Hybrid preference assessment for tourism research using solicited and unsolicited opinions: an application in rural tourism

Authors

  • Manuel Angel Fernández-Gámez University of Málaga http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4752-6934
  • Elias Bendodo-Benasayag PhD Program in Tourism at the University of Málaga
  • José Ramón Sánchez.Serrano Department of Finance and Accounting at University of Málaga
  • Maria Helena Pestana ISCTE-IUL

Keywords:

Social media analysis, online communities, tourists’ preferences, rural tourism, multiple criteria decision analysis

Abstract

Social media analysis is a powerful tool for tourism research that, at a relatively low cost, can be used to manage and process large datasets of comments, ratings, and shares from different online communities. However, the heterogeneous nature of unsolicited opinions, the complexity of natural language assessment, and differences in the characteristics of social-data sources hinder the accurate assessment of preferences. However, the use of solicited data sources, such as direct polling, is typically resource-intensive, time-consuming, and geographically limited. We analyze a hybrid approach that combines active polling with passive social media analysis to rate tourist experience. To this end, we present a novel multiple criteria decision analysis model for preference-extraction from solicited and unsolicited data. The proposed approach can significantly reduce the number of polls required to accurately assess the preferences of a community.

Author Biographies

  • Manuel Angel Fernández-Gámez, University of Málaga
    PhD, Titular Professor, Department of Finance and Accounting
  • Maria Helena Pestana, ISCTE-IUL
    PhD, Associate Professor

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Published

31.07.2020

Issue

Section

Tourism/Hospitality: Research Papers

How to Cite

Hybrid preference assessment for tourism research using solicited and unsolicited opinions: an application in rural tourism. (2020). Tourism & Management Studies, 16(3), 7-13. https://www.tmstudies.net/index.php/ectms/article/view/1331

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