GRAHAM M.S.DANN However,to the best of one's knowledge,anomie has not been associated with tourism.Now,given that the potential tourist lives in an anomic society along with everyone else,it is strange that the connection between his home situation and his leisure patterns has not been thoroughly investigated.A sensing of the connection between "what makes tourists travel"and the anomic society from which they come thus acts as a hallmark for the current theoretical perspective.It is claimed that a possible "push"factor for travel lies in the desire to transcend the feeling of isolation obtained in everyday life,where the tourist simply wishes to"get away from it all." Underlying the hypothesis is the need that man has for love and affection and the desire to communicate to his fellow man.However,if he lives in a large town or city, this possibility is often denied him.His commuting and his work account for most of the day,and what little remaining time he has at home is often spent in front of the television.His exhaustion permits only limited conversation with his wife and children,let alone friends and neighbors or relations.Yet the need for social inter- action is still present.Hence it can only be fulfilled away from the home environment, i.e.,when he is on holiday.A situation of anomie can thus be considered as predispos- ing him for travel.However anomie is not just present in cities.The habitant of a village may suffer from it,albeit for a different reason,namely over-personal contact and lack of privacy.In an attempt to avoid the prying and gossiping,he may isolate himself,where once more the need for social interaction manifests itself.Anomie can induce a travel-response in rural tourists too. EGO-ENHANCEMENT Like anomie,ego-enhancement derives from the level of personality needs(6,p.) Just as there is a need for social interaction,so too does man require to be recognized. Analogous to the desire for a bodily tune-up is the need to have one's ego enhanced or boosted from time to time.In sociological parlance,the desire for such recognition by others is often described in terms of"status."Where ambition is a cultural maxim,then there will also be the theoretical tendency for man to desire higher status,by means of which he will feel superior to those below him on the ladder of success.However,in the potential tourist's home situation,he has already been assigned a social position by his contemporaries,a position from which it is difficult to advance rapidly.And yet man's ego requires that such advancement be made Consequently,alternative strategies are employed to enhance the ego than that traditionally based on socio-economic status.One such strategy is that of travel. A tourist can go to a place where his social position is unknown and where he can feel superior by dint of this lack of knowledge.Additionally,on his return a further boost can be given to his ego in the recounting of his holiday experiences--trip dropping (6,p.124).If he goes to a prestige resort then he can assume greater status by paying a great deal or by mixing with an exclusive set.If he goes to a corner of the world relatively poorer than his own then he may obtain satisfaction of his need in lording it over the host community.Only travel provides such an opportunity for self recognition. ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH,Mar/Apr'77 187GRAHAM M.S. DANN However, to the best of one's knowledge, anomie has not been associated with tourism. Now, given that the potential tourist lives in an anomic society along with everyone else, it is strange that the connection between his home situation and his leisure patterns has not been thoroughly investigated. A sensing of the connection between "what makes tourists travel" and the anomic society from which they come thus acts as a hallmark for the current theoretical perspective. It is claimed that a possible "push" factor for travel lies in the desire to transcend the feeling of isolation obtained in everyday life, where the tourist simply wishes to "get away from it all." Underlying the hypothesis is the need that man has for love and affection and the desire to communicate to his fellow man. However, if he lives in a large town or city, this possibility is often denied him. His commuting and his work account for most of the day, and what little remaining time he has at home is often spent in front of the television. His exhaustion permits only limited conversation with his wife and children, let alone friends and neighbors or relations. Yet the need for social inter￾action is still present. Hence it can only be fulfilled away from the home environment, i.e., when he is on holiday. A situation of anomie can thus be considered as predispos￾ing him for travel. However anomie is not just present in cities. The habitant of a village may suffer from it, albeit for a different reason, namely over-personal contact and lack of privacy. In an attempt to avoid the prying and gossiping, he may isolate himself, where once more the need for social interaction manifests itself. Anomie can induce a travel-response in rural tourists too. EGO-ENHANCEMENT Like anomie, ego-enhancement derives from the level of personality needs. (6' P" 118) Just as there is a need for social interaction, so too does man require to be recognized. Analogous to the desire for a bodily tune-up is the need to have one's ego enhanced or boosted from time to time. In sociological parlance, the desire for such recognition by others is often described in terms of "status." Where ambition is a cultural maxim, then there will also be the theoretical tendency for man to desire higher status, by means of which he will feel superior to those below him on the ladder of success. However, in the potential tourist's home situation, he has already been assigned a social position by his contemporaries, a position from which it is difficult to advance rapidly. And yet man's ego requires that such advancement be made. Consequently, alternative strategies are employed to enhance the ego than that traditionally based on socio-economic status. One such strategy is that of travel. A tourist can go to a place where his social position is unknown and where he can feel superior by dint of this lack of knowledge. Additionally, on his return a further boost can be given to his ego in the recounting of his holiday experiences--trip dropping (6, p. 124). If he goes to a prestige resort then he can assume greater status by paying a great deal or by mixing with an exclusive set. If he goes to a corner of the world relatively poorer than his own then he may obtain satisfaction of his need in lording it over the host community. Only travel provides such an opportunity for self recognition. ANNALS OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Mar/Apr '77 187