Contagious diseases and tourism: a systematic review based on bibliometric and content analysis methods.

ABSTRACT

The present study examines the existing knowledge and intellectual structure on contagious diseases and tourism to map the development of the concept through collaborative networks. Utilising the Scopus and Web of Science bibliometric databases, 328 research records were extracted through keyword searching and forward referencing approaches. Based on these records, the study conducted bibliometric and content analysis to diagnose core themes in the field. The present study's findings are helpful for academia and industry to aid their existing knowledge about contagious diseases, particularly its timeline, geographical spread, and development of coherent themes. A rigorous literature review revealed that the scholarly work in the domain of contagious diseases and tourism revolves around four important themes, namely COVID-19, SARS, Crisis management, and Sustainability. The first theme revolves around COVID-19, highlighting about the impact of COVID-19 on different sectors of the TTH industry, countries, stakeholders, and contexts. Also, researchers foresee COVID-19 as a catalyst to reshape the tourism industry. The next group of studies explained the handling of SARS, particularly by Asian countries. The third cluster elaborated on different stages of crisis and strategies adopted by organizations and countries to manage the crisis. Lastly, a handful of studies in the corpus stated that sustainability in tourism needs to be understood beyond saving the environment and aspiring prosperous travel and tourism industry. The study also suggested the scope of future work.