Japanese Travelers Research Articles

Study of travel motivation and visit intention: The mediating role of perceived risks and travel constraints

The motivation to travel has been extensively studied, as it plays a crucial role in influencing people's travel decisions. Various theories have been proposed to explain travel behavior, including allocentric, psychocentric, push-pull factors, TPC, and TCL. This study delves into the impacts of perceived risks and travel constraints on Japanese people's motivation to travel to Mongolia, employing the push-pull theory as a framework. In the questionnaire survey, 142 Japanese citizens were selected by simple random sampling method, and the survey was conducted in Japanese and English between April and May 2023. The collected data were analysed using IBM SPSS 26 and SmartPLS 4 software. Out of the seven proposed hypotheses, four were confirmed and three were rejected. When examining risk/constraints as mediating variables, the results revealed that push motivation did not significantly influence travel intention, while pull factors demonstrated a statistically significant relationship. Furthermore, two and three variables were identified to characterize the push and pull factors that drive Japanese people's travel decisions. Two segments of travellers were also identified: those seeking nature-based experiences and those interested in historical and cultural attractions. These findings may guide tourism business operators seeking to attract Japanese travellers to Mongolia.

Concerns about vaccines and vaccination behavior among Japanese budget travelers to India

BackgroundLow vaccination coverage among travelers poses a critical challenge to global health security. Indeed, public concerns regarding vaccines can lead to vaccine reluctance and refusal, but evidence about the impacts of concerns regarding vaccines on the uptake of travel vaccinations remains sparse. We examined the associations between concerns about vaccines and vaccination behavior among travelers. MethodsJapanese travelers aged 18 years or older, who stayed at a guesthouse in New Delhi, India, were targeted (n = 153). We conducted cross-sectional surveys from August 23 to September 2, 2019, and from February 19 to March 5, 2020. We examined the associations of three concerns regarding vaccines (5-point scale)—serious side effects from vaccines, vaccine safety, and vaccine effectiveness—with the uptake of travel vaccinations. ResultsIn total, 60 participants (39.2 %) had been vaccinated for this or a past trip. After adjusting for all potential confounding variables, concerns about serious side effects from vaccines and vaccine safety were negatively associated with the uptake of travel vaccinations. The ORs (95 % CIs) for 1-point increases in concerns about serious side effects from vaccines and vaccine safety were 0.72 (0.52, 0.99) and 0.71 (0.52, 0.96), respectively. Sensitivity analyses did not change the results substantially. ConclusionsConcerns about vaccine safety issues were negatively associated with the uptake of travel vaccinations among the participants, with no corresponding association observed for vaccine effectiveness. Addressing concerns about vaccine safety issues, rather than vaccine effectiveness may contribute to an increased uptake of travel vaccinations.

Dialogised heteroglossia and the Japanese-Chinese mixed style of “Kaidōki”

This paper attempts to analyse the technique of assimilation of classical Chinese writing into the Japanese literary tradition of the early medieval period. The author’s main focus is one of the three styles used by Japanese authors of the time, namely the mixed Japanese-Chinese style (the so-called wakan konkō buntai). It was used in various prose genres, including travel diaries. Referring to the text of Kaidōki (Records of [a journey along] the seacoast road), a Japanese travel account from the early 13th century, the author shows on the selected source material how, in accordance with Bakhtin’s understanding of heteroglossia, a dialogue occurs on the level of Chinese and Japanese writing and how intertextual relations can influence the formation of the style of a literary work. As can be noted, the historical and literary borrowings from the Chinese tradition (the rich Sino-Japanese vocabulary and the prosaised poems originally composed in classical Chinese) enriched the semantic layer of the Japanese text. This was also reflected in the style of the work, which, despite its “crabbedness” and the fact that it was shaped by the experience of borrowed but also native polyphony, seems to be the optimal way to express it.

Why Do Product Prices Affect Review Ratings? Evidence from a Japanese Online Travel Agency

Why Do Product Prices Affect Review Ratings? Evidence from a Japanese Online Travel Agency

Aesthetic emotional reactions and their verbal expression in a corpus of Japanese travellers’ online reviews

