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Although this is a survey of research techniques, it has become increasingly apparent, as the study has progressed, that our investigation of research methods for use in tourism and travel studies, without prior consideration of the nature and scopes of tourism and travel themselves, would he inadequate. At the outset it would be imperative to distinguish three interrelated terms. These are recreation, tourism, and travel.

The impact of tourism on local economies has long been a concern of individual communities and of governmental agencies interested in promoting this source of local income. The magnitudes are often large and, with fluctuations, continue to increase. The development of recreational opportunities and tourist facilities is often viewed as a means of redressing disparities in regional incomes and employment, and as a major factor in national balance of payments. Indeed, some nations seem to practice a new mercantile policy of maximizing receipts from foreign tourists and minimizing the expenditures of its own nationals abroad (Barucci, 1976).

As commonly pointed out in most instructional and operational manuals, and the benefit–cost and valuation texts on which they are largely based, there is general agreement among economic analysts that the economic values of gains and losses are correctly assessed by two different measures. The value of a gain is appropriately measured by the maximum sum people are willing to pay for it (the so-called WTP measure) – the amount that would leave them indifferent between paying to obtain the improvement and refusing the exchange. The value of a loss is accurately measured by the minimum compensation people demand to accept it (the so-called willingness-to-accept, or WTA, measure) – the sum that would leave them indifferent between being paid to bear the impairment and remaining whole without it.

Reports the results of two experimental tests of the extent to which the large disparity between people’s valuation of gains and losses, and related fairness determinations, are used in judging the acceptability of alternative negotiating or conflict resolution proposals. Participants acted as arbitrators and selected their preferred resolution of conflicts, involving either the division of gains or sharing responsibility for losses. Different cases were presented in which one or the other party incurred varied combinations of direct or opportunity costs, or received varied forms of payments. Contrary to conventional economic assumptions, but consistent with earlier behavioural findings, direct costs incurred by one party to the negotiation were far more important than opportunity costs in setting the terms of a more acceptable resolution. The results strongly suggest that recent behavioural findings might be used to improve the design of negotiating and conflict resolution proposals.

The tourist industry is not a single entity but consists of a heterogeneous group of firms and establishments providing a wide range of services for tourists. Some of these businesses are entirely or mainly dependent upon tourist spending, whilst others cater primarily for the resident population and their income from holiday‐makers forms only a marginal addition to their revenue. Yet tourist spending becomes diffused through a region with multiplier effect and many other sectors of the economy receive secondary benefits from the initial round of tourist spending.