‘I am not at risk – typical tourists are’! Social comparison of risk in tourists

Abstract

Aim: The presented research aims to study the relationship between judgements of risks to oneself as a tourist as compared to risks to ‘typical tourists’, ‘average tourists’ and ‘typical tourist from your home country’. Methods: Altogether, 1,892 tourists visiting Norway (summer 2010) filled in a questionnaire on aspects of being a tourist. Respondents were randomly assigned to one of four groups. Group 1 was asked about risk to themselves; Group 2 was asked to indicate their thoughts about ‘risk to typical tourists’; Group 3 indicated risks for ‘average tourists’; and Group 4 was asked about risks for typical tourists from their home country. Results: Results show that all risks were judged to be low, but significantly higher risks were attributed to the typical and average tourist than to ‘self’. Conclusions: The results are interpreted in terms of social cognitive processes such as the ‘optimistic bias’.