Abstract Using Conceptual Metaphor Theory, I propose a study of aesthetic emotional expressions in Japanese. With this aim, I have created a medium-sized corpus (c100,000 running words) of travellers’ reviews in Japanese published on TripAdvisor between 2012 and 2022. The corpus consists of 1,100 reviews, grouped into three subsections, corresponding to three of the most visited landmarks in Japan (namely, Mount Fuji, Fushimi Inari-Taisha Shrine, and the Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Dome). The reviews chosen for this research include at least one reference, either literal or figurative, to the users’ aesthetic evaluation of their visit. My list of aesthetic emotions consists of four large categories: emotions of pleasure (e.g., attraction, fluency), emotions of contemplation (e.g., interest, intrigue), emotions of amazement (e.g., awe, wonder), and emotions of respect (e.g., admiration, adoration). For each aesthetic emotion, I have identified a series of source domains, which I analyse in detail in my discussion. As my data shows, many of our aesthetic expressions are rooted in the psychological and behavioural changes triggered by these emotions and, therefore, should be considered embodied. More importantly, through the analysis of the conceptual mappings involved in these linguistic expressions, it can be affirmed that aesthetic reactions are sensitive to cultural influences and, thus, they are not necessarily universal.

Package Tour Distribution Channels of Major Japanese, Chinese, and South Korean Travel Agents

ABSTRACT This study examines how overseas package tours are designed in China, South Korea, and Japan. It also examines how these tours are arranged between the three countries. The results of in-depth interviews and participant observation showed that the method of creating tours was almost the same across those three countries. However, there were differences in the method of operating tours. In terms of tours from China, Chinese wholesalers prefer other travel agencies as land operators instead of their own foreign subsidiaries; for Japan, they prefer to utilize their foreign subsidiaries; and for South Korea, the wholesaler considers both their subsidiaries and land operators for operating package tours. The concept of “operating power” explains the unique operation of these travel companies. The study concludes that the distribution channels of various package tours are strategically created by wholesalers according to the combination of markets and destinations. It contributes theoretical implications to the study of tourism distribution channels by focusing on regions that have not been included in previous studies. Additionally, it proposes a framework for the process of creating package tours and constructs a concept to explain the diverse ways in which package tours are operated. In terms of practical implications for travel agents, the study provides insights into various tourism distribution channels across different situations.

Pattern analysis of Japanese long-distance travel change under the COVID-19 pandemic

Pattern analysis of Japanese long-distance travel change under the COVID-19 pandemic

Evaluation of potential rabies exposure among Japanese international travelers: A retrospective descriptive study.

Although Japan has been a rabies-free country for >50 years, a few cases have been reported among people traveling abroad. This study aimed to investigate animal exposure among Japanese travelers using the Japanese Registry for Infectious Diseases from Abroad (J-RIDA). In this retrospective analysis, we examined Japanese overseas travelers with animal exposure, as included the J-RIDA database, reported from October 1, 2017, to October 31, 2019, with a focus on pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) administration and the animals to which the patients were exposed. Among the 322 cases included in the analysis, 19 (5.9%) patients received PrEP and 303 did not. The most common purpose of travel was a non-package tour (n = 175, 54.3%). Most trips (n = 213, 66.1%) were to a single country for <2 weeks. Most patients (n = 286, 87.9%) traveled to countries with a rabies risk. The majority of patients with and without PrEP were injured in rabies-risk countries [n = 270 (89.1%) for non-PrEP and n = 16 (84.2%) for PrEP]. Animals associated with injuries included dogs (55.0%), cats (25.5%), and monkeys (15.5%). Most patients were classified as World Health Organization Category II/III for contact with suspected rabid animals (39.5% and 44.1% for categories II and III, respectively) and had exposure within 5 days of travel. Southeast Asia (n = 180, 55.9%) was the most common region in which travelers were exposed to animals. Japanese overseas travelers had contact with animals that could possibly transmit the rabies virus, even on short trips. Promoting pre-travel consultation and increasing awareness of the potential for rabies exposure are important for prevention of rabies among Japanese international travelers.

Preparedness for measles among Japanese travellers to India after the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, over half of Japanese budget travellers to India did not adequately prepare for measles. Most of those who visited a clinic for travel vaccination missed the opportunity to get vaccinated against measles. For the summer, urgent efforts to ensure travellers' preparation for measles are required.

The interplay of personality traits and motivation in leisure travel decision-making during the pandemic

COVID-19 has negatively affected the travel and tourism industry and may continue to do so in the future. Therefore, hospitality businesses need to pay attention to consumer reactions, concerns, and motives for travelling in this era. This study leverages the stimulus-organism-behaviour-consequence (SOBC) model to examine psychological factors that influence Japanese travellers' intention to travel and willingness to pay premiums for safe travel by analysing data from 790 respondents. The findings of the study reveal that extraversion positively associates with introjected motivation and negatively with amotivation. Neuroticism personality type positively associates with amotivation and negatively associates with introjected motivation. Introjected motivation positively associates with perception of safe travel during COVID-19, whereas amotivation has a non-significant association with perception of safe travel during COVID-19. Perception of safe travel positively associates with intention to travel and willingness to pay premiums for safe travel. Finally, intention to travel has no effect on willingness to pay premiums for safe travel. These findings provide valuable theoretical and managerial implications.

