Q-methodology and tourism research

Tourism research is in the midst of a ‘critical turn’ away from traditional positivist approaches, towards more reflective and critical paths of inquiry. This paper introduces readers to Q-methodology, a method of research that tourism researchers rarely use and that can provide useful information in critical tourism research concerning the exploration and comparison of subjectivity. The paper presents the fundamentals of the approach and provides examples of its application in tourism and other areas that may directly interest tourism researchers. In so doing, the paper encourages and facilitates the use of Q-methodology amongst tourism researchers interested in enhancing the nature and richness of their methodological alternatives for developing tourism knowledge.     

Gastrodiplomacy in tourism

This conceptual paper articulates gastrodiplomacy in tourism as an area of study and policy. Gastrodiplomacy, the strategic use of cuisine in influencing perceptions of a nation, is positioned within the public diplomacy spectrum, and the intersections among food, tourism and diplomacy – in theory and practice – are investigated. The roles of food and tourism in nation branding are explored, leading to a detailed exposition on the multiple ways in which tourism is implicated in national gastrodiplomacy campaigns, as well as in grassroots “citizen diplomacy” involving food. The “ambassadorial” roles performed by people and the various “zones of contact” at which gastrodiplomacy in tourism is played out are identified as aspects of particular relevance for study. The paper calls for more integrated and holistic approaches to gastrodiplomacy in tourism, both in research and in policy, that address the tourism “foodscape” of a nation as a whole, as a realm of diplomatic potential.     

An Email-Based Delphi Approach to Tourism Program Evaluation: Involving Stakeholders in Research Design

A panel of key stakeholders was consulted in the design of a survey being used for evaluating the Tapestry Tourism Futures Project – a systems-based modelling project in the south-west of Western Australia. The email-based Delphi consultation approach that was adopted was seen as a means of increasing the relevance of the outcomes to stakeholders. It is argued that this approach resulted in the participation of a diverse range of stakeholders in a time- and cost-efficient manner. However, some limitations of the method in terms of the provision of adequate feedback and direction are noted. It is concluded that through close liaison between the panel coordinator and advisory panel participants, an email-based Delphi process constitutes a highly effective consultation method for involving stakeholders in tourism research design.     

The role of quantitative and qualitative research in industrial studies of tourism

Many areas of research in tourism concentrate on quantitative or qualitative studies. Some even discuss the complementarity between the two types of studies. Hardly considered are the possibilities for combining such works within an integrated framework that also considers the business environment in which tourism operates. The purpose of this paper is to return to long neglected possibilities by reinvestigating areas of methodology and epistemology concerned with the generation of a framework that embraces both quantitative and qualitative research. A hypothetical example, in terms of industrial organisation and strategic decision making, is introduced discussing the possibilities for the triangulation of methods and paradigms and the role of the business environment. The conclusion is that an improved understanding of the tourism business requires a broader research methodology than presently exists. Both types of research and the dynamic context of tourism are important and need to be combined within an integrated framework. It has been concerned with the construction of integrating frameworks that embrace an alternative logic of inference and the context of the tourism business environment. This requires refinements of existing approaches together with a broader research methodology. Only by establishing such frameworks will an improved understanding of the tourism industry be achieved. The suggested framework presented here, with particular reference to industrial organisation and strategic decision making by tourism suppliers, is not offered as a panacea. For future work, the validity and choice of framework rest squarely on how the world and ‘truth’ are viewed. However, within this, the contribution of triangulated quantitative and qualitative research should help understanding by studying phenomena in their natural setting and in terms of the meanings people have of them. This should lead to a ‘truer analysis’ of business behaviour and hence a more purposeful investigation of hotels, tour operators, travel agents and the business of tourism in general. It is in seeking to produce this ‘truer analysis’ that future research activities need to concentrate. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Growth Versus Equity: The Continuum of Pro-Poor Tourism and Neoliberal Governance

