Wellness tourism: a perspective article

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergey Kazakov ◽  
Olga Oyner

Purpose This paper aims to examine the development and significant contributions in a growing array of relevant publications spanning from 1946 to date and discuss future developments of the wellness tourism topic until the year 2095. Design/methodology/approach This perspective study traces down the wellness tourism evolution research by re-viewing and analysing an extant body of the relevant literature over the last 75 years. This paper builds a rigorous perspective review by examination of publications derived from several scientific domains, including tourism, medicine, economics and social sciences. Findings As a result of this study, wellness tourism can be attributed as a profuse and proliferating research stream in the recent 75 years. Its relevance to significant aspects of life, such as health and also due to effects on human, social, and economic well-being, drives its proliferation. The paper anticipates the relevance and topicality of wellness tourism studies for academic research in the next 75 years. Originality/value This paper contributes to the theory by addressing the ambiguous nature of wellness tourism, recapping the debate on the most debated research questions, and revealing the perspectives for future research in this area.

2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 887-907 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alireza Sheikh ◽  
Ming Lim

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into how engineering employees perceive the functional, ethical and political dimensions of the corporate brand and its meaning(s) for other stakeholders. Design/methodology/approach – The paper explores brand meaning and brand attachment in the case of employees in an engineering consultancy firm operating within the defense and artillery systems sector. In-depth interviews with managers and consultants at a cross-section of organizational levels along with thematic and reflexive interpretation of qualitative data have been carried out. Findings – Identity-based definitions of the brand, the definitions of a “strong engineering brand”, associations of the corporate brand with engineers’ personal brands, brand essence and integration and the meanings of a military brand have all been raised, explored and discussed from the engineer’s perspective. Research limitations/implications – This paper is among the first of its kind to pursue brand research in an engineering-intensive firm with military and defense brand associations. Future research is encouraged to add further detail and verification to the themes and findings of this paper. Practical implications – The military context is enmeshed with high levels of sensitivity and difficult research access particularly upon brand-related academic research. This has led in part to very limited marketing and branding knowledge into this setting despite its significance. Social implications – Given that the engineering consulting sectors are among the top drivers of employment and knowledge advancement, and given that brand associations have considerable impacts on employees’ identification, self-awareness and emotional well-being, understanding the dynamism and complexities of employee-brand associations is inevitable in these settings. Originality/value – The defense context has unique characteristics and has hitherto remained an under-researched context with respect to branding. This is despite that the defense sector deserves to be in the spotlight because professionals’ voices are rarely heard and acknowledged within the branding literature.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Doyle ◽  
Almuth McDowall

PurposeThe aims of the paper were to highlight the dearth of applied practitioner research concerning the expression of neurodiversity at work and develop an epistemological framework for a future research agenda.Design/methodology/approachA systematic empty review protocol was employed, with three a priori research questions, inquiring as to the extent of neurodiversity research within mainstream work psychology, psychology in general and lastly within cross-disciplinary academic research. The results of the final search were quality checked and categorized to illustrate where studies relevant to practice are currently located.FindingsThe academic literature was found to be lacking in contextualized, practical advice for employers or employees. The location and foci of extracted studies highlighted a growing science-practitioner gap.Research limitations/implicationsThe research focused on common neurominority conditions such as autism and dyslexia; it is acknowledged that the neurodiversity definition itself is broader and more anthropological in nature. A need for a comprehensive research agenda is articulated, and research questions and frameworks are proposed.Practical implicationsGuidance is given on applying disability accommodation to both individual and organizational targets.Social implicationsThe disability employment gap is unchanged since legislation was introduced. The neurodiversity concept is no longer new, and it is time for multi-disciplinary collaborations across science and practice to address the questions raised in this paper.Originality/valueThis paper offers an original analysis of the neurodiversity paradox, combining systematic inquiry with a narrative synthesis of the extant literature. The conceptual clarification offers clear directions for researchers and practitioners.


2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 441-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haldor Byrkjeflot ◽  
Peter Kragh Jespersen

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to bring the discussion on the relationship between management and medicine a step forward by focussing on: first, how the notion of hybrid and hybridity has been used in the literature on healthcare management. Second, the authors have mapped the alternative ways that the concept have been used in order to conceptualize a more specific set of possible combinations of managerial and professional roles in healthcare management. Hybrid management is a topic that ought to be important for training, communication among researchers and for identifying areas of future research: in management, in healthcare reforms, in sociology of professions and in theory of organizations. Design/methodology/approach – The authors provide a systematic literature review in order to map the various conceptualizations of hybrid management. The authors have searched for “hybrid leadership,” “hybrid management” combined with hospitals and health care in a whole range of journals, identified in Google scholar, Academic Search Premier, Academic Research Library and Sage Publication. The authors have also used already existing literature reviews. The search has resulted in more than 60 articles and book titles that have been classified according to whether they make a fit with three alternative ways of conceptualizing hybrid management. The authors are aware that they might have missed some relevant literature but the literature included is quite comprehensive. Findings – In the literature the authors have found three conceptualizations of management. The clinical manager who combines professional self-governance with a general management logic. The commercialized manager who combines professional self-governance with an enterprise logic. The neo-bureaucratic manager who combines self-governance with a neo-bureaucratic logic. Originality/value – In most analyses of hybridity in management and organization the notion of hybrid has been used in a rather superficial way. By mapping the various uses of hybrid in the literature and suggest how a professional logic may be combined with a set of alternative logics of management the authors provide a platform for developing the concept of hybrid management into a more useful tool for analyses of changes in healthcare management.


