James Higham

Biography

Trudie completed her PhD in tourism at the University of Otago in 2014. She then worked as a Lecturer in Tourism, Leisure and Event Management at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia until April 2017 when she rejoined the Department of Tourism at Otago. Trudie is Associate Editor and Reviews Editor for the Annals of Leisure Research, serves on the Editorial Review Board of e-Review of Tourism Research, and is the Member Engagement Officer on the Board of the Australia and New Zealand Association for Leisure Studies. She is also a member of various academic tourism and leisure organisations.

Research Interest

Trudie has two main research foci within the fields of tourism and leisure, the first of which is second homes in New Zealand. She is particularly interested in how they are represented in a variety of non-tourism contexts (such as architecture magazines, newspapers and other popular media) and how these social constructions change over time. Second homes are often perceived to have tangible value in terms of tourism development in regional/peripheral areas. In addition, they have more intangible value for the owners as a facilitator of leisure experiences and a place to enhance or maintain a sense of wellbeing. These tangible and intangible values are also of interest to her.