Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity is one of the best-known theoretical models in the travel and tourism industry. Since Plog’s seminal work on the rise and fall of tourism destinations, back in 1974, a vast amount of subsequent research has been based on or derived from this concept, so it is an important model for anyone studying tourism. But what is Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity?
This article explains, in simple language, what this fundamental tourism model is, how it works, its strengths and weaknesses, and why it is so important for students and for people working in the tourism industry.
- What is Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity?
- How did Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity come about?
- Why Destination Areas Rise and Fall in Popularity
- Plog’s tourist typology
- Positive aspects of Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
- Negative aspects of Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
- Key takeaways about Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
- To conclude: Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
What is Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity?
Stanley Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity has been widely taught and cited for more than 50 years, and it appears on many tourism courses, from A Level and BTEC to university degrees.
Plog’s model is largely regarded as a cornerstone of tourism theory. This model has provided the foundations for many other studies throughout the past five decades and has helped tourism industry stakeholders to better comprehend and manage their tourism provision.
Plog’s work was the precursor to Butler’s Tourism Area Lifecycle. Plog wanted to examine the way in which tourism destinations develop. How do they grow? How and why do they decline? How can we make (relatively) accurate predictions to help us to better manage the tourism provision at hand?
Plog’s research found that there were (are) distinct correlations between the appeal of a destination to different types of tourists and the rise and fall in popularity of a destination.
Plog essentially delineated these types of tourists according to their personalities. He then plotted these along a continuum in a bell-shaped, normally distributed curve. This curve identified the rise and fall of destinations.
Put simply, Plog’s theory demonstrates that the popularity of a destination will rise and fall over time depending on which types of tourists find the destination appealing.
How did Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity come about?
To understand the model, it helps to know why Plog carried out his research.
Plog’s research began back in 1967, when he worked for market-research company, Behavior Science Corporation (also known as BASICO). Plog was working on a consulting project, whereby he was sponsored by sixteen domestic and foreign airlines, airframe manufacturers, and various magazines. The intention was to examine and understand the psychology of certain segments of travellers.
During this time, the commercial aviation industry was only just developing. Airlines wanted to better understand their potential customers. They wanted to turn non-flyers into flyers, and they wanted Plog to help. This saw the birth of Plog’s research into tourism motivation, that later spanned into decades of research into the subject.
Why Destination Areas Rise and Fall in Popularity
Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity demonstrated that destinations rise and fall in popularity in accordance with the types of tourists who find the destination appealing.
Essentially, Plog suggested that as a destination grows and develops (and also declines), it attracts different types of people.
Example: Tortuguero versus a mass tourism resort
Tortuguero, on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, is famous for the sea turtles that nest on its beaches. It is difficult to reach- there are no roads into the village- and development is limited, which helps to protect the turtles’ nesting grounds.
Visitors usually travel for several hours by road and then by boat along the canals to reach Tortuguero, and there are relatively few places to stay.
The people who visit Tortuguero have made a real effort to get there- the journey would put many tourists off.
In contrast, highly developed resorts such as Kuşadası in Turkey or Benidorm in Spain have crowded beaches, busy restaurants and every facility tourists could want.
In such resorts, tourists can find all the home comforts they want- international fast food chains, fairground rides, water parks, watersports and much more. These areas are highly developed for tourism and attract very different types of tourists from places like Tortuguero.
Plog pointed out that as a destination reaches a point in which it is widely popular with a well-established image, the types of tourist will be different from those who will have visited before the destination became widely developed. In other words, the mass tourism market attracts very different people from the niche and non-mass tourism fields.
Plog also pointed out that as the area eventually loses positioning in the tourism market, the total tourist arrivals decrease gradually over the years, and the types of tourists who are attracted to the destination will once again change.
Plog’s tourist typology
Plog developed a typology. A typology is basically a way to group people, or classify them, based on certain characteristics. In this case, Plog classifies tourists based on their motivations.
Note: Plog has suggested the updated terms ‘dependables’ and ‘venturers’ to replace psychocentric and allocentric, but these have not been generally adopted in the literature
Plog examined traveller motivations and came up with his classifications of tourists. He came up with two classifications (allocentric and psychocentric), which were then put at the extremes of a scale.
In the diagram above, psychocentric tourists are placed on the far left of the scale and allocentric tourists are placed at the far right. The idea is then that a tourist can be situated at any place along the scale.
The terms allocentric and psychocentric are explained below.
Allocentric tourists
In Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity, the allocentric tourist is most likely associated with destinations that are un(der)developed. These tourists might be the first tourists to visit an area. They may be the first intrepid explorers, the ones brave enough to travel to the ‘unknown’. These are the types of people who might travel to Tortuguero in the example above.
Allocentric tourists like adventure. They are not afraid of the unknown. They like to explore. They are happy to try unfamiliar food, find their way around without speaking the local language and cope without home comforts.
Allocentric tourists are often found travelling alone. They are not fazed that the destination they are visiting doesn’t have a chapter in their guidebook. In fact, they are excited by the prospect of travelling to a place that most people have never heard of!
Allocentric tourists enjoy cultural tourism, they are ethical travellers and they love to learn.
Research has suggested that only 4% of the population is predicted to be purely allocentric. Whilst many people do have allocentric tendencies, they are more likely to sit further along Plog’s scale and be classified as near-allocentrics or mid-centrics.
The common characteristics of allocentric travellers are summarised below.
Allocentric tourists commonly:
- Travel independently
- Excited by adventure
- Eager to learn
- Like to experience the unfamiliar
- Are put off by group tours, packages and mass tourism
- Enjoy cultural tourism
- Are ethical tourists
- Enjoy a challenge
- Are advocates of sustainable tourism
- Embrace slow tourism
Psychocentric tourists
Psychocentric tourists are located at the opposite end of the spectrum to allocentric tourists.
In Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity, psychocentric tourists are most commonly associated with areas that are well-developed or over-developed for tourism. Many people will have visited the area before them- it has been tried and tested. These tourists feel secure knowing that their holiday choice will provide them with the comforts and familiarities that they know and love. They are more likely to spend their time by the pool, rely on the holiday rep for information and choose all-inclusive packages.
Psychocentric tourists travel in organised groups. Their holidays are typically organised for them by their travel agent. These travellers seek the familiar. They are happy in the knowledge that their holiday resort will provide them with their home comforts.
The standard activity level of psychocentric tourists is low. These tourists enjoy holiday resorts and all inclusive packages. They are components of enclave tourism, meaning that they are likely to stay put in their hotel for the majority of the duration of their holiday. These are often repeat tourists, who choose to visit the same destination year-on-year.
The main characteristics of psychocentric tourists are summarised below.
Psychocentric tourists commonly:
- Enjoy familiarity
- Like to have their home comforts whilst on holiday
- Give preference to known brands
- Travel in organised groups
- Enjoy organised tours, package holidays and all-inclusive tourism
- Like to stay within their holiday resort
- Do not experience much of the local culture
- Do not learn much about the area that they are visiting or people that live there
- Pay one flat fee to cover the majority of holiday costs
- Are regular visitors to the same area/resort
Mid-centric tourists
The reality is, not many tourists neatly fit into either the allocentric or psychocentric categories. And this is why Plog developed a scale, whereby tourists can be placed anywhere along the spectrum.
In the diagram above, the largest category of tourists fall somewhere within the mid-centric category on the spectrum. Tourists can lean towards allocentric, or psychocentric, but ultimately, they sit somewhere in the middle.
Mid-centric tourists like some adventure, but also some of their home comforts. Perhaps they book their holiday themselves through dynamic packaging, but then spend the majority of their time in their holiday resort. Or maybe they book an organised package, but then choose to break away from the crowd and explore the local area.
Most tourists can be classified as mid-centric.
Video: Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity made simple
Positive aspects of Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity has been widely cited throughout the academic literature for many years. It is a cornerstone theory in travel and tourism research that has formed the basis for further research and analysis in a range of contexts.
Plog’s theory preceded that of Butler, which is subsequently intertwined with Plog’s model, as demonstrated in the image below. Butler was able to develop his Tourism Area Lifecycle based on the premise of the rise and fall of destinations as prescribed by Plog.
Plog’s theory has encouraged critical thinking throughout the tourism community for several decades and it is difficult to find a textbook that doesn’t pay reference to his work.
Negative aspects of Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
Whilst Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity is widely cited, it is not without its critique. In fact, many academics have questioned it’s ‘real-world’ validity over the years. Some common criticisms include:
- The research is based on the US population, which may not be applicable for other nations
- The concepts of personality, appeal and motivation are subjective terms that may be viewed different by different people. This is exemplified when put onto the global stage, with differing cultural contexts.
- Not all destinations will move through the curved continuum prescribed by Plog, in other words- not all destinations will strictly follow this path
- It is difficult to categorise people into groups- behaviours and preferences change overtime and between different times of the year and days of the week. People may also change depending on who they are with.
Key takeaways about Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
So, what are the key takeaways about Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity?
- Psychocentrics are the majority of travelers who prefer familiar destinations, mainstream attractions, and predictable experiences. They tend to seek comfort, security, and convenience in their travels and are less likely to take risks or seek out new experiences.
- Allocentrics, on the other hand, are a minority of travelers who seek out unique and exotic destinations, adventure, and novelty. They are more willing to take risks and venture into unfamiliar territories in pursuit of new experiences.
- Plog’s model suggests that people’s travel preferences are determined by their personality traits, values, and life experiences.
- The model also proposes that travelers may move along a continuum from psychocentric to allocentric as they gain more experience and exposure to travel.
- Plog’s model has been criticized for oversimplifying travel motivations and not accounting for the diversity of motivations and preferences within each category.
- Despite its limitations, Plog’s model remains a useful tool for understanding tourist behavior and designing marketing strategies that target specific types of travelers.
Plog’s model: FAQs
Below are answers to some of the most common questions about Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity.
What is Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity?
Plog’s model, published in 1974, classifies tourists by personality along a scale from psychocentric (cautious travellers who prefer familiar, well-developed destinations) to allocentric (adventurous travellers who seek new, undeveloped destinations), with most people being mid-centric. It explains why destinations rise and fall in popularity.
What is an allocentric tourist?
An allocentric tourist is an adventurous, independent traveller who seeks out new and undeveloped destinations, enjoys unfamiliar cultures and experiences and avoids mass tourism. Plog later called these tourists ‘venturers’.
What is a psychocentric tourist?
A psychocentric tourist prefers familiar, safe and well-developed destinations, often choosing package or all-inclusive holidays and returning to the same places. Plog later called these tourists ‘dependables’.
What is a mid-centric tourist?
Mid-centric tourists sit in the middle of Plog’s scale. They like some adventure but also some home comforts, and they make up the majority of tourists.
What are the criticisms of Plog’s model?
Criticisms include that it was based on US travellers, that personality is hard to measure, that people’s travel behaviour changes depending on the trip and who they travel with, and that not all destinations follow the pattern the model predicts.
To conclude: Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity remains one of the most important theories in tourism.
Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity is a core part of most tourism management curriculums and has helped tourism professionals understand, assess and manage their tourism provision for decades, and is likely to remain relevant for many years to come.
If you found this article on Plog’s model useful, you may also find these articles helpful: Butler’s Tourism Area Life Cycle, Cohen’s tourist typology and types of tourists.
