Tourism and ICT. Bibliometric Study

Tourism and ICT. Bibliometric Study: Comparison

Please note this is a comparison between Version 1 by Alba-María Martínez-Sala and Version 2 by Nora Tang.

The scientific production of digital literacy at the university level published in the Scopus database is analyzed, with a special emphasis on studies on tourism due to the relevance of information and communication technology (ICT) in said professional sector. For this, a bibliometric study of a pertinent sample is undertaken using a mixed methodology and based on a series of variables related to formal and content aspects. The last variable, reserved for the academic field under study, directly addresses the main objective as regards tourism. The results show a great global and multidisciplinary interest in digital literacy (DL), mainly from students. There is also a parallel between the integration of ICT into society and the growing evolution of case studies, as well as little interest in their development in specific areas such as tourism studies. Despite good results in general terms, the lack of specialization poses challenges that require greater involvement of training institutions in the sense of providing future professionals with the necessary tools to face them successfully, especially in sectors such as tourism where ICTs are a key piece.

bibliometric
digital literacy
digital education
educational technology
higher education
ICT
tourism

1. Introduction

Technological development, and especially the 2.0 web model, is causing drastic changes in society in general ^[1][2][3]. Information and communication technologies (ICT) have been implemented in the day-to-day life of people, companies, etc., modifying all the processes related to interaction and socialization ^[4][5], but also other more specific processes, such as those concerning education ^[6][7][8]. The educational system needs to adapt to new scenarios resulting from the development and massive implementation of ICT both at a methodological level, adapting the teaching-learning processes, as well as the educational objectives in relation to the training of students ^[9][10]. Hence, there is not only a need to integrate ICTs into training processes, but also to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to optimize their use ^[11][12][13]. Today there are tools that allow learning processes to be much more personalized and more flexible ^[14]. In this specific case, ICT training as a cross-cutting element is the key to the correct future professional performance of graduates.

Technological development, and especially the 2.0 web model, is causing drastic changes in society in general [1,2,3]. Information and communication technologies (ICT) have been implemented in the day-to-day life of people, companies, etc., modifying all the processes related to interaction and socialization [4,5], but also other more specific processes, such as those concerning education [6,7,8]. The educational system needs to adapt to new scenarios resulting from the development and massive implementation of ICT both at a methodological level, adapting the teaching-learning processes, as well as the educational objectives in relation to the training of students [9,10]. Hence, there is not only a need to integrate ICTs into training processes, but also to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to optimize their use [11,12,13]. Today there are tools that allow learning processes to be much more personalized and more flexible [14]. In this specific case, ICT training as a cross-cutting element is the key to the correct future professional performance of graduates.

In this sense, at all educational levels and, especially at the university level ^[15][16][17], the concept of digital literacy (DL) arises and refers to the safe and critical use of ICT that favors the achievement of objectives. This is not only related to learning, but also to the employability of students and their active participation in society ^{[18][19][20][21]}. Along the same lines, UNESCO proposes the following definition of DL:

In this sense, at all educational levels and, especially at the university level [15,16,17], the concept of digital literacy (DL) arises and refers to the safe and critical use of ICT that favors the achievement of objectives. This is not only related to learning, but also to the employability of students and their active participation in society [18,19,20,21]. Along the same lines, UNESCO proposes the following definition of DL:

“Digital literacy is the ability to define, access, manage, integrate, communicate, evaluate and create information safely and appropriately through digital technologies and networked devices for participation in economic and social life. It includes competencies that are variously referred to as computer literacy, ICT literacy, information literacy, data literacy, and media literacy.”

[22] (p. 132)

In this sense, in the university academic field, DL implies equipping students with the skills, knowledge, and attitude necessary to interact with digital tools and content in an effective, efficient, and ethical manner, while exploiting all their skills: informative, communicative, relational potential, etc. ^[23][24]. In the current globalized and virtually interconnected business context, the DL of students, as future protagonists of this market, must be incorporated into the university environment as one of the main formative objectives ^[17]. Its consideration is not only an important curricular innovation ^[25][26] but it is also an added value for both students and teachers, particularly when it is adapted to different fields of study ^{[17][27][28][29]}. Despite the demands and advantages described, many higher education institutions have not yet fully embraced DL as a fundamental literacy ^[30].

