Date of Award

Fall 12-12-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Department

Political Science

College

College of Education and Social Sciences

First Advisor

Richard Aidoo

Abstract/Description

This study examines the U.S. Travel Advisory and its economic impact on foreign nations, with a focus on Turkey between 2016 and 2024. Grounded in the theories of functional and asymmetrical interdependence, this approach employs a mixed-methods design, combining quantitative analysis of tourism revenue, GDP, and GNI with qualitative examination of geopolitical events that may raise or lower the Travel Advisory rating. Rather than assuming the advisory acts as a tool of coercive foreign policy, this study tests whether advisory changes meaningfully shape Turkey’s economic performance or whether they simply reflect moments of instability inside the country. The findings support the latter. Turkey’s tourism sector reacts to global disruptions and shifts in perceived safety, but its broader economy follows its own path. Even when Turkey held a Level 3 advisory (2017-2019), tourism revenue continued to grow. When the rating dropped to Level 2 (2022-23), the larger economy expanded due to internal reforms and the worldwide reopening, rather than the advisory itself. This pattern shows sensitivity without vulnerability: tourism responds to global conditions, but notional economic outcomes remain on their own independent path. These results reinforce that the U.S. Travel Advisory does not exert a coercive influence over Turkey’s economic sovereignty. Instead, functional interdependence, rather than dependency theory, offers a clearer lens for understanding tourism and economic relations between two developed, globally integrated states.

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