This paper proposes a model which integrates tourism in a continuum of poverty alleviation strategies within the antipodes of neo-liberalism and protectionism. It is argued that despite growing evidence in favour of regulative and (re)distributive approaches that in practice come closer to protectionism than neoliberalism, the most influential international organisations, as well as governments worldwide, follow a largely neoliberal laissez-faire approach to poverty alleviation coupled with market-friendly ‘pro-poor’ supplements. This paper argues that tourism per se fits very well into neoliberal interpretations of poverty alleviation, while it tends to aggravate poverty-enhancing inequalities if allowed to operate in a free market environment. Drawing on evidence from current research into poverty alleviation, it is argued that in order to be pro-poor, growth must deliver disproportionate benefits to the poor to reduce inequalities which have been found to limit the potential for poverty alleviation. Hence, it is necessary to shift policy focus from growth to equity, which calls for strong institutions capable of regulating the tourism industry and distributing assets in order to facilitate ‘pro-poor growth’. In this respect, this paper challenges the conventional pro-poor tourism approach with its implicit growth-bias, where strategies are judged as pro-poor if they deliver net benefits to ‘the poor’ even if ‘the rich’ benefit disproportionately. However, through a contextualisation with the reality of politico-economic governance, this paper shows that strategies enhancing equity through shifting benefits towards the poor and, importantly, the poorest, are unlikely to be pursued in practice given policy-makers' neoliberal bias and systemic constraints. Hence, only strategies that are largely in sync with a neoliberal ideology and the ‘World Bank orthodoxy’, such as industry self-regulation or government incentives, have much potential to be implemented on a large-scale basis. More radical approaches such as pro-poor regulation and distribution – the equity side of the continuum – are bound to remain predominantly rhetoric of some United Nations organisations.     

Exploratory study in tourism: designing an initial,qualitative phase of sequenced,mixed methods research

Exploratory studies in the social sciences are being increasingly advocated, particularly in relation to new research themes or when addressing an existing issue from a new perspective. Although exploration is usually the starting point, it is frequently part of a sequence of research stages. However, until recently the actual process of conducting such exploratory research within the leisure and tourism field has received little attention. This is due not just to perceptions that exploration is merely the initial step in a longer research process, but significantly, because there is a lack of guidance on how to conduct such research. This paper argues that when the overall tourism research study involves the use of mixed methods, an initial exploratory stage conducted as part of a sequential research process, requires a systematic approach to achieve a reliable platform for further investigation. The paper shows how and why a systematic research design process in the exploratory stage can enhance the value of studies, when the initial qualitative stage is to be followed by a quantitative phase. Three phases of an exploratory qualitative research design process are identified: preparation, development and refinement. Criteria for assessing the suitability of qualitative data collection techniques are proposed. It is argued that careful attention to the process of designing the initial exploratory qualitative stage constitutes the necessary condition for achieving results that will form a sound basis for the next quantitative sequence of research. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Inbound tourism and long-run economic growth

There is an upsurge of literature investigating the relationship between inbound tourism expansion and economic growth with special emphasis on developing countries. Some countries – such as Spain and Italy – can be taken as examples of demonstrating such a successful trajectory. This paper provides an empirical investigation of the evolution of the Spanish and Italian economies and their respective tourism sectors from the 1950s and 1960s, respectively. This research is theoretically based on the literature on demand-based growth and the methodology adopted is that of the integration, cointegration and multivariate Granger causality tests. The results show the influencing role of inbound tourism for both economies.     

Tourism and Post-Disciplinary Enquiry

In recent times there has been discussion about whether studies of tourism are variously a disciplinary, multi-disciplinary or inter-disciplinary pursuit and how these relate to the institutional landscapes and practices of higher education. For some academics, these discourses are somewhat arid, but we would contend they are vital as they serve to set the epistemological terms of references for tourism scholars and play a not insignificant role in orchestrating knowledge production about tourism. This paper revisits some of these concerns relating to disciplinarity, and it suggests that disciplines as we understand them today are an artefact of previous academic divisions of labour which still dominate current institutional regulatory regimes. The purpose of the paper is to suggest that tourism studies would benefit greatly from a post-disciplinary outlook, i.e. a direction ‘beyond disciplines’ which is more problem-focused, based on more flexible modes of knowledge production, plurality, synthesis and synergy. Three possible approaches to the post-disciplinary study of tourism are identified by drawing on lessons from studies of political economy. While post-disciplinary studies of tourism have considerable potential to further our understanding of several major contemporary research themes, their introduction may be frustrated by the tourism academy and frameworks of academic governance.     

