Interdisciplinary research in tourism

Abstract

This study investigates how tourism scholars view interdisciplinary research. Data were collected from 356 tourism scholars globally. Results reveal confusion and disagreement among tourism scholars regarding how interdisciplinary research has been defined. Strong attachment to the tourism field and feeling comfortable and familiar with commonly used methodologies provide barriers to interdisciplinary research. Moreover, results suggest that tourism scholars should establish and work in research clusters with scholars from other disciplines to facilitate interdisciplinary research. This is one of the first studies offering research findings and discussion aiming to improve understanding of tourism as an interdisciplinary field of research.