The overall goal of this dissertation is to develop a theoretical framework describing the mechanisms shaping the use of smartphones for travel, and can be addressed by answering the following questions: (1) What are the uses of smartphones in the context of travel? (2) What are the factors influencing the use of smartphones in the context of travel? And, (3) What are the mechanisms shaping the use of smartphones for travel (i.e. How are the factors working to shape the use of smartphones in travel context?). A phenomenological approach was used to answer these questions as quantitative methods are believed to be inadequate in describing the processes underlying the use of smartphones for travel. Twenty-four Americans who own one kind of smartphones and traveled at least once for leisure purpose in the most recent three months were interviewed extensively to gain an in-depth understanding of their uses of smartphones and resulting travel experience.
This study identified four categories of uses of smartphones for travel (including 25 unique activities) including the uses of smartphones for communication, entertainment, facilitation, and information search. Five sets of factors that are associated with the use of smartphones for travel were identified from both contexts of travel and everyday experience. Three sets of factors that directly lead travelers to use smartphones for travel are travelers' motivations to use smartphones as a tool to achieve some purposes, their cognitive beliefs toward the use of smartphones, and other situational facilitators (e.g. no computer access) that lead the informants to use smartphones rather than any other alternative ways. Besides the three sets of direct factors, the informants indicated that their use of smartphones changed their travel experience. More important, the everyday use of smartphones and the changes brought to people's lives appear to be indirect factors influencing the use of smartphones for travel.
These results describing smartphone's uses, outcomes and the mechanisms shaping this behavior were used as the primary basis in proposing a theoretical framework describing the use of smartphones for travel including its antecedents, process, and outcomes. The theoretical framework suggests four propositions. First, the underlying processes shaping the use of smartphones for travel is a process of appropriation in which a person "makes it his/her own" whereby the smartphone user learns, adjusts, and internalizes the 'essence' of the smartphone based on their uses in everyday context as well as previous travel experiences (Proposition 1). Second, the use of smartphones in everyday context lead to the changes of communication, information consumption, and the uses of other digital devices, and these changes influenced the use of smartphones for travel through transformation effect and spillover effect (Proposition 2). Third, the changes in everyday experience influence the use of smartphones for travel by influencing traveler's motivations in the context of travel (Proposition 3). Finally, this study indicates that the appropriation process leads to changes in the travel experience. In particular, people change their travel activities including pre-trip planning, en-route arrangements, after-trips activities as well as their interpretations toward trips and sensations (Proposition 4).
This study suggests several new perspectives with which to study the impact of technology on travel. First, this study indicates that a systems view should be adopted in tourism studies. Travelers are not isolated from their daily lifestyles, personalities, social connections, and other individual background (e.g. knowledge, preferences, etc.). As such, the behavior of travelers cannot be understood without consideration of the influence of other settings. Therefore in tourism studies, a systems perspective is important so as to reflect the intimate relationships (and influences) of the various 'subsystems. Second, this study suggests a dynamic view for studies of technology and travel. The results of this study indicate that the uses of smartphones in travel are shaped by the interactions of a variety of factors. Therefore, in the studies of technology and travel it is important to understand the dynamic processes which shape the use of technology for travel. Third, this study suggests a development view for the study of technology and travel. This perspective includes not only the recognition that adoption of new technology may influence travelers and travel experience, but also the evolving use of the new ICT tools (e.g. smartphones) along with the development of these tools may substantially change travelers' behavior and travel experience. Additionally, this study suggests a new perspective is needed regarding the concept of travel experience in that the use of smartphones reconfigures the current relationships between travelers, space, and time and as such, implies that the conceptualization of travel experience should go beyond the argument of the dichotomy of everyday life and travel and evolve with the development of information technology. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)