2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Hobson ◽  
Christian J. van Nieuwerburgh

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a review of the evidence base on coaching and mentoring in education, to provide a commentary on literature published in the first 10 volumes of the International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education (IJMCE) in particular and to offer some directions for future research in the field.Design/methodology/approachThis review and position paper draws on the authors’ knowledge of the extant literature on coaching and mentoring in education, their own research in the field and their perspectives as editors of coaching and mentoring journals.FindingsAmong the outcomes of their review and commentary, the authors observe that coaching and mentoring research conducted to date largely occupies two separate fields, and studies published in one field frequently fail to draw on relevant literature from the other or recognise the overlap between them. The authors highlight a number of additional limitations of the evidence base on coaching and mentoring in education and offer some potential means of addressing these.Originality/valueThe paper offers an original reflection on current research into coaching and mentoring in education. It is intended that the paper will inform the design and publication of future studies in this area to strengthen the evidence base and, in turn, inform improvements to coaching and mentoring practice. In particular, the authors hope to encourage the ethical deployment of coaching and mentoring which enhances, rather than inhibits, the well-being of all participants, while realising other positive outcomes.


2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 146-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Apostolakis ◽  
Gert van Dijk ◽  
Periklis Drakos

Purpose – This study aims to offer a literature review on microinsurance, focusing on its financial performance and social impact. The aim is to review current research in microinsurance performance. Over the past decade, microinsurance has aroused the interest of the scientific community. Scholars have monitored its development and have examined its impact on the poor’s ability of breaking out of the poverty trap. Design/methodology/approach – A systematic-narrative method was used to review the relevant literature. In total, 64 relevant articles on investigating the financial performance and the effects of microinsurance programs on the poor’s well-being were reviewed, coded and followed by a narrative synthesis. Findings – This review synthesizes current published data on microinsurance to provide practitioners and researchers with a better understanding of this important area. Microinsurance benefits the poor, as it reduces their vulnerability to poverty. Microinsurance has a twofold impact on an individual’s ability to overcome poverty. First, it has a direct impact on access to healthcare services and, second, it has an indirect effect on an individual’s economic status, by moderating risk vulnerability and improving income stability. Further research is necessary to reach concrete conclusions about the financial performance of microinsurance programs. Finally, the analysis of the literature revealed an absence of research regarding the impact of microinsurance on society and sustainable development. Research limitations/implications – An understanding of the performance of microinsurance services is important. Therefore, the findings can be used by microinsurance practitioners to assess and improve their performance. Further, policy implications such as improvement of financial knowledge and social marketing via education polices to increase microinsurance awareness of its benefits are recommended. Originality/value – This review provides a synthesis of the literature in microinsurance concerning its financial and social performance, and raises suggestions for future research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiehyeon Lim ◽  
Min-Jun Kim ◽  
Ki-Hun Kim ◽  
Kwang-Jae Kim ◽  
Paul P. Maglio

Purpose The proliferation of (big) data provides numerous opportunities for service advances in practice, yet research on using data to advance service is at a nascent stage in the literature. Many studies have discussed phenomenological benefits of data to service. However, limited research describes managerial issues behind such benefits, although a holistic understanding of the issues is essential in using data to advance service in practice and provides a basis for future research. The purpose of this paper is to address this research gap. Design/methodology/approach “Using data to advance service” is about change in organizations. Thus, this study uses action research methods of creating real change in organizations together with practitioners, thereby adding to scientific knowledge about practice. The authors participated in five service design projects with industry and government that used different data sets to design new services. Findings Drawing on lessons learned from the five projects, this study empirically identifies 11 managerial issues that should be considered in data-use for advancing service. In addition, by integrating the issues and relevant literature, this study offers theoretical implications for future research. Originality/value “Using data to advance service” is a research topic that emerged originally from practice. Action research or case studies on this topic are valuable in understanding practice and in identifying research priorities by discovering the gap between theory and practice. This study used action research over many years to observe real-world challenges and to make academic research relevant to the challenges. The authors believe that the empirical findings will help improve service practices of data-use and stimulate future research.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 324-345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eunhwa Yang ◽  
Catherine Bisson ◽  
Bonnie Eaton Sanborn

