Born in a tour guide’s family: how can tourism employment fuel intergenerational social mobility?

Tourism employment, particularly as a tour guide, can significantly boost intergenerational social mobility by fostering economic growth, expanding social and cultural capital, and enhancing symbolic capital (mianzi). A study of 22 tour guide families in Wulingyuan, China—a site where tourism has been the primary economic driver for over four decades—revealed that such jobs enable households to accumulate financial resources, build valuable professional networks, acquire workplace knowledge, and improve social standing. These benefits can be passed down to offspring, facilitating upward mobility across generations. Effective parenting plays a crucial role in transferring these advantages. The research underscores the long-term societal benefits of frontline tourism roles, offering insights for sustainable development policies.

Xu, D., Li, G., Zhang, C., & Yang, Y. (2023). Born in a tour guide’s family: how can tourism employment fuel intergenerational social mobility? Current Issues in Tourism, 27(22), 3697–3714. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2023.2271630