Eleni Michopoulou, Simon Darcy, Ivor Ambrose and Dimitros Buhalis
Accessible tourism is evolving as a field of academic research and industry practice, set within a dynamic social context. The field is interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary and…
Abstract
Purpose
Accessible tourism is evolving as a field of academic research and industry practice, set within a dynamic social context. The field is interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary. The purpose of this paper is to examine key concepts and global initiatives that will shape accessible tourism futures.
Design/methodology/approach
Three of the authors have extensive academic experience in the area and the fourth author is the Managing Director of the pre-eminent European Network for Accessible Tourism. In taking a limited Delphi approach to canvassing key areas likely to shape accessible tourism futures, the following concepts and policy initiatives were examined: motivations, dreams and aspirations of people with disability; demography; UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; destination competitiveness; universal design (UD); and the UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030.
Findings
A discussion of each of the above areas was placed in context to accessible tourism futures and to contextualise the papers that were selected for the special issue. The latter part of the paper outlines the contribution of each empirical paper to the issue discussing the approach, findings and implications. Stakeholder collaboration was identified as the key common theme of the papers and the factor for developing accessible tourism solutions, recognising the value of the market and capitalising on it. A collaborative approach is required to recognise the complementary nature of the different paradigms; to re-shape and transform the future of the accessible tourism industry. To assist in the development of accessible tourism futures, UD principles should provide a foundation to enhance the future competitiveness of tourism destinations and organisations.
Originality/value
The paper’s examination of the concepts and global policy considerations provides a strong academic and practitioner foundation for considering accessible tourism futures. In doing so, accessible tourism futures are shown to be affected by key concepts related to core tourism considerations and major policy initiatives on accessibility and sustainability. Yet, accessible tourism futures also have the potential to create their own momentum and contribute unique learnings on the diversity of tourism markets that will shape tourism concepts and global policy initiatives in their own right.
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Letitia Hadden, Aisling O’Riordan and Jeanne Jackson
Equality of rights for individuals who identify as being lesbian or gay (LG) have emerged over recent years, and significant advancements have been made in recognition and support…
Abstract
Purpose
Equality of rights for individuals who identify as being lesbian or gay (LG) have emerged over recent years, and significant advancements have been made in recognition and support of LG rights in Ireland. Given the recent change in legal rights for the LG population, Civil Partnership 2010 and Marriage Equality 2015, this paper aims to explore the lived experience of daily occupations of LG adult’s in Ireland today, by applying an occupational justice lens.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative phenomenological research study, examined the concept of occupational justice as experienced by eight adults, who identified as being LG. Data was collected through face to face, semi-structured interviews.
Findings
Four themes capturing the complexity of each participant’s experience of daily occupations and occupational justice emerged, namely, transitions and personal journeys, celebrating differences, empowerment through occupation and inner conflict. Findings demonstrate how occupational justice is experienced as a complex, contextually embedded and dynamic process specific to each individual.
Originality/value
Future research in this area should aim to explore the experiences of both a younger and older LG population, along with those who identify as bisexual, transgender, queer or intersex to continue to raise awareness of the potential for occupational injustice within this minority population.
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Veronica Chiodo, Francesco Gerli and Ambra Giuliano
The complexity of contemporary societal challenges in emerging countries reanimates the necessity of collective action to resolve them. What is required is system change, namely…
Abstract
Purpose
The complexity of contemporary societal challenges in emerging countries reanimates the necessity of collective action to resolve them. What is required is system change, namely, transformations in policy, practice, power relationships, market dynamics and social customs that underlie social and environmental issues. Technological innovations, paired with intentional social changes, might play a transformative role in this effort. This paper aims to investigate the relationship between the adoption of technologies in social enterprises (SEs) and their contribution to achieving system change. It also addresses the effects of their hybrid nature on this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
The analysis relied on data collected through a survey of the global population of Ashoka fellows, which is largely based in emerging economies. Three models were developed concerning different pathways to achieve system change identified in the theoretical framework. These were tested using Probit regressions.
Findings
The investigation confirms that technology can support SEs in navigating complex pathways to achieve system change rather than merely enabling linear scaling operational strategies. The pursuit of economic value creation, in conjunction with a social mission, decreases the ability of SEs to achieve system change. This is because the scaling paths which hardly create revenues are neglected.
Originality/value
The study conceptualises a multifaceted model of system change. It tests the framework empirically to show that SEs can adopt technologies to unleash complex system change processes to generate societal impact, on top of merely demonstrating linear approaches to scaling or replication. The paper questions the capacity of SEs to facilitate system change without appropriate financial support and the inherent tensions between hybridity and the depth of system change dynamics.
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Trinidad Domínguez Vila, Lucía Rubio-Escuderos and Elisa Alén González
Information and communication technologies are being increasingly used across various sectors including the tourism industry. However, equitable access to online information…
Abstract
Purpose
Information and communication technologies are being increasingly used across various sectors including the tourism industry. However, equitable access to online information remains a significant challenge, especially for people with disabilities (PwD). There is a pressing need for research into the accessibility of the internet to promote social equality. This study aims to identify patterns in both the technical accessibility and the content information related to accessibility and disability that is available on the official websites of leading global tourist destinations.