In this sense, in the university academic field, DL implies equipping students with the skills, knowledge, and attitude necessary to interact with digital tools and content in an effective, efficient, and ethical manner, while exploiting all their skills: informative, communicative, relational potential, etc. [23,24]. In the current globalized and virtually interconnected business context, the DL of students, as future protagonists of this market, must be incorporated into the university environment as one of the main formative objectives [17]. Its consideration is not only an important curricular innovation [25,26] but it is also an added value for both students and teachers, particularly when it is adapted to different fields of study [17,27,28,29]. Despite the demands and advantages described, many higher education institutions have not yet fully embraced DL as a fundamental literacy [30].

From the above, it is understood that notable interest exists in academic research on the literacy of university students ^[1][19][31] characterized by a constant adaptation to the new demands derived from the changes experienced by the social environment, which are caused, to a large extent, by technological development ^{[10][16][19][32]}. Another feature that defines research on literacy, and specifically on DL, is its focus or specialization in specific areas or disciplines in response to the different levels of demand that professional sectors require of graduates ^{[9][33][34][35]}, including the tourist field ^{[36][37][38][39][40][41]}.

From the above, it is understood that notable interest exists in academic research on the literacy of university students [1,19,31] characterized by a constant adaptation to the new demands derived from the changes experienced by the social environment, which are caused, to a large extent, by technological development [10,16,19,32]. Another feature that defines research on literacy, and specifically on DL, is its focus or specialization in specific areas or disciplines in response to the different levels of demand that professional sectors require of graduates [9,33,34,35], including the tourist field [36,37,38,39,40,41].

Higher education plays a key role in acquiring the skills necessary for students to be properly integrated into the professional context ^[41][42]. In this sense, DL must provide students, in general, with the necessary qualification to face the challenges of the digital information age ^[15][43][44]. This maxim acquires greater relevance among tourism students ^[38][40] due to the growing impact that ICTs have had on the sector ^{[45][46][47][48]} and because the forecast, based on the pandemic we are experiencing, is that it will keep growing ^{[49][50][51][52][53]}.

Higher education plays a key role in acquiring the skills necessary for students to be properly integrated into the professional context [41,42]. In this sense, DL must provide students, in general, with the necessary qualification to face the challenges of the digital information age [15,43,44]. This maxim acquires greater relevance among tourism students [38,40] due to the growing impact that ICTs have had on the sector [45,46,47,48] and because the forecast, based on the pandemic we are experiencing, is that it will keep growing [49,50,51,52,53].

2. Tourism

In the era of digital information, the tourism sector has been one of the sectors that have given the greatest impulse for the introduction of ICT ^[54], undergoing a profound transformation, as a result of its integration ^[55][56], with important repercussions for destination management and marketing ^[57][58][59]. The technological revolution has affected all agents in the sector, from professionals to consumers, and ICTs have become a key element in the competitiveness of tourism companies ^[60][61]. The challenge for this sector does not lie in accepting the advantages of ICT and integrating them, those that do not do so are doomed to failure, but in doing so in such a way that it is exploited its full potential ^[62]. For this reason, one of the most important challenges facing this industry is related to ICT training for new generations of tourism professionals ^[63].

In the era of digital information, the tourism sector has been one of the sectors that have given the greatest impulse for the introduction of ICT [54], undergoing a profound transformation, as a result of its integration [55,56], with important repercussions for destination management and marketing [57,58,59]. The technological revolution has affected all agents in the sector, from professionals to consumers, and ICTs have become a key element in the competitiveness of tourism companies [60,61]. The challenge for this sector does not lie in accepting the advantages of ICT and integrating them, those that do not do so are doomed to failure, but in doing so in such a way that it is exploited its full potential [62]. For this reason, one of the most important challenges facing this industry is related to ICT training for new generations of tourism professionals [63].

Official studies related to this industry are relatively recent because for a long time it was not considered that the incorporation of this labor into this sector required specific training ^[64]. This has resulted in an industry in which its workers have been the least qualified academically compared to others ^[65]. However, in the evolution of tourism towards a crucial sector for the development of many countries ^[66][67][68], the specialization and training of its professionals have become a key factor that guarantees the competitiveness of destinations ^[63][69]. This is how, in the face of the professionalization and modernization of a sector in which the demand for qualified personnel is constantly growing, educational institutions have been developing study programs to satisfy this need ^[39][69][70]. In these programs, skills and abilities related to ICT ^{[71][72][73][74]} are essential given the impact of these tools in the associated professional field ^[39][63][75]. In this regard, the agents that make up the tourism sector question whether the training of graduates of the tourism branch is appropriately adapted to the needs of an increasingly complex and competitive work environment ^[76] that requires a multitude of skills and competencies ^{[39][63][69][77][78][79]} among which those related to ICTs ^[63] stand out.

