What Research Says…
Studies on travel show that “the harder and more taxing your job is, the more often you’ll need to break away to travel” to counteract burnout [13]. They also report that travel positively impacts stress, health (medical and mental), happiness, and satisfaction [14]. These benefits have been shown to begin with the planning of the trip, and continue well beyond the end of the trip (up to 3+ weeks after a return from a trip) [15]. Travel also allows individuals to focus on themselves for a change, with opportunities for self-reflection and figuring out what they want and need for themselves. [16]
Travel outlets have referenced the impact of travel on individuals (e.g., “Identity helps establish a person as an independent individual…tourism is an instrument that manifests or constructs one’s identity through contact with others.” [17]). It is often connected to needs (“our behaviors are usually motivated by multiple needs simultaneously” [18]) and values (measure of what people feel to be desirable, vital, useful, and worthwhile [19]).
References:
*From the Black Feminist Thought Book (Collins 1990, pp. 99-100; quoted by Harris-LaMothe [2013])
^Solo Female Travel On Rise: A Report • The Art of Travel: Wander, Explore, Discover : The Art of Travel: Wander, Explore, Dis https://artoftravel.tips/solo-female-travel/cover (2015)
[1] Psychology4u.net (year unknown)
[2] De Vore (CNN, 2024)
[3] Nix (2002); Godbolt et. al (2022); Frye (2019); Leanin.org (year unknown)
[4] Prewitt (2024); Alton (2017); Friedman (2024); Global Coalition on Aging (2023)
[5] Daly (2024); Ufuoma (2018)
[6] Tanrisever et al. (2023)
[7] Nix (2002)
[8] Ufuoma (2018)
[9] National Museum of African American History and Culture website (https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/popular-and-pervasive-stereotypes-african-americans; date unknown)
[10] Frye (2019)
[11] Frye (2019)
[12] Godbolt et al. (2022)
[13] Carpenter – Global Coalition on Aging (2023)
[14] Alton (2017); Global Coalition on Aging (2023); Afar (2023); Prewitt (2024)
[15] Alton (2017); Global Coalition on Aging (2023); Friedman (2024)
[16] Friedman (2024)
[17] Liutikas (2017)
[18] McLeod (2024)
[19] Psychologytoday.com (year unknown)