Taking Advantage of Their Seniority: How the Misbehavior of Senior Tourists Influence Young Adults’ Prosocial Behavior Towards Them

Abstract

Although the senior tourism sector is widely recognized as a growing market, misbehaviors by elderly tourists is an under researched issue within the field of tourism. This paper offers insights into inappropriate behaviors by senior tourists and explores the responses of young adults toward such instances of misbehavior. Through a multimethod approach, we reveal that the intentional (vs. unintentional) misbehavior by senior tourists results in reduced prosocial behavior in young adults. The social class signifiers of senior tourists who intentionally misbehave significantly influence the responses of young adults, with those perceived to be of a high social class drawing harsher judgements. This effect holds for young adults with high benevolent ageism but is constrained by low benevolent ageism in young adults. Our findings extend the application of expectancy violation theory and moral foundations theory to tourist misbehaviors and we conclude by offering suggestions for improving intergenerational relationships at tourist destinations.