Short answer

When designing technology for the tourism sector, focus on creating seamless online and interactive experiences, and ensure the technology supports strategic organizational goals and aligns with user acceptance principles.

Field: Innovation & Markets
Source: Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology (2019)
Method: Systematic Literature Review
Sample: 314 papers
Evidence: Strong effect

Research over the past 18 years indicates that successful technology integration in tourism hinges on interactive and online functionalities, strategic organizational deployment for competitive advantage, and a deep understanding of user attitudes and behaviors, often guided by established acceptance theories. This innovation & markets research insight is drawn from a 2019 study published in Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology. Using Systematic literature review with 314 papers, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: When designing technology for the tourism sector, focus on creating seamless online and interactive experiences, and ensure the technology supports strategic organizational goals and aligns with user acceptance principles.

Study

Innovation & MarketsHigh ImpactStrong effect

Technology adoption in tourism is driven by interactive and online processing, strategic organizational use, and user-centric acceptance models.

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology · 2019

Key Findings

01Interactive and online processing are the most frequently addressed types of technology processing in tourism literature.
02Competitive and strategic use of technology for management support is a significant theme in organizational use.
03A large volume of research focuses on direct users, including individual characteristics, user attitudes, and user behavior, often applying the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT).

Application

Design takeaway

How to apply

When developing new tourism technologies or improving existing ones, analyze user interaction patterns, consider strategic business objectives, and integrate principles from TAM or UTAUT to maximize adoption.

Project actions

01When researching technology for a design project, consider if it's primarily online or interactive.
02Think about how your design could give a business a competitive edge.
03Investigate user attitudes and behaviors towards similar technologies.

Method & Evidence

AimTo systematically review and synthesize research on technology use in tourism over the past 18 years to identify key themes and propose a future research agenda.

MethodSystematic Literature Review

ProcedureA systematic literature review process was followed, analyzing 314 papers to understand how the concept of technology use has been applied in tourism and hospitality research.

Sample314 papers

ContextTourism and Hospitality Industry

Variables

IVTypes of technology processing (interactive, online), organizational use (competitive, strategic), user characteristics (attitudes, behavior).

DVTechnology adoption and use in tourism.

CVN/A (literature review)

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

+Comprehensive systematic review process.
+Identifies key themes and research gaps in a specific industry context.

Limitations

The research is based on past studies, so very new or niche technologies might not be covered. The focus is on published academic work.

Reliability & validity

The systematic review methodology aims for reliability and validity by using a structured approach to select and analyze papers. However, the interpretation of findings can be subjective.

Think critically

How might the rapid evolution of AI and personalized recommendation systems challenge the findings related to older acceptance models like TAM and UTAUT in the tourism sector?

Design Principles

"Technology adoption in tourism is optimized through a focus on user interaction, strategic organizational benefits, and robust user acceptance frameworks."

Understanding the dominant themes in technology adoption within the tourism sector allows businesses to strategically invest in and implement technologies that are most likely to be embraced by users and provide a competitive edge. This insight helps in prioritizing development efforts and marketing strategies.

What This Means for Your Design

To make technology successful in travel and hotels, focus on making it easy to use online, helping businesses compete better, and understanding why people like or dislike using it.

How to use in your project

1.Use the findings on user acceptance models (TAM, UTAUT) to justify your design choices and testing methods.
2.Reference the importance of interactive and online features when discussing your design's user interface.

Add to My Project

Quick Cite

Paragraph starter

This research highlights that successful technology implementation in tourism is characterized by interactive and online functionalities, strategic organizational benefits, and a strong focus on user acceptance. Theories like TAM and UTAUT are crucial for understanding user behavior, suggesting that design decisions should prioritize intuitive interfaces and demonstrable value to both users and businesses.

Source

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

Progress on technology use in tourism

journal · 2019

View source

Questions About This Research

What does the research say about technology adoption in tourism is driven by interactive and online processing, strategic organizational use, and user-centric acceptance models?: When designing technology for the tourism sector, focus on creating seamless online and interactive experiences, and ensure the technology supports strategic organizational goals and aligns with user acceptance principles. Evidence: Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology (2019).
Why does "Technology adoption in tourism is driven by interactive and online processing, strategic organizational use, and user-centric acceptance models." matter for design?: Understanding the dominant themes in technology adoption within the tourism sector allows businesses to strategically invest in and implement technologies that are most likely to be embraced by users and provide a competitive edge. This insight helps in prioritizing development efforts and marketing strategies.
How can designers apply this research?: When designing technology for the tourism sector, focus on creating seamless online and interactive experiences, and ensure the technology supports strategic organizational goals and aligns with user acceptance principles.
What were the main findings?: Interactive and online processing are the most frequently addressed types of technology processing in tourism literature.. Competitive and strategic use of technology for management support is a significant theme in organizational use.. A large volume of research focuses on direct users, including individual characteristics, user attitudes, and user behavior, often applying the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT).
What research method was used?: Systematic Literature Review with 314 papers.
How strong is the evidence?: Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2019 journal from Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology.
What should I do differently in my next project?: When developing new tourism technologies or improving existing ones, analyze user interaction patterns, consider strategic business objectives, and integrate principles from TAM or UTAUT to maximize adoption.
What are the limitations?: The review is based on published literature, potentially excluding emerging or unpublished research. The focus on specific databases might also limit the scope.