Stakeholder collaboration in tourist destinations: A systematic literature review

Abstract

This study systematically reviewed studies about tourism stakeholder collaboration in tourist destinations published in seven high-ranking journals, which are Tourism Management (TM-19), Current Issues in Tourism (CIT-7), Annals of Tourism Research (ATR-6), Journal of Ecotourism (JE-2), Journal of Sustainable Tourism (JST-11), Journal of Travel Research (JTR-3), Journal of Tourism Planning and Development (JTPD-11). Using a systematic quantitative literature review method, six criteria were used to assess the published papers, including research methods, locations, main tourism stakeholders, identification of tourism stakeholders, tourism settings, and issues addressed in the papers. Fifty-nine (n=59) articles were reviewed; most of the studies used the qualitative research method. The criteria to include tourism stakeholders in these studies are based on many aspects such as literature review, available documents of destinations, local sources, tourism stakeholder's knowledge, and experiences. Furthermore, some studies included the tourism stakeholders based on their positions, power, and their dependence on destinations for livelihood; however, tourism stakeholders could be chosen purposively in several studies. This study demonstrates the trend of the most recent studies focused on tourism stakeholder’s collaboration in developed countries, and this issue should be studied more in developing countries in future studies.