A Cross-Cultural Pragmatic Study of Online Complaints by Japanese and Malaysian Hotel Guests in English

This study examined the rhetorical moves of complaints and the complaint strategies used by Japanese and Malaysian hotel guests between two cultural groups. Swales's (1981) move analysis was applied to identify and analyse the moves, while Trosborg's (1995) taxonomy of strategies was employed to analyse the speech act of complaints. The study's objectives are to investigate the communicative moves used by Japanese and Malaysian when expressing their regret through TripAdvisor and to analyse the complaint strategies used by Japanese and Malaysians when performing complaints online. The descriptive qualitative research method was employed, and data comprised 40 negative reviews towards hotels in Langkawi. The study used online reviews from TripAdvisor's website, to examine the negative feedback from Japanese and Malaysian guests in the English language were posted. The findings showed that the complaints' communicative moves had six moves: Opening, Dissatisfaction, Explanation, Recommendation, Closing, and Compliment, which were adapted from Morrow and Yamanouchi (2020). Moreover, findings of the move frequencies revealed that both the Japanese and Malaysian hotel guests would elaborate their frustration in detail as the 'Explanation' move. However, Malaysian travellers indicated more reasons and sequences of frustration than Japanese travellers. Furthermore, the sequence of the moves is not in a proper structure of conveying a complaint on TripAdvisor, whereby the 'Compliment' move was found either in the beginning, in the middle or in the ending parts of the text. Taxonomy of the complaint strategies by Trosborg (1995) was verified as follows: 1) 27.5% of No Explicit Reproach, 2) 35% of Disapproval Expression, 3) 22.5% of Accusation, and 4) 15% of Blame. In summary, the findings revealed that the two groups have comparable approach selections but differ in terms of complaint moves, complaint strategies, and language phrases for expressing frustration. Thus, knowing cross-cultural similarities and differences in speech acts can help avoid possible intercultural miscommunication, and managing negative customer reviews is pertinent for the hotel industry to improve intercultural communication.

Impact of telecommuting on Japanese Citizen's travel, activities, and residential locations: Experiences and future expectations under COVID-19 pandemic

In the past few years, telecommuting has diffused on a large scale across many developed countries; however, its popularity in Japan is low due to various factors and cultural differences. The outbreak of COVID-19 has made the adoption of telecommuting indispensable, reaching an unprecedented level in Japan, bringing dramatic changes in the lifestyles and behaviors of citizens. This study investigates how and to what extent this pandemic-induced telecommuting affected employees’ travel, activities, and residence locations and explores their expectations of post-pandemic life. The data were collected through the online questionnaire survey across three major metropolitan areas in Japan that incorporates a comprehensive set of questions regarding telecommuting implementation and feasibility, lifestyles before and during the pandemic, and expected way of life after the pandemic, and the total of 2045 respondents were collected. The analysis has been done based on revealed preference data considering two time periods i.e., before COVID-19, during COVID-19, and for the post-COVID 19 scenario where stated preferences are considered. In the first step, telecommuting behavior, telecommuting preferences and plans, and activity patterns are estimated based on aggregate sample data. Next, by using the stated preference survey conducted, ordered probit model and mixed logit model are applied to identify factors influencing post-pandemic telecommuting frequency and residential location preference, respectively. The analysis revealed two major findings: telecommuting brought significant changes in multiple aspects of people’s lifestyles and activities that might persist after the pandemic; although determinants that govern telecommuting frequency and residential location choice after COVID-19 may differ across metropolitan areas, commuting/telecommuting frequency is the prime factor influencing residential location decisions. The findings of this research can guide transportation and urban planners in establishing effective travel demand management tools and sustainable urban networks for the new-normal era.

Mathematical model estimation of dengue fever transmission risk from Southeast and South Asia into Japan between 2016 and 2018.

