Experiencing Lappish Hospitalityin Finland through Airbnb and Couchsurfing
Stukolkina, Lada (2017)
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Lataukset:
Stukolkina, Lada
Lapin ammattikorkeakoulu
2017
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-201702142382
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-201702142382
Tiivistelmä
The aim of this thesis was to examine the nature of Airbnb and Couchsurfing travellers’ experiences in hospitality in Finnish Lapland and to compare them with each other. Specifically, Lappish hospitality and experience authenticity were in the focus of this research. The thesis was written in order to provide the “Shareable Tourism” project in MTI with new insights into the experiences in the sharing economy in Finnish Lapland.
This research focused on the guest’s perspective on the experience. Therefore, the qualitative research method was used for this study. The semi-structured interviews were supposed to bring more in-depth knowledge about the topic. Three Airbnb and three Couchsurfing guests participated in the semi-structured interviews conducted through Skype, e-mail and Facebook. In addition, the background information of this thesis was gathered beforehand in order to create the framework for the empirical research.
According to the research results, only Couchsurfing featured Lappish hospitality. The degree of authenticity in various experiences differed; although in case of comparison of the Couchsurfers’ responses with the Airbnb guests’ answers, it appeared that the experiences in Couchsurfing were more authentic. Nevertheless, a specific authenticity classification is presented in the theoretical part of this thesis which allows for more precise differentiation between Airbnb and Couchsurfing in terms of the degree of authenticity. Additionally, this study found out that the presence of money in the host-guest exchange influenced the amount of social interaction between the hosts and the guests in Airbnb. Finally, the conclusion is that Airbnb and Couchsurfing members represent different target groups for the online hospitality networks despite numerous similarities between both of them.
Further research of the topic is needed, as the interviewees’ number is too small for making encompassing conclusions about the entire region. This paper describes the implications that appeared during this study and gives new ideas for further research of the topic.
This research focused on the guest’s perspective on the experience. Therefore, the qualitative research method was used for this study. The semi-structured interviews were supposed to bring more in-depth knowledge about the topic. Three Airbnb and three Couchsurfing guests participated in the semi-structured interviews conducted through Skype, e-mail and Facebook. In addition, the background information of this thesis was gathered beforehand in order to create the framework for the empirical research.
According to the research results, only Couchsurfing featured Lappish hospitality. The degree of authenticity in various experiences differed; although in case of comparison of the Couchsurfers’ responses with the Airbnb guests’ answers, it appeared that the experiences in Couchsurfing were more authentic. Nevertheless, a specific authenticity classification is presented in the theoretical part of this thesis which allows for more precise differentiation between Airbnb and Couchsurfing in terms of the degree of authenticity. Additionally, this study found out that the presence of money in the host-guest exchange influenced the amount of social interaction between the hosts and the guests in Airbnb. Finally, the conclusion is that Airbnb and Couchsurfing members represent different target groups for the online hospitality networks despite numerous similarities between both of them.
Further research of the topic is needed, as the interviewees’ number is too small for making encompassing conclusions about the entire region. This paper describes the implications that appeared during this study and gives new ideas for further research of the topic.