Gender, Disability, and Social Identities in Tourism Research in Africa: Bibliometric Insights

Abstract

Grounded in the intersectionality theory, this research investigates the constructs of gender and social identities (mainly status, race, and disability) in African tourism research. This chapter reviews the state-of-the literature in this domain with a specific contextual focus on African regions to substantiate the current affairs and recommend future research. The bibliometric review was employed to systematically search, identify, screen, and review relevant literature on gender and social identities in tourism research in Africa between 1999 and 2021. After carefully selecting search phrases, we included only 73 journal articles published in English for further analysis. Preliminary results show that research from Africa on gender and social identities has been gradually increasing, with most of it published in 2021, with most of the articles published by the Annals of Tourism Research. Further analysis of the results shows that most empirical studies were conducted in South Africa. Out of 73 studies, more than half of the publications used quantitative research design. Based on bibliographic coupling, three literature clusters emerged: Cluster 1—Gender equality and sustainable tourism, Cluster 2—Sustainable development by volunteer tourism, and Cluster 3—Impartiality of gender and advanced technology in tourism. The chapter highlights future research agenda to promote a least studied aspect through gender and disability inclusion in tourism research in Africa.KeywordsGenderDisabilityTourismHospitalityAfricaBibliometric insightsIntersectionality theory