Design/methodology/approach
A cluster analysis assessed the technical accessibility of the websites, while a principal component analysis evaluated the content information concerning accessibility and disability.
Findings
There has been a substantial improvement in the technical accessibility of tourism websites over that described in earlier studies. There have been no advances in content information on accessibility and disability, which continues to be very heterogeneous and dispersed.
Originality/value
This evaluation of the technical accessibility and content related to accessibility and disability on tourism websites provides a basis for developing strategies to eliminate barriers that PwD encounter in accessing tourism information. To augment the efficacy of big data inputs, it is imperative to homogenise variables associated with technical access and content information on accessibility. Such standardisation will improve the functionality of algorithms critical to the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence technologies. These enhancements are likely to spur innovations that bridge the inequality gap and promote environments where technology serves as a cornerstone of social inclusion and equality.
目的
信息和通信技术在包括旅游业在内的很多行业的应用越来越广泛。 互联网是游客不可或缺的工具, 但并非每个人(在本研究中为残疾人、PwD)都能以相同的方式获取可用信息。有必要对无障碍使用互联网进行研究, 以促进社会平等。本研究旨在识别全球主要旅游目的地官方网站的技术可及性以及网站内容上有关可及性和残疾信息的规律。
设计/方法/途径
聚类分析评估了网站的技术可及性, 主成成分分析评估了网站的可及性和残疾的相关内容信息。
研究结果
与早期研究中描述的相比, 旅游网站的技术可访问性有了实质性的改善。关于无障碍和残疾的内容信息没有任何改善, 仍然非常异质性和分散性。
原创性
本研究对旅游网站的技术可及性以及有关可及性和残障人士的内容信息的评估为制定以消除残疾人旅游所面临的障碍的未来战略奠定了基础。为了提高大数据输入的有效性, 技术可及性和可及性内容信息相关的变量必须标准化和同质化。这将提高关键算法的效率,以增加物联网和人工智能技术的功能。这些改进可以促进创新, 缩小不平等差距, 并营造让技术成为社会包容和平等基石的环境因素。
Objetivo
Las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación (TIC) se utilizan cada vez más en diversos sectores, incluido el turístico. Sin embargo, el acceso equitativo a la información online sigue siendo un reto importante, especialmente para las personas con discapacidad. Existe una necesidad acuciante de investigar la accesibilidad de Internet para promover la igualdad social. Este estudio identifica patrones en la accesibilidad técnica y en el contenido de la información sobre accesibilidad y discapacidad disponible en las páginas web oficiales de los principales destinos turísticos mundiales.
Diseño/metodología/enfoque
Un análisis de conglomerados evaluó la accesibilidad técnica y un análisis de componentes principales analizó el contenido de la información sobre accesibilidad y discapacidad en los sitios web.
Resultados
Se constata una mejora sustancial en la accesibilidad técnica de las páginas web de turismo con respecto a los resultados de estudios anteriores. No ha habido avances en el contenido de la información sobre accesibilidad y discapacidad, que sigue siendo muy heterogénea y dispersa.
Originalidad
Esta evaluación de la accesibilidad técnica y del contenido de la información relativo a la accesibilidad y la discapacidad en las páginas web turísticas proporciona una base para desarrollar estrategias que eliminen las barreras con las que se encuentran las personas con discapacidad para acceder a la información turística. Para mejorar la eficacia de las entradas de big data, es necesario estandarizar las variables relacionadas con la accesibilidad técnica y el contenido de la información sobre accesibilidad. Esta normalización mejorará la funcionalidad de los algoritmos fundamentales para el internet de las cosas y las tecnologías de inteligencia artificial. Es probable que estas mejoras impulsen innovaciones que reduzcan la brecha de la desigualdad y promuevan entornos en los que la tecnología sirva como piedra angular de la inclusión social e igualdad.
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Lyndsay M.C. Hayhurst, Holly Thorpe and Megan Chawansky
Michela Cesarina Mason, Gioele Zamparo and Rubens Pauluzzo
Using retail banking as a setting and focusing specifically on elderly customers (i.e. individuals aged 60 or more), this study aims to deepen the current understanding of how the…
Abstract
Purpose
Using retail banking as a setting and focusing specifically on elderly customers (i.e. individuals aged 60 or more), this study aims to deepen the current understanding of how the physical context and the need for human interaction influence elderly customers' attitudes toward self-service technologies (SSTs) and their behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
Using face-to-face questionnaires, a sample of 505 elderly bank customers was collected. Data were analyzed using a multi-method approach, combining a moderated mediation analysis with a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis.
Findings
The findings suggest that a pleasant retail space may result in a positive attitude toward SSTs, which increases their co-creation intention. It also highlights that need for interaction of elderly customers with employees has detrimental effects on their attitude toward SSTs.
Research limitations/implications
The current analysis was carried out among Italian elderly banks' customers. Thus, the results are highly dependent on the context of the analysis. In addition, it does not consider the different degrees of knowledge and experience the elderly may have with technology.
