Barbieri, Carla

Gil Arroyo, Claudia

Knollenberg, Whitney

English

Digital Commons @ TRU Library (Thompson Rivers University)

Critical Tourism Studies Proceedings
Volume 2019 Article 83
2019
An Analytical Systems Framework for Tourism
Product Development: Reflections from the Craft-
beverage Tourism
Carla Barbieri
North Carolina State University, USA
Whitney Knollenberg
North Carolina State University, USA
Claudia Gil Arroyo
North Carolina State University, USA
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Recommended Citation
Barbieri, Carla; Knollenberg, Whitney; and Gil Arroyo, Claudia (2019) "An Analytical Systems Framework for Tourism Product
Development: Reflections from the Craft-beverage Tourism," Critical Tourism Studies Proceedings: Vol. 2019 , Article 83.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.library.tru.ca/cts-proceedings/vol2019/iss1/83
CTS 2019 
Title: An Analytical Systems Framework for Tourism Product Development: Reflections from 
the Craft-beverage Tourism 
 
Authors: 
 
Carla Barbieri 
North Carolina State University, USA 
 
Whitney Knollenberg 
North Carolina State University, USA 
 
Claudia Gil Arroyo 
North Carolina State University, USA 
 
Abstract:  
Several existing frameworks are suitable to evaluate different types of tourism products. 
Among them, the sustainable development framework is salient because it enables an economic, 
environmental, and socio-cultural cost-benefit evaluation of tourism in destination communities 
(Butler, 1999). The Community Capitals Framework (Flora, 2004) is also useful to identify the 
types of resources (i.e., Built, Cultural, Financial, Human, Natural, Political, and Social capitals) 
needed to foster community development. As such, both frameworks have been used to assess 
the effect of tourism development of different tourism products (e.g., Barbieri, 2013; McGehee, 
Lee, O’Bannon, & Perdue, 2009).  
Yet, the aforementioned frameworks have a predominant large (community) scope, and 
thus, fail to capture the cost-benefit dynamics that niche tourism may create at the entrepreneur 
or family levels. The complexity of entrepreneurship (e.g., its impact on family dynamics) and 
the current societal context (e.g., necessity to address climate change) calls for developing 
systems approaches that capture a holistic evaluation of tourism endeavors. Systems approaches, 
although seemingly logical, are difficult to operationalize because they require simultaneous 
evaluation of multiple indicators (Francis et al., 2008). 
We propose a systems approach that identifies the inputs (resources needed) and outputs 
(benefits and costs) associated with the development of a tourism product within the three 
dimensions of sustainability. Different from existing macro-scale frameworks, our model 
captures the inputs and outputs needed/produced at the entrepreneur and family levels beyond 
the community scope. We will operationalize the model using data garnered from in-depth 
interviews with key stakeholders of the craft-beverage tourism industry in North Carolina (USA) 
in two points of time. The first project phase was conducted in 2016 among five craft-distil 
producers (361 minutes recorded interviews). The second phase (ongoing) is expanding data 
collection in terms of types of stakeholders (e.g., business development organizations) and craft-
beverages (e.g., craft beer).  
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Barbieri et al.: An Analytical Systems Framework for Tourism Product Development:
Published by Digital Commons @ TRU Library, 2019
CTS 2019 
Preliminary findings indicate that craft-beverage tourism produces (e.g., partnership 
building among producers, enhanced community pride) and is built upon (e.g., traditional family 
knowledge, new beverage legislature) different types of capitals. The application of our model is 
valuable in two ways. Classifying the inputs and outputs of a given tourism product in different 
scales (from personal-to-society) and dimensions (types of capitals) can help stakeholders to 
program and market their products more efficiently. It can also help to identify knowledge gaps 
that can prevent misinformed decisions. In putting both (existing and lacking) information 
together, tourism endeavors can better boost wellbeing of the actors involved and more 
accurately inform policy development, which altogether can foster community development.  
 
Barbieri, C. (2013). Assessing the sustainability of agritourism in the US: A comparison between 
agritourism and other farm entrepreneurial ventures. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 
21(2), 252-270. 
Butler, R. W. (1999). Sustainable tourism: A state-of-the-art review. Tourism Geographies, 1(1), 
7–25.  
Flora, C. B. (2004). Community Dynamics and Social Capital. In Agroecosystems Analysis, 
edited by D. Rickerl & C. Francis. Madison, WI: American Society of Agronomy, Inc., 
Crop Science Society of America, Inc., Soil Science Society of America, Inc., pp. 93-107. 
Francis, C., Lieblein, G., Breland, T. A., Salomonsson, L., Geber, U., Sriskandarajah, N., & 
Langer, V. (2008). Transdisciplinary research for a sustainable agriculture and food sector. 
Agronomy Journal 100, 771-776. 
McGehee, N. G., Lee, S., O'Bannon, T. L., & Perdue, R. R. (2010). Tourism-related social 
capital and its relationship with other forms of capital: An exploratory study. Journal of 
Travel Research, 49(4), 486-500. 
  
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An Analytical Systems Framework for Tourism Product Development: Reflections from the Craft-beverage Tourism

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