Content analysis in tourism research

• Methods and applications of content analysis in tourism research were examined.
• 164 articles from ten journals included in the JCR were reviewed.
• Critical issues in development of the method were analysed.
• Exponential increase of content analysis method in tourism research is detected since 2000s.
• This article provides guidelines and recommendations for structuring the method in future applications.

Considering the exponential increase of studies in the tourism field that use content analysis (CA) as a research method, this paper aims to determine how CA in tourism field is applied and to detect the critical issues regarding its application. In order to achieve these aims, a systematic content analysis of 164 articles from ten journals included in the Journal Citation Report was performed. Findings reveal trends and applications of the method, which can be improved, most notably the operational procedures, in order to make tourism studies using CA more transparent, effective and replicable. Recommendations are provided with a view to improving future research.