Dengue fever is a viral infection transmitted to humans through the bite of a mosquito infected with the dengue virus. Dengue is one of the most common infectious diseases in the world, and its incidence is rapidly increasing. We estimated the risk of dengue importation from endemic countries to Japan and the transmission risk within Japan using data collected between 2016 and 2018. We conducted simulations that included the number of reported dengue infections and travelers per month in ten countries in Southeast and South Asia. The estimated importation risks for Japanese returnees and international travelers from each of the ten endemic countries was approximately 1.0 every month from 2016 to 2018. The autochthonous transmission risk in Japan from any target country was 1.0 from June to September yearly. The estimated number of Japanese dengue cases returning to Japan is approximately 25 times higher than that of imported cases reported in Japan. The risk of dengue importation into Japan can be sufficiently high. Attention should be paid to autochthonous transmission spread between June and September when mosquitoes are active in Japan. Estimates of seasonal risk variation from each dengue virus-endemic country can be used to inform preventive and control measures for dengue in Japan.

Immunogenicity of Catch-Up Immunization with Conventional Inactivated Polio Vaccine among Japanese Adults.

Most Japanese adults are vaccinated twice with the Sabin trivalent oral polio vaccine. Booster vaccination is recommended for Japanese travelers to polio-endemic/high-risk countries. We assessed the catch-up immunization of healthy Japanese adults aged ≥20 years with two doses of standalone conventional inactivated polio vaccine (cIPV). Immunogenicity was evaluated by serum neutralization titers (pre-booster vaccination, 4-6 weeks after each vaccination) against type 1, 2, and 3 poliovirus strains. The participants were 61 healthy Japanese adults (26 men/35 women; mean age ± standard deviation age 35.8 ± 8.0 years). Seropositivity rates (percentage of participants with anti-poliovirus antibody titers ≥1:8) pre-vaccination were 88.5%, 95.1%, and 52.5% for Sabin strains (type 1, 2, and 3); 72.1%, 93.4%, and 31.1% for virulent poliovirus strains (type 1: Mahoney; type 2: MEF-1; and type 3: Saukett); and 93.4%, 93.4%, 93.4%, and 88.5% for type 2 vaccine-derived poliovirus strains (SV3128, SV3130, 11,196, and 11,198). After one cIPV dose, all seropositivity rates increased to 98.4-100.0%. After two cIPV doses, the seropositivity rates reached 100% for all strains. cIPV was well tolerated, with no safety concerns. Catch-up immunization with standalone cIPV induced robust immune responses in Japanese adults, indicating that one booster dose boosted serum-neutralizing antibodies to many strains.

Epidemiologic and genomic investigations of an unusual increase in Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A infection among travelers returning from Myanmar in 2015

ObjectivesAn unusual increase in Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A infection rate in Japanese travelers returning from Myanmar was observed in 2015. MethodsWe analyzed epidemiologic data of returned travelers with enteric fever from 2005-2019. We also analyzed 193 Salmonella Paratyphi A isolates, including 121 isolates with published genomes. ResultsAnnual notification trends showed a rapid increase in Salmonella Paratyphi A infection in travelers returning from Myanmar in 2015: 2-4 cases/100,000 travelers in 2012-2014 and 13 cases/100,000 travelers in 2015 (P <0.001). The genomic analyses revealed that 11 Myanmar-related isolates in 2015 formed a tight cluster in clade 3 with a single nucleotide variant (SNV) distance of 0-11 (primarily 0-7), yielding a wider SNV range than outbreak-associated isolates from Cambodia in 2013 (0-6 SNVs) or China in 2010 (0-5 SNVs). Although all Cambodia-related isolates in 2013 harbored the wild-type gyrA sequence, all Myanmar-related isolates in 2015 had a single, identical mutation (Ser83Phe) in the gyrA gene. ConclusionThe epidemiologic and molecular investigations suggested an increase in the infection rate with genetically closely related Salmonella Paratyphi A in travelers returning from Myanmar in 2015. Careful monitoring of the infection in Myanmar as an endemic country is warranted, considering the resumption of cross-border travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Impact of Japanese travelers’ psychographics on domestic travel intention during the COVID-19 pandemic

To develop tourism products and campaigns that will not only help the tourism industry to survive, but also revive and sustain it in the future, it is imperative to understand the behavioral intentions of leisure travelers during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This study aims to explore how Japanese traveler segments are characterized by their attitudes and feelings toward domestic travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. A market research study was conducted on Japanese nationals, using 1353 questionnaires in the analysis. A factor analysis was generated in six attitude dimensions: 1) COVID-19 Anxiety, 2) Government Mistrust, 3) Psychological Impact, 4) Optimistic Outlook, 5) Financial Impact, and 6) Social Anxiety; through K-means cluster analysis, the segmentation produced three distinct tourist segments: Confident Travelers, Anxious Travelers, and Social Travelers. Each segment is clearly described in terms of attitudes, considering distinct socio-demographic characteristics. Practical suggestions on how to manage and target these segments include implementing travel packages with minimal face-to-face contact for anxious travelers, travel subsidies through national campaigns for confident travelers, or conventional marketing campaigns for social travelers.

