completed questionnaires revealed that Brazilians felt more psychologically and socially empowered than Japanese residents, indicating a shift in the balance of power between the ethnic groups. Results also revealed that the political dimension of empowerment was rated relatively low among both groups, suggesting a general lack of opportunities to participate in the planning process. Implications for both practice and theory are presented.

Resident perceptions of tourism: The role of social distance

“…As Woosnam et al () argue, Japanese residents feel a scarcity of avenues where they can express concerns regarding tourism development issues, and they have little knowledge about tourism development and destination marketing organizations. Therefore, as Maruyama et al () argue, local government and tourism officials should focus on providing ways for Japanese residents to learn about tourism development within Japan and their community and to share any concerns regarding planning and managing for tourism. Maruyama et al () argue that the importance of community involvement is only just being recognized by the Japanese government, so there is much scope for further research to be undertaken in the area of resident attitudes and opinions of tourism development in Japan, and how they might be empowered in discussion and decisions around tourism development.…”

“…Finally, academics have begun to investigate Japanese resident attitudes towards tourism and tourism development in Japan. Recent research has included an investigation into resident empowerment in tourism development and decision‐making in Japan, including resident empowerment amongst Japanese in a Brazilian community (Boley, Maruyama, & Woosnam, ) and between a dominant ethic group (Japanese) and a minority ethnic group (Brazilian) in Oizumi (Maruyama, Woosnam, & Boley, ). Further, Japanese resident studies have included a focus on ethnic neighborhood and enclave tourism in Japan (Maruyama, Woosnam, & Boley, ; Woosnam, Maruyama, Boley, & Erul, ).…”

“…Further, Japanese resident studies have included a focus on ethnic neighborhood and enclave tourism in Japan (Maruyama, Woosnam, & Boley, ; Woosnam, Maruyama, Boley, & Erul, ). These studies stress the value and need to include (indeed “empower”) the host community in decisions around tourism development in Japan, yet arguably community and resident involvement in tourism in Japan takes place at a minimal level (Maruyama et al, ). Aligned with this is a lack of comprehension around Japanese residents' receptiveness towards foreign tourists and specifically their views on their largest inbound market (China) and, in light of historic events and attitudes, how these views might compare to those held for other tourist groups.…”

Empowerment in Tourism: A Review of Peer-reviewed Literature

“…The application of the RETS in an ethnically diverse Japanese setting, including Brazilian and Japanese communities, revealed that Brazilian residents exhibit more social and psychological empowerment than Japanese residents (Boley, Maruyama, & Woosnam, 2015;Maruyama, Woosnam, & Boley, 2016, 2017. Tourism fostered a sense of community spirit and connectedness to others that leads to opportunities to be involved in the community (Boley et al, 2015).…”

Modeling Residents’ Attitudes toward Short-term Vacation Rentals

“…The level of cohesion between community members mediating the development of social capital can be understood as a measure of social empowerment (Scheyvens 1999). Residents’ perceived levels of social empowerment from tourism are thought to affect their perceptions of the impacts of tourism and their overall support of tourism development (Maruyama, Woosnam, and Boley 2016; Strzelecka, Boley, and Strzelecka 2017).…”