Marketing practice in small tourism and hospitality firms

There has been a paucity of research into the marketing practices and approaches of small tourism and hospitality firms, until the 1990s. This paper goes some way towards improving knowledge in this area by reporting the findings of the first national survey of small tourism and hospitality firms in the UK. Four key areas of marketing practice are highlighted: marketing planning, promotion methods, pricing methods and marketing research. The paper concludes that although a great deal of small hospitality and tourism firm marketing may be characterised as haphazard and unsophisticated, there is much to commend it in the UK. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Social network analysis in tourism

Elements such as tourists, service-oriented organizations, tourism resources, destinations and public institutions all have a role in tourism activity. If we are to understand the world of tourism, we need to examine the ties between these elements. Social network analysis (SNA) provides tourism research with a set of methods and tools that allow us to comprehend the patterns and the structures of these ties. The objective of this work is to establish how SNA is being applied to tourism, to describe its principal elements and to inquire into its potential in the development of tourism research. To do so, the articles that apply SNA research methods, published in tourism and hospitality journals, and the network of citations between their authors are all analysed. It was found that the application of SNA in tourism-related contexts is rare and very recent, although a cohesive and relevant group of authors is currently applying it. An exciting opportunity for tourism research becomes apparent with the use of SNA and future lines of research are presented in which its methods may be applied.     

Developing a geocollaboratory for Indigenous tourism research

Collaboratories have been defined as virtual places where collaborative research can be undertaken. As part of the Aboriginal Tourism Network (ABORINET), a geocollaboratory was developed to support Indigenous tourism research. Indigenous communities are culturally distinct and remotely located and this presents geographic and sociocultural constraints when conducting research on issues affecting these communities. ABORINET's development focused on the specific goal of enabling collaboration between researchers and Indigenous peoples on issues related to Indigenous tourism planning and management, and the general issue of enabling the sharing of differing knowledge and management approaches among research and Indigenous communities. The purpose was to develop a multi-scale and multi-method data collection and analysis protocol for better understanding Indigenous tourism in a way that supports multi-site and longitudinal comparisons, for connecting Indigenous communities across the world, and for sharing the results in ways that are meaningful to stakeholders within and beyond Indigenous communities. This paper outlines the development of the geocollaboratory and describes the lessons learned with specific attention afforded the geographical nature of the collaboratory. Recommendations for mitigating challenges are proposed and future research opportunities are identified.     

Re-creation tourism: de-extinction and its implications for nature-based recreation

Recent rapid developments in biotechnology and genomics mean that ‘de-extinction’ – the resurrection of extinct species – is now a real possibility. The opportunity to see living examples of long-dead creatures has important implications (benefits and risks) for nature-based tourism. This paper introduces the topic of de-extinction, briefly discusses how it relates to tourism and indicates areas for further research.     

Moving beyond positivism: reflexive collaboration in understanding agritourism across North American boundaries

Extant agritourism studies have employed positivistic methodologies and quantitative approaches. As such, these approaches have predominately concluded that economics motives the diversification in agritourism at the expense of uncovering the complexity of multiple factors involved. Captured in this paper are the experiences of two, independent North American (agri)tourism researchers who used interpretative research approaches, specifically interpretative phenomenological analysis and appreciative inquiry, for getting at a deeper understanding of the complexity of agritourism on family farms. Agritourism is revealed as a transitional process, and supporting farms getting into agritourism would best be accomplished through building business skills and entrepreneurial capacities. Likewise, networks are critical, especially farmer-to-farmer connections. Interpretative research methods uncovered a more holistic and complex understanding of agritourism. This perspective will better inform farmers, their families, as well as policy-makers when they design and implement new businesses, programmes, and policies in the best interest of farm families and rural communities.     

Deconstructing the indigenous in tourism. The production of indigeneity in tourism-oriented labelling and handicraft/souvenir development in Northern Europe

ABSTRACT

In literature on tourism in northern or ‘Arctic’ areas and on regions and places in northern areas, terms such as ‘indigenous’ and ‘non-indigenous’ are often used to distinguish people and places from each other. The aim of this paper is to deconstruct the ‘indigenous’/‘non-indigenous’ categories as well as the geographical categories to which they are linked, using examples from tourism in northern Fennoscandia and northwest Russia, selected as areas with circumstances that vary greatly both locally and regionally. Specific focus is on the construction of labels and restrictions of use, particularly regarding handicrafts/souvenirs as a specific object of indigeneity to separate it from other objects. The study reviews the processes in tourism for constructing, labelling, and valuing – and thereby also exerting power upon – specific conceptions, and thereby also on the contesting of such processes amongst broader, but often unacknowledged, local groups.     

