How They See Us: Perceived Effects of Tourist Gaze on the Old Order Amish

Abstract

Although abundant literature focuses on tourism impact perspectives, folk communities’ perceptions of tourist gaze and its effects on the cultural fabric of host communities as a subject of inquiry has received scant attention. To shed new light on this discourse, this study investigates perceived impacts of tourist gazing within the framework of resistance theory. The Old Order Amish (OOA) are positioned on a resistance scale, with an open-resistance stance at one end and a full-cooperation stance at the opposite end of the spectrum. This study gathers data from 42 OOA families residing in the state of Iowa, United States. The results show mixed reactions by the OOA and indicate a middle approach of resistance, termed as “negotiated reciprocity” on the resistance continuum.