Characteristics and potential quality indicators for evaluating pre-travel consultations in Japan hospitals: the Japan Pretravel consultation registry (J-PRECOR)

BackgroundAwareness of pre-travel consultations (PTCs) and prevention methods for overseas travel-related diseases, and the understanding of PTCs among Japanese travelers and medical professionals remains low in Japan. A multicenter registry was established to examine PTCs in Japan. This study assessed the PTC implementation rate and examined the indicators of PTCs that can be used as criteria for evaluating quality.MethodsClients who presented for their PTCs at 17 facilities and were registered between February 1, 2018, and May 31, 2020, were included. Medical information was extracted retrospectively via a web-based system. Correlations between vaccination risk categories and advice/intervention proportions by the facility were evaluated using Spearman’s ordered phase relations (α = 0.05).ResultsOf the 9700 eligible clients (median age, 32 years; 880 [9.1%] aged < 16 years and 549 [5.7%] aged ≥65 years), the most common travel duration was ≥181 days (35.8%); higher among younger clients. The most common reason for travel was business (40.5%); the US (1118 [11.5%]) and Asia (4008 [41.3%]) were the most common destinations and continents, respectively. The vaccine number (median three per person) increased after the PTCs except for the tetanus toxoid. Only 60.8% of the clients recommended for malaria prophylaxis received anti-malarial agents. The gross national income; the incidence of human rabies, typhoid fever, falciparum malaria; and dengue risk category were associated with the percentage of hepatitis-A vaccines; explaining rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, typhoid-fever vaccinations, malaria-prophylaxis prescriptions; and mosquito repellants, respectively.ConclusionsAlthough the characteristics of the travelers differed, the quality of the PTCs should be improved to address, for example, the lower rate of acceptance of malaria prophylaxis in Japan.

Interventions to Support Tourism and its Impact on Air Quality - A Case Study of the Go To Travel Campaign in Japan –

The effects of COVID-19 measures on the quantitative changes in atmospheric substances associated with economic activities have been explored in various studies. However, the specific relationship between the changes in economic activities due to government interventions and the associated changes in atmospheric substances remains unclear. This relationship needs to be understood in detail, especially in the tourism industry where conflicting responses are needed, such as promoting people flow and socioeconomic development while adopting measures to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. Therefore, this study focused on the tourism industry in Japan, used Google Earth Engine to calculate the changes in five atmospheric substances before and during the government’s Go To Travel Campaign, which was implemented to support domestic travel, and analyzed the correlations with statistical data such as the number of travelers, use of buses, and taxis. As a result, a series of connected behaviors clarified the fact that socioeconomic activities affected by the government’s Go To Travel Campaign surfaced with the changes in the atmospheric substances. To further understand the relationship between interventions to promote tourism and air quality, additional datasets and approaches are needed, including data on the operation status of facilities and the behavioral characteristics of Japanese travelers.

Relationship between Ranking and Word-of-Mouth on Japanese Travel Information Websites

Relationship between Ranking and Word-of-Mouth on Japanese Travel Information Websites

Multiple introductions of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.214 lineages from mainland Japan preceded the third wave of the COVID-19 epidemic in Hokkaido

BackgroundThe third wave of the COVID-19 epidemic in the island of Hokkaido, the second largest island in Japan, began abruptly in October 2020. MethodsWe conducted a phylodynamic analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences obtained from tertiary medical centers in the Greater Tokyo Area and Sapporo, the largest city in the island of Hokkaido, and genome sequences published by GISAID, an international SARS-CoV-2 genome database. We also analyzed the statistics on the person-nights of travelers in the island of Hokkaido from the Greater Tokyo Area in 2019 versus 2020. ResultsAt least eight sub-lineages belonging to the B.1.1.214 lineage were introduced to the island of Hokkaido from the island of Honshu, the mainland of Japan from late July to November 2020, during the governmental travel promotion program. Five of the eight sub-lineages originated from the Greater Tokyo Area. Comparison of the monthly ratios of the person-nights of travelers in the island of Hokkaido from the Greater Tokyo Area in 2019 and 2020 revealed that the highest value occurred in October 2020. ConclusionWe contend that the Japanese governmental travel promotion program contributed to the introduction of the B.1.1.214 sub-lineages from the main island of Honshu to the island of Hokkaido, and drove the third wave in Hokkaido, even if we are unable to establish the causality.