Strategies for antiracist representation: ethnic tourism guides in Chicago

Researchers often frame tour guides in narrow and agency-revoking ways and theorize an ethnic tourism industry in which marginalized racial/ethnic communities are represented as the Other. In this research, I argue that tour guides in Chicago's urban ethnic neighborhoods resist some of the prevailing racialized constructions of their communities by employing strategies of antiracist representation. As ‘representational strategists’, tour guides use ethnic tourism to develop strategies that put forward alternative – even antiracist – representations of marginalized communities. Through a Chicago tourism project, guides construct representations of their communities that (1) invert the relationship of the host community and visitors by constructing the tourists as the Other; (2) articulate a social history of oppression and resistance; (3) expose the community's social problems such as gentrification, and identify their structural causes; and (4) connect the shared experiences between communities of color. These representational strategies defy the normalized practices of ethnic tourism, as well as the mechanisms of racism, and can be important tools in resisting ideological constructions that perpetuate inequality. They attest to the ways marginalized groups can use representation as an important tool in struggles to define themselves, resist silencing and invisibilization, and challenge some of the assumptions and practices that reproduce their marginalization.     

Small firms in the tourism industry: some conceptual issues

Public policy to promote small business development is an established feature of the political landscape throughout western Europe. In a tourism context, there is a growing interest in the small business dimension, in both academic and policy terms. Yet, research relating to small firms does not appear to inform policy development. This paper argues that such a situation is exacerbated, if not precipitated, by a lack of common understanding about terminology and reasons for categorisation. The paper explores various definitions of ‘small tourism firms’ and examines the utility of adopting such a grouping as an analytical category. Following a critical review of statistics relating to the sector, it argues that additional research is required so that policy initiatives might be more finely focused. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Potential for Appreciative Inquiry in Tourism Research

Tourism is an engine of economic growth, but its capacity to contribute to good health is only starting to be documented. This paper describes a forthcoming research project with the Ethiopian immigrant community in the Australian state of Victoria. The project aims to discover if writing about positive holiday experiences that involve visits to friends and relatives improves the community's mental health – alleviates depression levels and increases levels of happiness. The role of holidays in improving mental health is of increasing interest to the tourism industry. This research note highlights the importance of understanding the benefits of holidays for individual well-being; this paper outlines a methodological approach for investigating these benefits.     

The Role of the Tourism Industry in Transforming a Rentier to a Long-Term Viable Economy: The Case of Bahrain

During the past four decades, the tourism industry has emerged as one of the leading industries worldwide. In the Arab countries, however, despite its huge potential, the tourism industry is still in its infancy phase. With the exception of only a few countries, until recently most of the Arab countries almost ignored the economic potential of tourism. Since the 1990s, their traditional attitude of neglect toward the tourism industry has undergone a transformation, a fact that was not lost by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Thus, since the mid-1990s, all of the GCC countries, without exception, have been trying to promote their tourism sector, which soon became a prominent economic sector. The paper concentrates on one tourism development case – that of Bahrain – the least ‘rentier’ within the GCC oil-economies. The main research question addressed by this paper is to what extent Bahrain has introduced a cohesive and economically viable tourism industry that contributes to a more sustainable economy of this country. This exploratory paper examines Bahrain's motivation to promote tourism; its tourism comparative advantage; the major difficulties facing Bahrain's further tourism expansion; and the overall role of the tourism industry in the Bahraini economy.     

Twenty‐Five Years of Word‐of‐Mouth Studies: A Critical Review of Tourism Research

It has been 25 years that the topic of word of mouth (WOM) related to the tourism industry has been addressed in top‐level marketing journals. However, there has not yet been a thorough synthesis of the articles, nor has there been an analysis of the approach and the direction the research has taken. This article will try to address that deficiency, collecting and analysing 25 five years of research following this stream, utilizing a literature review technique known as the paradigm funnel. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.