Using drawings to explore images of Vienna

This article illustrates how drawing has been employed as a stand-alone method to research destination image. Despite arguments for unstructured approaches to learn about how people conceive places, few tourism researchers have explored the potential of the drawing technique. We sought to address this methodological gap by collecting visual data that would capture a more holistic image of a destination. Thus, 88 drawings of Vienna, the Austrian capital, were collected among a student population of past visitors and nonvisitors. Content analysis and compositional interpretation were used to identify relevant attributes about Vienna, and to flesh out the destination's affective dimension. We used a biplot to visually represent the research findings from the two groups. Although exploratory, this study reveals the potential of drawings as a tool to research destination images held by both past visitor and nonvisitor groups.