Family businesses in the tourism industry: a research agenda

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to construct a comprehensive review on family businesses in the tourism industry since glocalization and small businesses comprise most of the industry. Design/methodology/approach: This is a conceptual paper which utilizes qualitative research methods. Bibliometric analysis is applied to the selected 35 articles from specific databases which include not only the general tourism industry but also subsectors of airline, hospitality, restaurant, etc. Articles in this study fixate on the family businesses within the tourism industry. Findings: In total, 35 articles are found with the keywords “family business and tourism”, “family business and hospitality and hotels”, “family business and restaurant” and “family business and airline”. Though the family business studies focus on hospitality, tourism and restaurants as F&B, there is a research gap in the subsectors like rent-a-car companies, travel agencies and tour operators and recreation facilities. Overall qualitative research design is preferred, but majority of the authors’ focus is on business development, profit, performance and succession. For further studies, quantitative analysis on research gap areas are recommended. Research limitations/implications: The most general limitation is that only specific selected databases are used for the data gathering process such as double reviewed indexed journals published within Web of Science, Emerald, Elton B. Stephens Company (EBSCO) and Elsevier databases from the period of 1970s. Some other databases and some different periods may be considered as well as different keywords for other research. Secondly, few studies have analyzed quantitative data, since the specific nature of the family business dynamics require qualitative data. As a suggestion, not only qualitative analysis but also mixed methods may also be studied since the literature lacks the studies conducted with these methodologies. Originality/value: The study contributes to the existing literature by providing a comprehensive review on hospitality and tourism family business management emphasizing the research gap on subsector application areas.