Author: Sebastian Benad

Why do people set off? What are they looking for in faraway places? And why can a trip not only relax, but also influence perception, thinking and personal development? Prof. Dr. Martina Zschocke from the Faculty of Managerial and Cultural Studies at Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences addresses these questions in her new book "Reisepsychologie. Why people go on trips", which was published by UVK Verlag in 2026.

The book combines psychological principles, tourism science perspectives and practical examples. It is aimed at students, teachers, researchers and people working in tourism who want to gain a better understanding of the motives, expectations and experiences that shape travel.

The book focuses on the four phases of travel: the time before the trip, being on the road, arriving and the phase after returning. Prof. Dr. Zschocke examines which psychological processes influence travel decisions, what role personality and life situation play and why certain places, landscapes and forms of travel can have particularly strong effects.

It is not just about classic vacation motives such as recreation, variety or relaxation. The book also looks at how travel can promote creativity and cognitive flexibility, why movement, sensory perception and a sense of time are of particular importance when traveling and how travel affects the body, psyche, memory and identity.

A special emphasis is also placed on current developments: Travel behavior today is also shaped by social media, travel photography and digital recommendation apps. The publication thus addresses issues that are equally relevant to tourism, communication and management.

"Travel Psychology" is suitable for teaching and learning at colleges and universities as well as for tourism practice. The publication combines theoretical principles with numerous examples and practical impulses. This makes it a very good fit for the profile of the Faculty of Managerial and Cultural Studies, which combines professional expertise, interdisciplinary perspectives and practical application.

A special design element of the book are artistic works by José Augusto Castro. They structure individual sections of the publication and provide additional access to the topic of travel: not only analytically, but also visually and atmospherically.

The book comprises 358 pages and has been published under ISBN 978-3-8252-6190-0. It is available as a printed and digital edition.

Prof. Dr. Martina Zschocke's expertise is also in demand in national media. She was a guest on the WELT science podcast "Aha! Ten minutes of everyday knowledge" in the episode "Why we travel and what it does to us". Among other things, it deals with the question of why people want to escape from everyday life, why some people seek out new things more than others and how travel can influence perception, mood and personality development.

Hessischer Rundfunk also took up the topic of travel. The program "DER TAG" from April 28, 2026, entitled "Route 66: Freedom in the Rearview Mirror", focused on the symbolic meaning of one of the most famous travel routes in the world. Route 66 not only stands for mobility and wanderlust, but also for ideas of freedom, new beginnings and biographical self-positioning.

For the Faculty of Managerial and Cultural Studies, this media attention shows how connectable scientific perspectives on tourism, leisure, psychology and social change are. At the same time, it makes visible how research and teaching at the HSCG address topics that are relevant far beyond the university context.