Editorial: Land issues and their impact on tourism development

Tourism development is highly dependent on the quantity, quality, and characteristics of available land. Therefore, issues that affect land resources tend to also have an influence—positive or negative—on tourism. However, a plethora of issues are associated with the acquisition and use of land for tourism, recreation, and leisure purposes. Several of these issues are related to the protection and conservation of natural and cultural-heritage resources within protected areas and other parts of tourist destinations. More contemporary issues include overcrowding and the disturbance of local residents, expressed through a phenomenon called overtourism. Land issues and tourism tend to be magnified in developing countries where economic transformation and urbanization are rapid. The transfer of agricultural lands in rural areas for tourism uses and into protected areas raises several issues with respect to land use, transfer, and management. Landscapes are often the main attraction for tourists, and their presentation and interpretation are vital in this respect. However, tourism development is paradoxical; in some cases, it beautifies existing landscapes while, in other situations, landscapes are spoiled by the intrusion of tourism and recreation

The right brew? An analysis of the tourism experiences in rural Taiwan's coffee estates

The main goal of this research was to analyze the tourism experiences offered by coffee estates in Taiwan. A mixed-methods approach was applied in two main parts. First, the profiles of Taiwan coffee estates were examined in terms of the experiences provided to engage visitors. In-depth interviews with owners indicated they can be categorized into traditional, educational, and comprehensive coffee estates. Second, using the memorable tourism experiences scale (MTES), the resulting visitor survey findings were overwhelmingly positive. However, four specific recommendations were made for the sustainable development of coffee estate tourism in Taiwan: increasing and improving marketing and branding by government-run destination management organizations; developing an integrated tourism supply system and value chain in areas containing coffee estates; creating new coffee tour products with travel agencies and tour operators; and establishing education as the key selling point of coffee estates. These four initiatives will contribute to solving some of the challenges Taiwanese coffee estates are currently facing, while continuously developing the niche market of coffee estate tourism

Developing a scale to measure tourist perceived safety

Safety for tourists at places visited is essential to their enjoyment and experiences, as well as a determinant of destination success. Yet, little attention has been paid to the conceptualization and scale development for tourist perceived safety at destinations (TPSD). The primary purpose of this research was to identify the dimensions of TPSD and develop a scale for measuring it based on safety system theory. A three-stage study in a mixed-method design was conducted to develop and validate TPSD. Stage 1 identified the dimensions and initial items of TPSD through extensive literature reviewing and content analysis of travel blogs. In stage 2 (n = 300), an explanatory factor analysis was conducted to refine and validate the preliminary items. Stage 3 (n = 1,830) provided empirical support for a 20-item, five-dimension (human, facility and equipment, natural environment, social environment, management) TPSD scale through confirmatory factor analysis

The ties that bind: an attachment theory perspective of social bonds in tourism

The management of personal business-to-business (B2B) relationships is an important yet under-researched issue in tourism. Social bonds which develop for a business partner when individuals work together can impact positively on maintaining the relationship with the business partner’s organization and prevent switching to a competitor. The literature suggests that the management of social bonds is especially significant for small tourism businesses. However there has been limited use of theory to explain what social bonds are and how they can be created. Attachment theory has been used extensively in researching personal relationships but in tourism, its application has been mainly limited to studies on place attachment. This research combines existing knowledge of social bonds and attachment theory to develop a multidimensional social bonds scale which was tested in three separate studies involving tourism and hospitality professionals. The results confirmed the existence of two distinct social bonds: the security bond and the closeness bond, and the scale items provide useful guidance for creating personalized strategies to manage B2B relationships with tourism partners. The new scale is proposed as an important tool to measure the strength of social bonds and recommendations are given on further tourism contexts where the scale could be tested

The impacts of corporate social responsibility on organization citizenship behavior and task performance in hospitality

