Mapping Service Innovation Research in Hospitality and Tourism: An Integrative Bibliometric Analysis and Research Agenda

Abstract

In light of current industry imperatives and growing scholarly attention, this study was conducted to provide a thoroughly updated bibliometric overview of how service innovation research has evolved. A total of 133 papers across 42 hospitality and tourism journals over 18 years (2003–2020) were extracted and analyzed. We first examined the publication outlets and trajectories of service innovation. Next, we applied several state-of-the-art bibliometric techniques, including co-citation and keyword co-occurrence analysis. Based on the results of co-occurrence analysis, we proposed a flowchart of the service innovation process combining organizational and customer perspectives while considering the service design, process, and outcome phases. We then summarized the major findings and limitations of service innovation studies in hospitality and tourism. A series of critical future research directions were presented accordingly.

The impact of service robots on consumer response: Examining the roles of consumers' service expertise and technology expertise

“…This typology emphasizes the value co-creation process during the customer experience (Snyder et al, 2016), which is suitable for our research context. Innovation in the service industry is embodied in utilizing advanced technologies and customization of service experience (So et al, 2023). Service innovation has been considered one of the most important attributes that may impact guests' choices (Mustak et al, 2021).…”

“…Correspondingly, a growing number of research has strived to offer significant and timely insight to these technologies and their impacts on the future of marketing, service industry and society in general (e.g., Belk et al, 2023). Appendix A offers a review of service innovation literature, which shows that prior studies have inarguably facilitated our understanding of service innovation (So et al, 2023). Based on previous work, in current study we select service robots as the case due to its wide adoption and the significance of potential contribution toward the human life.…”

Young People Share, But Do So Differently: An Empirical Comparison of Peer-to-Peer Accommodation Consumption Between Millennials and Generation Z

“…However, the social interaction value in the peer-to-peer accommodation experience might become less important due to the recent years of COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has dramatically affected and changed almost all aspects of the hospitality and tourism industries, which has also had a deviation impact on academic research (So et al, 2022; Tracey, 2022). Given the pandemic challenges (e.g., health-threatening concerns when sharing space with strangers) and the consequent protection and prevention practices implemented by the industry (e.g., social distancing, masks, and contactless protocols), people have been either forced or volunteered to reduce social interactions (Hwang et al, 2022; Zheng et al, 2021), which could make the social interaction value much less relevant in the current environment.…”

Service Innovation and Emerging Technologies in Tourism and Hospitality

“…So et al (2022) acknowledged industry imperatives and scholarly attention in providing a bibliometric overview of how the service innovation literature has evolved. The authors analyzed 133 papers across 42 hospitality and tourism journals over 18 years (2003–2020).…”

“…This special issue, in conjunction with a track on the same theme at the 2020 Global Marketing Conference in Seoul, Republic of Korea (November 5-8), showcases several pressing issues related to service innovation. So et al (2022) acknowledged industry imperatives and scholarly attention in providing a bibliometric overview of how the service innovation literature has evolved. The authors analyzed 133 papers across 42 hospitality and tourism journals over 18 years (2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015)(2016)(2017)(2018)(2019)(2020).…”