Purpose This paper aims to review the concept and characteristics of coworking space, especially physical and operational characteristics and its objectives. The authors propose three models of coworking spaces, such as revenue, synergistic and customer contact, which organizations can use as a part of their corporate real estate strategies to build workplace flexibility and resiliency. This paper also addresses research gaps and a research agenda for future research. Methodology This paper is a literature review of academic research focusing on coworking spaces. Because of the relatively limited existing academic literature on the topic, industry sources and white papers are also reviewed. Findings The authors categorized common threads of the existing literature on coworking spaces to emergence and growth trends, the types of users, the type of work to be completed in these spaces, characteristics of coworking spaces and the desired outcomes of coworking space models. Coworking spaces are expected to grow worldwide because of the increase in knowledge-based economy, the “digital nomad” lifestyle and mobile technologies, however, there is limited research on the relationship between spatial and operational characteristics of coworking spaces and users’ collaboration, social well-being and creativity. No research identified fully articulated the nuanced differences between the types of coworking spaces now found in the real estate ecosystem. Research limitations There is limited academic, empirical research focusing on coworking spaces. Thus, the search for literature itself is limited to a small number of papers. Although the authors extended the search to non-academic sources, the conclusion of this study is tentative because of the prematurity of the topic. Originality/value This paper urges the identification of research questions, considering the fast growth of coworking spaces and suggests future research directions based on newly proposed models. Industry practitioners, including building owners, managers, coworking space providers and corporate real estate practitioners, can consider using variations of coworking space concepts and characteristics, as they understand the importance of social needs and connectivity among users. By addressing the history of the coworking space as a concept and business model, and updating the types of models to include new coworking spaces, the authors provide further options to industry practitioners as to how to integrate coworking into their real estate.


2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 545-559 ◽  
Author(s):  
Horst Treiblmaier

Purpose This paper aims to strive to close the current research gap pertaining to potential implications of the blockchain for supply chain management (SCM) by presenting a framework built on four established economic theories, namely, principal agent theory (PAT), transaction cost analysis (TCA), resource-based view (RBV) and network theory (NT). These theories can be used to derive research questions that are theory-based as well as relevant for the industry. This paper is intended to initiate and stimulate an academic discussion on the potential impact of the blockchain and introduces a framework for middle-range theorizing together with several research questions. Design/methodology/approach This paper builds on previous theories that are frequently used in SCM research and shows how they can be adapted to blockchain-related questions. Findings This paper introduces a framework for middle-range theorizing together with several research questions. Research limitations/implications The paper presents blockchain-related research questions derived from four frequently used theories, namely, PAT, TCA, RBV and (NT). These questions will guide future research pertaining to structural (PAT, TCA) and managerial issues (RBV, NT) and will foster middle-range theory development in SCM research. Practical implications Blockchain technology has the potential to significantly change SCM. Given the huge investments by industry, academic research is needed which investigates potential implications and supports companies. In this paper, various research questions are introduced that illustrate how the implications of blockchain on SCM can be investigated from different perspectives. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, no academic papers are published in leading academic journals that investigate the relationship between SCM and blockchain from a theory-based perspective.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 686-707
Author(s):  
Marcus Conlé

Purpose The paper aims to take stock of China’s recent biopharmaceutical industry development by analyzing product innovation and changes in the firms’ product portfolios during the five-year period between 2012 and 2017. Design/methodology/approach The paper introduces a classification of biopharmaceutical products. By applying the classification to the product data of China’s drug regulator, the CFDA, it becomes possible to trace the developments within the sector by looking at changes in the number of firms within each subgroup and changes in the number of subgroups in which each firm is involved. The classification allows an evaluation of the latest product innovation achievements. Findings The paper demonstrates a mild shakeout of firms in the relatively long-existing domestic market segments, a trend toward more specialized product portfolios and an enduring prevalence of innovation strategies aimed at exploiting relatively unpopulated domestic market niches instead of pioneering entirely new products. Especially the capability of upgrading to second-generation protein therapeutics has become a key criterion for separating the wheat and the chaff in China’s domestic sector. The paper moreover points out the relevance of acquisitions as a corporate growth strategy. Research limitations/implications The research does not consider complementary indicators, product pipelines in particular. Future research should compare patterns across emerging economies. Originality/value The paper is unique in using the CFDA database for systematic academic research on (bio)pharmaceutical innovation and in introducing a biopharmaceutical product classification to trace innovative activities and changes in corporate product portfolios over time.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianluigi Guido ◽  
Marco Pichierri ◽  
Cristian Rizzo ◽  
Verdiana Chieffi ◽  
George Moschis

Purpose The purpose of this study is to review scholarly research on elderly consumers’ information processing and suggest implications for services marketing. Design/methodology/approach The review encompasses a five-decade period (1970–2018) of academic research and presents relevant literature in four main areas related to information processing: sensation, attention, interpretation and memory. Findings The study illustrates how each of the aforementioned phases of the information processing activity may affect how elderly individuals buy and consume products and services, emphasizing the need for a better comprehension of the elderly to develop effectual marketing strategies. Originality/value The study provides readers with detailed state-of-the-art knowledge about older consumers’ information processing, offering a comprehensive review of academic research that companies can use to improve the effectiveness of their marketing efforts that target the elderly market.


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