Consumer Behaviour of Silver Singles on the E-Tourist Market (Zachowania konsumenckie srebrnych singli na rynku e-turystycznym)

Purpose: To identify the consumption behaviours of singles aged 60+ (running single-person households) on the e-tourism market and to identify barriers to the use of this type of services, taking into account socio-demographic and economic factors. Design/methodology/approach: A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from 96 elderly Polish singles using (or not using) e-tourism. The survey was administered using the Computer-Assisted Web Interview method. Next, the answers were analysed with the use of advanced statistical tools (the??Bonferroni method). Findings: 52% of the respondents have used tourist e-services at least once in the last two years. Most often, they searched for accommodation, trips, air and rail connections, purchased tickets in connection with a??tourist trip, and searched for tourist offers on the Internet. Financial reasons and the lack of needs in this area were recognized as the dominant barriers to participation in e-tourism. Socio-demographic factors, i.e. gender, education, age and place of running a single-person household and economic factors shaped the behaviour of the respondents on the e-market discussed. Research limitations/implications: Firstly, a??limited number of respondents does not allow for the generalization of the results. Secondly, as the study involved the use of a??survey, the subjective interpretation of questions and a declarative nature of responses could have affected the results. Thirdly, the reasons for running a single-person household were not the focus of the study. Practical implications: The results can be used to develop more effective marketing strategies in tourism e-business and to manage the leisure time of elderly “silver” singles effectively. Originality/value: Research into the participation of elderly singles in e-tourism as a manifestation of civilization megatrends, including demographic, social and technological trends.