Call for conceptual papers for a Special Issue of the Journal of Travel and Hospitality Management
“Philosophical Issues in Tourism and its Research in the midst of Stagnation and Degrowth: Problems and Prospects”
Special Issue Editor: Atila Yüksel (Aydın Adnan Menderes University)
Key dates:
Deadline for expression of interest and abstract submission: 15th June 2020
Deadline for submission of “original conceptual papers”: 15th July 2020
Expected Publication of the special issue: December 2020
The Covid-19 outbreak, along with the unthinkable economic crisis that will probably deepen, has shaken tourism industry unprecedentedly. The balances of many tourism-dependent countries, where mass tourism and its so-called “specialised” derivatives, worshipped to date as the only saviours of economy, were largely shattered. The growing uncertainty and the irrepressible contagion rate of covid-19, engulfing almost anything on its path in a light speed, has made the fragile industry to be more prone to “business droughts” unless new realisations in tourism and a new culture of doing tourism research begin to dawn on us.
Signs of dramatic changes are everywhere and despite the hopes, the covid-19 (perhaps 20, 21…) is rewriting the future on its own. Established definitions, procedures, rules, models, paradigms in tourism and its research may no longer exist, that is, the “urge” for reckless mobility and the consumption-driven tourism society, “seeking material goals and pleasure, and avoiding pain in a home away from home”, may become a distant memory. While we are all socially and physically isolated by the shockwaves of covid-19 in a world turned upside-down, it is high time that we envisioned likely ontological, epistemological and methodological shifts that may take place in tourism and in its research, generally shaped by the ideology of (post) positivism which states that the ultimate aim of science is to “predict and control phenomenon.”
In this respect, several attempts, in the form of webinars, live presentations, discussions, etc., to predict what the future holds for tourism business under the shadow of covid-19 are in place. These are all worthy of commendation underlining the fact that we have entered an era of “degrowth” in which we need to find alternative travel lifestyles, new ways to maintain tourism industry without growth and new tourism research frameworks uncontaminated by contagious issues of the past. The importance of underpinning a discussion with “a broad understanding” of ontological, epistemological and methodological issues in tourism, as opposed to making arid predictions by widely accepted but mostly outdated lenses of knowledge production, is now a timely agenda.
The study of a contemporary subject through outdated and aging frameworks, designed mostly to foster business growth and overconsumption, sounds adventurous since current imperatives, if they are to continue, are somewhat different from the past. Among the midst of environmental and ecological justice, recently we have witnessed unprecedented examples of scientific collaborations and interdependence shattering the borders of parochialism, simultaneous focus on a single topic for the first time, open-science and open-data for rapid information sharing and more “digital dance” in research. The pandemic makes clear that researchers have social responsibility for putting “human life” in the centre more than prioritising “business profit” or selfishly pursuing vested interests for “academic promotion.” Doing research ought to be more HUMANE, with more respect for environmental and social harmony, spiritual quotient, values, ethics, integrity and human life. Strictly speaking, traditional growth-oriented tourism and profit-driven channels of publications could not remain immune to shockwaves of covid-19 for long, and who knows, they may be revolutionised to “non-profit” science and journalism.
To sum, the Journal of Travel and Hotel Management, under the guidance Atila Yüksel (Ph.D) solicits high quality conceptual papers for a special issue that deals with question of “When covid-19 has done with the world, what will be the new normal in tourism and in its research?”
We must note that the Special Issue welcomes “conceptual papers” only which may represent a variety of perspectives on the following headings. The major criteria in the review and the selection process concern the rigour and the contribution to the ontological, epistemological and methodological problems and future prospects.
- Outbreaks; the role and the future of travel and tourism
- Conceptual issues in tourism, tourist and the host
- Hedonism vs eudemonism: Experiential issues in tourism
- Tourism, and ontological, epistemological and methodological issues
- Issues in problem-solving theories vs critical theory
- Growth vs degrowth issues in tourism
- Issues in humanistic tourism research
- Moral issues and ethics in tourism marketing, management in an era of pandemic
- Other relevant topics
Submission Process
All pre-submission inquiries and expressions of interest should be directly sent to the guest editor Atila Yüksel (Ph.D., atilayuksel@gmail.com) We request that all expressions of interest include article title, author list and affiliations, abstract (< 300 words) and a brief outline.
More details on information for authors can be found at https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/soid/writing-rules
Submission process details can be found at