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the impacts of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on employee organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and task performance in hospitality. The existing research emphasizes the effects of CSR on organizational performance at a macro level. There is a need to explore social responsibility at a micro level, more precisely, the effects on employee OCB and task performance. Significant evidence shows that CSR positively affects employee OCB. However, there is scant research explaining how CSR impacts OCB and consequently task performance. The main purpose of this investigation was to bridge this gap by analyzing how CSR influences employee OCB and task performance in hospitality based on social identity theory. Design/methodology/approach: A theoretical model was proposed and tested through sequential mediation regressions based on a survey of 296 employees in the hospitality sector in China. Findings: The results showed that CSR has a positive effect on social identity, which in turn influences employee OCB and consequently task performance. Social identity and OCB play sequential mediation roles between CSR and task performance. Additionally, there is an inverted U-shape relationship between OCB and task performance. Research limitations/implications: This research illustrates how and why CSR impacts employee OCB and task performance based on social identity theory. More specifically, a sequential mediation chain exists between CSR and task performance. The study suggests that hospitality businesses adopting CSR promote employee identification with their companies that leads to enhanced OCB and task performance. This may be an effective way to motivate employees through hospitality businesses accepting greater social responsibility. Additionally, it was found that OCB has a positive effect on task performance, and there is an inverted U-shape relationship between OCB and task performance. Originality/value: CSR can be applied as the employee management practice in the hospitality sector. CSR has a positive impact on organizational identification that contributes to individual outcomes such as OCB and task performance at work

Research on China's tourism: A 35-year review and authorship analysis

This study reviewed 333 articles on China's tourism from 96 English‐language academic journals within and outside of tourism from 1978 to 2012. Tourism policy and impacts, and tourism industry development and promotion were the two predominant research themes. Tourism development, policy, ecological impacts, attractions and markets were the five most popular topics. On the basis of an authorship relationship analysis, three research networks were producing most of the China tourism research output in English. A majority of the authors were based in Mainland China, the USA and Hong Kong. Trends and gaps in the literature on China's tourism were identified

City tourism destinations and terrorism – a worrying trend for now, but could it get worse?

The advent of the tragic events of 9/11 in the USA and subsequent terrorism attacks in global tourism cities such as Paris, Brussels, Berlin, Istanbul, London and Barcelona, to mention but a few, have resulted in major challenges for the tourism sector, including the events industry in cities. Although terrorism attacks continue to increase in number and magnitude, the phenomenon is hardly new historically, and scholars have suggested that the concept of organised terror on a wide-scale stretches as far back as the French Revolution in the eighteenth century or even some of the war tactics employed by Genghis Khan, ruler of the largest empire in history in the thirteenth century (see Edgell and Swanson, 2019). Academic research on the impact of terrorism on tourism has developed substantially over the last two decades both in terms of its breadth and depth as a reflection of the new world order we continue to navigate today

Effectiveness criteria for icons as tourist attractions: a comparative study between the United States and China

As the application of human icons as tourist attractions continues to increase, there is a growing need to better understand how these famous individuals are used by destinations. Based on literature in several relevant fields, such as history, social science, and destination management, effectiveness criteria for icon attractions were analyzed in this study. Three 'lsituational" factors influencing the operation of icon attractions (culture, history, and government involvement) were included in these criteria. It also suggested that icon attractions can be evaluated from three aspects: characte~istics of icons, organization, and impacts. The applications of icon effectiveness criteria for tourist attractions in the United States and China were compared. The validity and practical value of the effectiveness criteria were demonstrated. Management implications in the utilization of icon attractions were derived

Entrepreneurship in island contexts: a systematic review of the tourism and hospitality literature

Entrepreneurship is vital to the success of tourism and hospitality and the sector makes an important contribution to many island economies. Despite this, far too little attention has been paid by researchers to tourism and hospitality entrepreneurship in islands (THEI). This research helps to address this gap through a systematic review of the literature, conducted to provide a platform for further research and to help investigators set their research priorities and thereby advance understanding of this important field. Using the Scopus database and the PRISMA technique, a total of 132 articles were included in bibliometric and thematic content analyses. The review revealed that, although there has been an increase in THEI research, this has tended to focus on the Asia-Pacific region rather than the European and North American contexts. It was also found that, hitherto, the generalizability of much THEI published research is limited. It is therefore suggested that researchers consider redressing this geographical bias and conduct more quantitative and comparative THEI studies. Further opportunities exist for scholars to investigate the characteristics and behaviors of tourism and hospitality island entrepreneurs as well as the impacts of the industrial and spatial aspects of THEI. For professionals working in island economic development and business support, this research identifies many of the challenges and opportunities associated with supporting THEI