Following Dajia Mazu Journey: A Study of Participation Experience and Social Interaction at Cultural Festival in Taiwan

• Main Authors: Andy Wen-jen Lai, 賴文仁
• Other Authors: Miao-Kuei Yen
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2012
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/g2t5zr

博士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 公民教育與活動領導學系 === 100 === By anthropology of tourism viewpoint, the cultural festival is regarded as the the social phenomenon of ritual tourism. By adopt of the approach of ethnography and phenomenology, the study took Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage as a fieldwork background. To achieve the purpose of this study, during the Pilgrimage period, the researcher played the observer-as-participant's role, to study the participants’ mental journey and behavior appearance, to study the participants with some other persons to be in the phenomenon of social interaction, as well as to study the participants’ perspectives for the development of Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage. The researcher carried out the field survey from 2008 to 2010. The pilot study got 5 subjects and the formal study acquired 27 subjects for the official interview. The study was by inductive analysis in order to obtain the findings as follow: regarding to participants’ experience process, the research finds two main categories which are the participants’ behavior appearance and experience process; while regarding to social interaction’s impression, has three main categories which are experience of interaction of interpersonal role, positive and negative impression for social interaction; inanother aspect of the participants’ perspectives for the development of Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage has three main categories which are flexible strategies of promotion accommodate social trend, participative trend by influence of processive life-style, and the core value of tradition spirit of Taiwanese. The study was to explore participants participated in Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage through the liminality experience of secular space-time process, in order to find the existential meaning, to experience the existential ritual practice of communitas, to settle secluded soul down, to make an introspection and enlightenment for body mind. Moreover, the participants have contradictory mental journey to get along with other persons, then gradually open their mental face in the workplace and every-day life regardless of social status and occupational position. The distinguishing characteristics of “the human nature is originally friendly” are to reveal afterward. Of course, in the period of festival, the hosts and guests are aware of liminality status to each other. This is to expresses the best communicative opportunities of friendly behavior on the both sides. Only the period of the Pilgrimage, the hosts treated the guests that are to ask nothing to return which call the exchange concept of “asymmetric reward”. In addition, to perspectives for the development of Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage from the viewpoints of the participants, there were many flexible strategies of promotion of Jenn Lann temple in Dajia which accommodate social trend to attract participants easily, and to be aware of participative trend by influence of processive life-style. However, the core value of tradition spirit of Taiwanese from the Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage is disclosured.