Official studies related to this industry are relatively recent because for a long time it was not considered that the incorporation of this labor into this sector required specific training [64]. This has resulted in an industry in which its workers have been the least qualified academically compared to others [65]. However, in the evolution of tourism towards a crucial sector for the development of many countries [66,67,68], the specialization and training of its professionals have become a key factor that guarantees the competitiveness of destinations [63,69]. This is how, in the face of the professionalization and modernization of a sector in which the demand for qualified personnel is constantly growing, educational institutions have been developing study programs to satisfy this need [39,69,70]. In these programs, skills and abilities related to ICT [71,72,73,74] are essential given the impact of these tools in the associated professional field [39,63,75]. In this regard, the agents that make up the tourism sector question whether the training of graduates of the tourism branch is appropriately adapted to the needs of an increasingly complex and competitive work environment [76] that requires a multitude of skills and competencies [39,63,69,77,78,79] among which those related to ICTs [63] stand out.

In this sense, research related to education, study programs, etc., of the tourism area is gaining prominence in the academic and professional fields ^{[69][76][80][81]} while those focused on challenges posed by the integration of ICT in this same industry ^[60]. Thus, the benefit of delving into those that combine both aspects and focus on the consideration of ICT as a fundamental part of the academic training of tourism students ^[40][69] and, consequently, on their DL is evident.

In this sense, research related to education, study programs, etc., of the tourism area is gaining prominence in the academic and professional fields [69,76,80,81] while those focused on challenges posed by the integration of ICT in this same industry [60]. Thus, the benefit of delving into those that combine both aspects and focus on the consideration of ICT as a fundamental part of the academic training of tourism students [40,69] and, consequently, on their DL is evident.

Research on education in specific fields and on some of its key aspects, such as DL, is frequent due to the interest in the academic and teaching fields ^{[44][82][83][84]}. Furthermore, technology is a recurring topic due to its implications in the evolution of teaching and the changes that this requires ^{[1][44][85][86]}. The circumscription to specific disciplines or branches of studies is due to the fact that the aforementioned implications vary among them ^[87][88]. In this sense, and as already indicated, in the field of tourism studies, DL is crucial given the incidence of ICT in this industry ^{[67][89][90][91][92]}.

Research on education in specific fields and on some of its key aspects, such as DL, is frequent due to the interest in the academic and teaching fields [44,82,83,84]. Furthermore, technology is a recurring topic due to its implications in the evolution of teaching and the changes that this requires [1,44,85,86]. The circumscription to specific disciplines or branches of studies is due to the fact that the aforementioned implications vary among them [87,88]. In this sense, and as already indicated, in the field of tourism studies, DL is crucial given the incidence of ICT in this industry [67,89,90,91,92].

Based on the above, the main objective of this research consists of analyzing the scientific production on DL in higher education to describe it and, also, determine the degree of prominence of studies on tourism in this field. From the main objective, there are a series of specific objectives that are classified into two sections. The first section brings together those related to the descriptive aspects of the basic characteristics of the documents and that do not require consulting their contents, as is the case of the objectives of the second section.

O1 Formal descriptive objectives:

O1.1: Determine the evolution of research on DL.
O1.2: Classify research on DL according to the type of document.
O1.3: Classify research on DL according to the productivity of the journals.
O1.4: Classify research on DL according to the productivity of the authors.

O2 Descriptive objectives of the content:

O2.1: Classification of documents according to their nature.

O2.2: Classification of documents according to geographic scope.

O2.3: Classification of documents according to the university population segment of the study.

O2.1: Classification of documents according to their nature.

O2.2: Classification of documents according to geographic scope.

O2.3: Classification of documents according to the university population segment of the study.

The set of objectives related to the description and analysis of the literature on DL in higher education is completed with a series of objectives related to the study of DL in the area of tourism.

