Cultural events as a tourist development strategy for rural areas: two case studies from the Salento peninsula compared

Abstract

Cultural events in rural areas are important drivers of spatial and socio-cultural transformation. Their implementation activates socio-cultural dynamics that are quite different from those of other development strategies. Their enormous potential lies above all in the high level of visibility attained by the host regions and their relative socio-cultural values in national and international markets. This helps them to attract new types of consumer (visitors, tourists, investors, companies) in return for relatively low levels of investment. From a cultural point of view, the values that identify a region, expressed invisible, psychological and symbolic signs (Archambault 2009), constitute a factor of competitive differentiation in terms of global competition between regions. At the same time, they create that unique and characteristic atmosphere which is the basis of an event’s power of attraction. These two aspects increase knowledge of the local culture in the wider world and produce new cultural forms and dynamics. The spatio-temporal concentration of a typological and social variety of persons accelerates bi-directional cultural exchange. The cosmopolitan crowd observing the event not only comes into direct contact with locations and landscapes, which acquire a new function and new, more profound meanings, but also meets the local population, who express and transmit their socio-cultural values. It follows that the external spectator learns new cultural values transmitted by the event and its atmosphere, thereby transforming the consumption of the cultural product into experience. For its part, the local community accelerates the cultural exchange typicalof metropolitan environments without distancing itself from the daily context. At the same time, it acquires pride and awareness of its identity and cultural distinctiveness. This awareness is strengthened further in the presence of events designed to enhance and promote the local culture (Archambault 2009). It is clear that such events play an important role: they help to increase interestin cultural issues, they create new knowledge, and they generate a social environment that is dynamic and creative. Cultural associations, music and theatre groups are formed. New cultural products are created that often reinterpret and renew the traditional intangible cultural heritage, making it moreattractive for the new generations and thus guaranteeing its survival. Consequently, it changes the life of the local population, leading to improvement in living conditions, social relations and the quality of life in general. Civic values are rediscovered, along with community spirit and pride in one’s identity. Many public bodies are aware of this situation, and invest in events inorder to project an appealing image of the area and attract investment, above all in the tourism sector. Indeed, the latter seems to be the natural target of policies designed to enhance the visibility of a region and attract visitors. Many rural communities are particularly interested in this, since they have identified rural tourism as a sector that without heavy structural investment can, at least in the initial phase, complement existing activities and policies, guaranteeing relatively low risk margins. An event generates additional tourist flows both during and after the eventitself and has short-and long-term effects on the development of the host community (Dimanche 2006; Varvaressos 2009). The size of these effects depends on various factors including: the characteristics of the destination (for example, size, resources, available space); the level and type of tourist development in the destination; the type of event; the geographical location; the security of all the people involved (both the public and the organizers); the relationship between supply and demand; the distance between the social and cultural characteristics of the residents and those of the tourists; the system of relationships between the main stakeholders and their involvement in the organization of the event; the synergy between public and private sectors; and the perception of the costs, benefits and objectives of the event among the resident population and the organizers (Antonioli and Vigano 2004; Gursoy et al. 2004). Events can generate significant socio-economic changes in a community,especially those of small dimensions. The capacity of such communities to perceive their potential benefits is crucial. Their perception is not necessarily objective, and is influenced by numerous factors and variables (Vargas-Sanchez et al. 2011) that induce the local community to share or reject the development strategies adopted. Measuring this perception is more complicated than measuring the economic impact, due to a lack of shared models and to the use of qualitative techniques of enquiry whose results are not strictly comparable. The present study uses a qualitative methodology that combines the nominalgroup technique (NGT) with the ‘Value Stretch Model’ (Mansfeld 1992). It presents the results of a direct investigation of the perception of possible socio-economic changes brought about by events in certain rural communities in a region in southern Italy: the Salento peninsula in Puglia.