Plog's Psychographic Model Theory

SUMMARY OF MATERIAL PLOG'S PSYCHOGRAPHIC MODEL THEORY PLOG'S PSYCOGRHAPIC MODEL In 1974, Stanley Plog published a study conducted for 16 airlines and travel companies in the US with the goal of more people traveling by plane. From this research, Plog identified five types of tourists, namely: ⎯ Nearly allocentric : looking for a challenge, many of them prefer ecotourism. ⎯ Mid-centric: the type of traveler who prefers to relax when traveling. ⎯ Nearly psychocentric: tourists who take a new trip if the place becomes popular ⎯ Psychocentric. Tourists who are against adventure, seek safety, and prefer to travel accompanied by a tour guide Plog correlates the type of tourist with the destinations they visit. At the time this research was developed, it identified Africa and the South Pacific islands as destinations sought by American allocentric visitors, while the East, especially Japan, would be visited by nearly allocentric visitors. However, destinations such as Coney Island (the peninsula south of Brooklyn, New York) are sought after by psychocentrics and Miami Beach by nearly psychocentrics. So there are indicators of tourist typology, namely travel experience, needs, life style and also image. According to Plog, there is a tendency for most destinations towards psychocentric characteristics and the public they attract. It is easy to understand that tourism destinations develop, increase in popularity and attract more visitors, resulting in changes in the tourist profile. This phenomenon shows that destinations that were initially allocentric destinations are shifting to become midcentric. Likewise, what was initially a mid-centric preference, shifted to become psychocentric. Psychocentric Allocentric Prefer to enjoy ordinary activities in urban Prefer non-tourist areas areas Prefer places with sunshine and fun, Appreciate discovery and delight in new including places with a good level of experiences, before anyone else has visited relaxation the area Likes new and different tourist attractions Low level activity High level of activity Prefer to travel by land Loves air travel Prefer formal tourist destinations, hotel Hotel accommodation should have good accommodation with good development, food but not necessarily be modern with few restaurants for families. attractions aimed at tourists Prefers familiar environments Likes meeting people from different cultures Complete travel packages are provided with Travel must include pre-booked many scheduled activities transportation The plog model has been widely criticized because of its overlapping processes. Looking for an explanation based only on one element, namely personality, there are not many elements involved so it cannot explain why the same individual can change his behavior on several different trips. Some of the other criticisms mentioned include (according to Litvin): ⎯ Plog's proposed concept received little independent empirical verification ⎯ Although tourists may be allocentric visitors, financial factors may cause them to exhibit mid-centric or nearly psychocentric travel patterns. ⎯ This theory was developed for American tourists and may not apply to other countries ⎯ As Plog said, with more travel experience, people tend to become allocentric. What actually happens is that when visiting less familiar places, people end up being more introverted in these destinations ⎯ Finally although the model presents an interesting concept, it does not predict or explain a large percentage of all tourist behavior and is therefore impractical for use in tourism marketing strategies. Litvin's research on the history of student travel from Singapore was also commented on by Plog who explained the context and methods in his psychographics. His biggest criticism was how other researchers developed his model without using the same research instruments as him. These two models make researchers/readers interested in exploring this concept further and for several visitors from Brazil to India there are also changes in the profiles of several visitors. India was once the roadmap of Brazilian tourists. What has changed is that previously backpackers and adventurers in general were interested in the country's 5,000 year history and its rich expression of spirituality, but then a group of Brazilians emerged who wanted a package filled with comfort, security and a few touches of Sufism. The reality of India, of course, is beyond the imagination of most of these wealthy Brazilians.