Methodological problems of studying local income and employment effects of tourism

Abstract

A renewal of the methods used for areal and commune-specific tourist surveys in Finland has taken place since 1980, largely in response to advances in methodologies for determining the effects of tourism on incomes and employment. These ideas are expressed in concrete form in the jointly developed Nordic Model, based on the expenditure and receipts methods employed from the 1950's onwards, the first of which sets out from the tourists themselves and the latter from the businesses that receive income from tourists. The model contains both specific instructions for the execution of such a survey at different levels of detail and also a new means for defining ripple effects as one part of a tourist business survey.

The appropriateness of the Nordic Model and the problems associated with its use are evaluated with particular reference to the structure of the model as such and research carried out to date based on it, including the authors' own empirical application to tourism in Lohja. Critical points are discussed and proposals made for improving applicability and the quality of the results obtained. Extensions of its scope to allow greater diversity in the results and a more comprehensive treatment of the local impact of tourism are contemplated by defining the dimension of local tourist surveys and the methodology required for the definition of these. Consideration is also given to recent proposals for new tourist multipliers in relation to the alternative offered by the Nordic Model.