Developments in understanding tourism policy

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the current stage of the development of the study of tourism policy and some of the key issues that have come in for attention. Design/methodology/approach – The work is based on a review of the literature relating to tourism policy over a 40-year period. Based on one of the models of tourism policy-making, it uses a five-part structure to organise the literature and for each part, it explores the issues dealt with by researchers over the period. Findings – After a slow start, most aspects of tourism policy are now well-covered in the literature, and notably, there has been a marked quickening in the pace of study over the past decade. Influences on policy are well-documented, as are the roles of the different stakeholders in the policy process. This contrasts with the understanding of the work of the policymakers, which is less well-developed, as is the nature and influence of the different forms of policy output. Neoliberalism and governance have been prominent among recent policy themes pursued by researchers. Research limitations/implications – The paper draws on a wide range of work over 40 years, but it cannot be comprehensive. Originality/value – The paper’s originality lies in it providing a brief overview of the current state of research into tourism policy.

Community-Based Tourism in Developing Countries: A Framework for Policy Evaluation

“…To date, despite increasing attention focusing on evaluating the outcomes and process of tourism policy-making, there has been very little systematic or detailed examination of policy outputs, such as documents [6]. There is an evident gap in terms of frameworks that propose applicable universal criteria against which policy documents could be evaluated.…”

Evolución de la política turística en Singapur (1965-2015)

“…El presente trabajo se inscribe dentro una línea de investigación que adquiere una mayor importancia entre los investigadores del turismo a partir de los 2000 (Airey, 2015) y que pone el foco de atención en los vínculos entre el entorno, el sistema político y los resultados e impactos de la política turística (Hall y Jenkins, 1995), es decir, en el proceso a través del cual ésta se desarrolla, ejecuta y modifica, y no tanto en el contenido de la misma (Dye, 2008).…”

“…Voces críticas han señalado la naturaleza simplificadora de este tipo de modelos ante un fenómeno complejo y con muchos matices como es la política turística (Dredge y Jenkins, 2007). Pero a pesar de estas limitaciones, tal y como apunta Airey (2015), éstos han resultado muy útiles por su labor "[...] en la delimitación del espacio que abarca la elaboración de la política así como en la identificación de los procesos involucrados" (p. 247). Para evitar esta problemática, autores como Pforr (2005) o Bramwell (2011) han apostado por la combinación en sus investigaciones de varios enfoques metodólogicos y modelos conceptuales.…”

Política pública de habilitación y desarrollo socioeconómico en el turismo

“…Os estudos sobre políticas públicas de turismo como instrumento de desenvolvimento local e regional têm sido retomados pela Administração Pública Contemporânea em alguns países (Fayos-Solà, Alvarez, Cooper, 2014;Airey, 2015) como uma opção de lidar com as crises de Estado e do próprio capitalismo. De acordo com Scott (2011), as políticas públicas de turismo influenciam em alguns aspectos, como a criação de empregos, os efeitos do turismo sobre outros setores, que é o conhecido efeito multiplicador da economia.…”