Practical implications
This study suggests that providing access and support for using technology may be essential for banks to facilitate SSTs adoption in elderly customers.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to examine the influence of the physical context on elderly customers' attitudes toward SSTs and their consequent behavioral intentions. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of the human touch for these particular customers.
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Vassil Girginov and Holger Preuss
Intangible legacy encapsulates the essence of Olympism and its manifestation, the Olympic Games. Despite significant interest in the capacity of the Olympics to produce notable…
Abstract
Purpose
Intangible legacy encapsulates the essence of Olympism and its manifestation, the Olympic Games. Despite significant interest in the capacity of the Olympics to produce notable changes in society, conceptual difficulties in defining and measuring intangible legacy persist. The study develops a conceptual definition of intangible Olympic legacy.
Design/methodology/approach
The study follows a four-step concept definition approach. It examines and integrates three strands of literature including intangibles, social interactions and public value, which is combined with insights from a longitudinal empirical investigation of intangible Olympic legacy for National Sport Organisations (NSO).
Findings
The proposed concept of intangible legacy defines it an emerging combination of attributes, interactions, processes and technology, with the goal of creating public value which is the ultimate goal of the Olympic Games. Since intangible legacy is qualitative rather than quantitative, a reconsideration of the current research paradigm is also proposed.
Research limitations/implications
The study develops a new analytical device for the investigation of intangible legacies for specific publics such as NSO.
Practical implications
The study carries practical implications for Olympic and events/festival promoters as it allows defining and operationalising the key attributes of the concept.
Originality/value
This is the first study to conceptualise intangible legacy of mega events.
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Tourism on wellness is a rapidly expanding segment of the travel industry; nevertheless, it is still in its infancy, and more study research is needed to develop a scientific…
Abstract
Purpose
Tourism on wellness is a rapidly expanding segment of the travel industry; nevertheless, it is still in its infancy, and more study research is needed to develop a scientific foundation for health and wellness tourism. The study uses bibliometric indicators like as citations to determine the field structure on wellness tourism from 1998 to 2021, and the VOSviewer software to map the significant trends in wellness tourism (WT) area, to examine the present situation.
Design/methodology/approach
To reach this objective, the theme of “wellness tourism” was searched in the “Scopus” database, and bibliometrics data on the publications were obtained. In total, 414 papers were found during the initial search, which was then narrowed according to the criteria. Using this strategy, the author discovered 386 records, and after removing 4 duplicates and 1 irrelevant document, the refining produced 381 related documents. The most-cited papers, significant authors, co-citation of references, sources and authors were all investigated for the publications related to WT.
Findings
According to this report, research into wellness tourism has increased in recent years. The authors discovered two papers with over 238 “Scopus” citations and a total of 10 studies with 1414 citations. According to Scopus, the document Napier et al. receives 36.5% of citations each year. There were a total of 804 authors who published about WT between 1998 and 2021, with Smith, M, Voigt, c, and Puczkó, L being the most-cited reference authors in the subject. Han h. has the highest index of 56 of all the authors.
Research limitations/implications
The “Scopus” database was used for bibliometric analysis, although the VOSviewer was used exclusively. This considered as a first study to utilize a bibliometric method to address this research gap, identifying the tools, journals, and, most crucially, conceptual subdomains like spa, yoga, therapy, spirituality and trekking that will be significant in future research.
Originality/value
Using a bibliometric analytic approach, this article looked at papers on wellness tourism published between 1998 and 2021. Thus, its goal is to learn more about wellness tourism and to enlighten wellness tourism scholars on the field's structure.
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Syed Ahamed Suban, Kumar Madhan and Shameem Shagirbasha
Halal and Islamic tourism is gaining attention in the tourism literature in recent years. This study uses bibliometric analytical techniques to explore all the publications…
Abstract
Purpose
Halal and Islamic tourism is gaining attention in the tourism literature in recent years. This study uses bibliometric analytical techniques to explore all the publications indexed in the Scopus database in the broad subject of Halal and Islamic tourism from 2004 to 2021.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors found 238 publications that fit the function, subject and set criteria. The papers were analysed in terms of publication by knowledge area, number of studies published every year, contribution by countries, number of authors and most influential journals. VOS viewer was used to perform a visual analysis on co-occurrence of keywords and document citations.
Findings
According to the findings, the Scopus database includes 151 (34.40%) documents on business, management and accounting, and 89 (20.27%) documents on social science. It was reported that 29 documents were published in 2018, followed by 54 documents in 2019 and 56 documents in 2021. Malaysia has contributed 86 documents on Islamic tourism, whereas Indonesia has contributed 64 documents. The paper also discusses other interesting findings.
Research limitations/implications
The bibliometric analysis carried out was confined to Scopus data. Other national and international databases were not taken into account for this research.
Originality/value
Between 2004 and 2021, this study examined relevant studies on Halal and Islamic tourism. The study presents a concise review of the literature accessible to researchers working in this area and provides recommendations for future research.