King, Brian (2007) Response to Yeoman et al.: competitive advantage through “authenticity”: an assessment of Scotland's tourism prospects. Tourism Management, 28 (4). pp. 1141-1143. ISSN 0261-5177

Abstract

This rejoinder to Yeoman et al. (see pp. 1128-1138 in this same issue of Tourism Management) is a critical assessment of the merits of the implied strategic shift towards authenticity in tourism. It reviews the relevant authenticity literature and the circumstances confronting Scotland as a destination. It is argued that while "authenticity-seeking" behaviour characterizes a growing number of consumers in developed markets, explicit use of the term as a rationale for strategic marketing would be unwise. The reasons are that the literature is decidedly inconclusive and contradictory about authenticity as a strategic direction and that the prospects of successful implementation in Scotland are overestimated given the paradoxes of the post-devolution era.

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