Training in research methods is increasingly important for students of tourism, and this broad, accessible textbook outlines the concepts and tools essential to understand, manage, and conduct research. The book also provides practical advice on tasks from planning to reporting the results of a research project. Skills such as questionnaire design, sample selection, and interviewing are covered, as well as analytical tools such as the development of scales and indices, assessment of advertising performance, benchmarking, market segmentation, case studies, and content and visual analysis. Drawing on the author's extensive experience in tourism research, this practical text is an essential resource for students of tourism research as well as tourism consultants and managers.

Stephen L.J. Smith's profile page

Stephen L. J. Smith is a Professor of Tourism in the School of Hospitality, Food, and Tourism Management at the University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada. He is also Professor Emeritus, University of Waterloo, Canada. His research interests include tourism statistics and economics, tourism informatics, tourism policy, and culinary tourism. He advises graduate students who are conducting research in these areas and teaches research methods. He works with empirical, subjective, and mixed research designs. Stephen is the author of numerous articles in scholarly journals as well as several books. He is past-Chair of the Canadian Tourism Commission's Research Committee and past-Chair of the Canadian Tourism Human Resources Council's Research Committee. He is an Elected Fellow of the International Statistical institute, past-Chair of their Committee on Statistics in Travel and Tourism, an Elected Fellow of the International Academy for the Study of Tourism, and a member Travel and Tourism International Research Association and Slow Food International. Stephen consults with various local provincial, national, and international government and not-for-profit agencies.