Zahed Ghaderi

Tourism crises and island destinations: Experiences in Penang, Malaysia

Abstract Crisis management and tourism is attracting increasing attention as an industry practice and subject of academic enquiry, not least in South East Asia which has been affected by a number of severe crises in recent years. However, organisations are not always well prepared and response strategies can be deficient. The paper discusses issues of tourism crisis management with specific reference to the popular Malaysian destination of Penang. Findings are based on qualitative research consisting of semi-structured interviews with industry leaders from assorted sectors. Tourism in Penang emerges as vulnerable to regional and global events which act as a trigger for tourism crises, demanding a response in which various strategies are employed. The destination is also seen to recover fairly quickly from experiences of crises, but a well designed and formulated tourism crisis management plan under the stewardship of the public sector is necessary to mitigate further damage in the future.

Does security matter in tourism demand

This paper aims to investigate the relationship between security and international tourist arrivals. The system Generalized Method of Moments technique is applied in two panels of 29 developed and 45 developing countries over the period 2006–2012. Employing social, economic and political security indexes beside other control variables, the results show that the relationship among all the three sub-indexes of security and tourism is positive and significant in developed nations while it is negative and significant in developing countries.

Organizational Learning in Tourism Crisis Management: An Experience From Malaysia

ABSTRACT Tourism and related organizations are dealing with crises either based on a specific crisis management plan, contingency planning, designed guideline, or ad hoc response. These organizations learn from crises in different ways, but no mechanisms have been explored to indicate how these organizations learn within the framework of Tourism Crisis Management (TCM). Among various reasons is limited systematic research that has been undertaken in this area. This study addresses this gap in our current knowledge by proposing a model for analyzing and developing organizational learning within the framework of TCM. The study shows the perceptions of 25 key players in Malaysia’s tourism industry on the role of organizational learning in managing crises. The findings also revealed that organizational learning is subject to negligence and few key practitioners thinking about in-depth learning from the crisis management perspectives.

Domestic tourism in Iran

Travel and tourism in Iran can be traced back to ancient times, but the first official attempt to formalize tourism was marked by establishing the Jalbe-Sayahan Bureau in the Ministry of Interior 7...

From snow skiing to grass skiing: implications of climate change for the ski industry in Dizin, Iran

This paper is concerned with climate change and its implications, making particular reference to Dizin in Iran which is one of the countrys leading snow ski resorts. The impacts of climate change on ski businesses are examined, alongside the consequences for local communities, their economies, and overall sustainability. In addition, attention is given to responses by affected enterprises and other stakeholders to the problems caused by falls in demand for snow skiing due to decreasing snow cover attributed to global warming. Adaptive strategies focus on marketing and product diversification with attempts to develop other nature-based pursuits throughout the year as an alternative to that of skiing, but there are concerns about the future among those who rely on snow skiers for a livelihood. Findings are derived from original research incorporating 30 interviews with those involved in the ski industry in Dizin, including residents from a nearby village.

Destination selection by smart tourists: the case of Isfahan, Iran

ABSTRACT The paper is concerned with tourist behavior when selecting a tourist destination to visit in the age of smart tourism associated with modern information communication technologies. The theory of planned behavior is applied in a study of the issues with particular reference to Isfahan which is a very popular tourist center in Iran and one where technological innovations are being introduced to facilitate tourism. Results reveal that tourist attitude significantly and directly affects intention to travel to a smart destination while behavioral control does not have such an effect. Tourist beliefs and subjective norms are additionally found to positively influence visit intention and destination selection. Smartness emerges as an important force in shaping demand, to which the tourism industry must be responsive and attempt to ensure suitable provision. The research enhances knowledge and understanding of these aspects of the smart tourism phenomenon, the literature about which is still relatively limited, and further work is recommended.

Analysis of tourist satisfaction in tourism supply chain management

ABSTRACT This study investigates factors in tourism supply chain management (TSCM) which can influence tourist satisfaction in Isfahan, the leading tourist destination in Iran. Applying a neural network based on intelligent algorithm, the results indicate that factors such as recreation and entertainment, transportation system, tourism attractions, catering services, shopping and accommodation services failed to satisfy international tourists while tourist infrastructure and tourist information factors were quite satisfactory. It seems that TSCM in Isfahan failed to create an integration across heterogeneous sectors. This study contributes to our understanding of how TSCM is working in a mature destination in a developing country, with particular reference to Isfahan.

Conceptualizing and validating the psychic distance construct in the context of tourism.

This paper examines the validation of the psychic distance measure in tourism context. Two different groups of tourists with different cultural backgrounds of individualist (Australian) and collectivist (South Korean) are studied for the purpose of this research. Sequential steps are undertaken to test the scale validity by selecting items from both marketing and tourism literature. The exploratory factor analysis resulted in measurement constructs with two dimensions and confirmatory factor analysis confirm the validity of the construct in both groups. In addition, independent sample t-test confirms the difference between individualist and collectivist groups related to perceived psychic distance.