Challenges in smart tourism: a media content analysis of digital barriers for senior tourists in China

Yi Xu (), Yuanyuan Shi () and Tianyu Qin ()
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Yi Xu: Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Yuanyuan Shi: Fudan University
Tianyu Qin: Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Information Technology & Tourism, 2023, vol. 25, issue 4, No 10, 665-682

Abstract: Abstract Digital transformation, as a key enabler of smart tourism, is increasingly being used to address pandemic-related challenges. Growing with the rapidly aging population, senior tourists are more likely to be digitally excluded. This study utilized media content analysis to examine the digital barriers senior tourists encounter in the post-pandemic era. Online news reports between January 2020 and December 2022 were collected from WiseSearch, a Chinese news database. Reports containing detailed scenario information about digital barriers for senior tourists were selected. High-frequency word analysis and thematic keyword analysis were used to analyze the digital barriers for senior tourists in four scenarios: before-travel, during-travel, pandemic control, and smart tourism application. Then, mitigating measures were proposed based on fourteen demonstration cases of senior-friendly smart tourism. The findings underscore the concerns raised in the media about this topic and reveal the details of digital barriers in each scenario. This study highlights the issues of senior tourists in smart tourism and guides developing solutions from both technological and service approaches.

Keywords: Digital barriers; Smart tourism; Senior tourists; Pandemic; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/s40558-023-00270-z

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