applying constraints theory to the study of tourist
behavior and the tourist experience, with particular
relevance for understanding women’s travel.
In this study, travel is situated as a form of leisure
behavior, thus it expands leisure constraint theory
into a tourism/travel context. The conceptual connection
between leisure and tourism is now well recognized.
Studies of tourism and leisure tend to reveal
similar motivational and behavioral elements,
as both travelers and leisure seekers are generally,
in search of experiences that provide escape, freedom,
and pleasure (Carr, 2002; Fedler, 1987; Hinch
& Jackson, 2000; Krippendorf, 1987; Leiper, 2003;
Mannell & Iso-Ahola, 1997; Moore, Cushman &
Simmons, 1995; Pearce, 1982; Ryan, 1994;
Yiannakis & Gibson, 1992). On this basis, the extension
of leisure constraints theory into the field of
tourism is a valid transition, and offers the potential
to yield further insights into touristic behavior. To
date, apart from a few relatively recent studies (e.g.,
Carr, 2000; Hudson, 2000; Hudson & Gilbert, 1999;
Jordan & Gibson, 2000; Pennington-Gray &
Kerstetter, 2002), it appears that there is a dearth of
empirical research that has explicitly addressed the
influence and impact of constraints on the tourist
experience.
Recognizing this gap, Hudson and Gilbert (1999;
p. 69) note that constraints is a “neglected dimension”
of tourism research. Some theorists, however,
are starting to find constraints frameworks useful in
their attempt to better understand tourism processes
and tourist behavior. As an example of this incipient
body of research, leisure constraints theory has been
extended to investigate tourist seasonality (Hinch &
Jackson, 2000) and general tourist decision-making
behavior (Dellaert, Ettema, & Lindh, 1998; Um &
Crompton, 1992). Other authors have taken a focused
constraints approach to studies of participation
or nonparticipation in certain types of tourist
activity, such as downhill skiing (Hudson & Gilbert,
1999), nature-based tourism (Pennington-Gray &
Kerstetter, 2002), and museum visitation (Tian,
Crompton, & Witt, 1996). More pertinent to the discussion
in this present article, constraints have also
been considered as a framework for understanding
the tourist behavior and experiences of certain social
subgroups or “niche markets,” such as seniors
(Blazey, 1987; Fleischer & Pizam, 2002; Zimmer,
Brayley & Searle, 1995),