O2.4: Classification of documents according to academic/teaching area (in which areas or discipline/s the study is carried out).
O2.5: Determine the level of presence of research on DL in the field of studies related to the sector and industry of tourism.

To achieve the stated objectives, a systematic literature review is carried out. This is a theoretical construct whose purpose is to review the relevant documents in the field obtained from the most relevant databases ^[19][93].

3. Cconclusion

In general terms, it can be concluded that publications on DLSC are approached from different research perspectives, and range from concrete descriptions of teaching–learning methodologies and procedures and how future teachers should use ICT, to more normative approaches ^[9][16][43] but they are not characterized by specialization and personalization that is crucial at the present time given the degree of professionalization of the current labor market. Organizations, in general terms, must adapt to the new challenges imposed by global economic, social, technological, etc. transformations while preserving their competitiveness ^[61][94]. For this, the development, access, and use of ICTs is not only a key factor but is necessary ^[95]. In the tourism sector, an industry that has become a source of economic and social development in many territories ^[61][89], ICTs have generated new opportunities ^[96] but also the need for more trained professionals in this field who can exploit their full potential to the maximum ^[63].

In general terms, it can be concluded that publications on DLSC are approached from different research perspectives, and range from concrete descriptions of teaching–learning methodologies and procedures and how future teachers should use ICT, to more normative approaches [9,16,43] but they are not characterized by specialization and personalization that is crucial at the present time given the degree of professionalization of the current labor market. Organizations, in general terms, must adapt to the new challenges imposed by global economic, social, technological, etc. transformations while preserving their competitiveness [61,102]. For this, the development, access, and use of ICTs is not only a key factor but is necessary [103]. In the tourism sector, an industry that has become a source of economic and social development in many territories [61,89], ICTs have generated new opportunities [104] but also the need for more trained professionals in this field who can exploit their full potential to the maximum [63].

The digital information age presents opportunities, but also challenges when it comes to destination marketing and management ^[68][97][98]. These challenges require the involvement of training institutions in the sense of providing future professionals with the necessary tools to face them ^[40][41][69] because human resources are crucial to achieving a real advantage in the global tourism industry, characterized by its volatility and competitiveness ^[99]. The results obtained represent a contribution to the academic and professional fields since scientific activity is evaluated with respect to DLSC in higher education, providing crucial information to tackle the challenges described ^{[44][85][100][101]}. Higher education and ICT must form an indissoluble pairing that serves as a model for the previous educational stages, becoming a source of theoretical and practical knowledge about DL, about how to turn students into expert professionals in the creation, development, and use of ICT. This is the goal pursued by this study and which has been materialized in a photograph of the evolution and current state of the scientific literature on DLSC, with special attention to studies on tourism. The meager results obtained in this regard contrast with the relevance of ICT in the corresponding sector, conferring added value to the line of research initiated in terms of its projection, since for tourism students the integration of ICT in their face training is crucial upon their incorporation into the professional field ^[40] and this process will not be successful unless their DL is previously undertaken.

The digital information age presents opportunities, but also challenges when it comes to destination marketing and management [68,105,106]. These challenges require the involvement of training institutions in the sense of providing future professionals with the necessary tools to face them [40,41,69] because human resources are crucial to achieving a real advantage in the global tourism industry, characterized by its volatility and competitiveness [107]. The results obtained represent a contribution to the academic and professional fields since scientific activity is evaluated with respect to DLSC in higher education, providing crucial information to tackle the challenges described [44,85,98,100]. Higher education and ICT must form an indissoluble pairing that serves as a model for the previous educational stages, becoming a source of theoretical and practical knowledge about DL, about how to turn students into expert professionals in the creation, development, and use of ICT. This is the goal pursued by this study and which has been materialized in a photograph of the evolution and current state of the scientific literature on DLSC, with special attention to studies on tourism. The meager results obtained in this regard contrast with the relevance of ICT in the corresponding sector, conferring added value to the line of research initiated in terms of its projection, since for tourism students the integration of ICT in their face training is crucial upon their incorporation into the professional field [40] and this process will not be successful unless their DL is previously undertaken. Despite the achievement of the goal and objectives, the research carried out is not exempt from limitations that are established as next phases or future lines. These are mainly related to the sample that should be expanded to other relevant databases such as Web of Science (WOS) as well as to other teaching areas and disciplines, giving it a global approach and a new perspective that addresses the universal and global nature of the DL.