Network Approach in the Tourism Sector – Characteristics and Methods of Application

Abstract

Purpose. The aim of the paper is to present possible applications of the network approach in the tourism sector, in scientific research (including empirical analysis) as well as in the organization of management processes of tourist destinations. Method. The paper is based on a critical domestic and foreign literature review, being the basis of the presented discussion and deductive inference. Findings. To achieve the aim of the paper, there the origin of the network approach was presented, its basic assumptions and ways of application in empirical research. The presented literature review was related to three basic ways of using the network approach in scientific works: from the perspective of an individual actor, the network as a whole and group of actors in the network (mixed approach). Premises of using each of those perspectives were presented, as well as examples of their application in domestic and foreign literature, and the effects of this application. It allowed to show that each of those three perspectives can be useful in the tourism sector and brings different types of benefits. Research and conclusion limitations. The paper does not aspire to constitute a full and complex presentation of problems connected to the network approach in tourism, but rather concentrates on the general presentation of some chosen ways of network analysis. For a reader to obtrain more specific knowledge about any of the presented network issues, additional reading of the literature presented in the paper’s references is needed. Practical implications. The paper orders considerations on the presented issue and therefore, is aimed at a better understanding of network analysis – regarding empirical research based on such an analysis (scientific value) as well as the management of networks in the tourism sector (application value for economic practice). Originality. In domestic literature, there is a lack of reviews regarding the different ways of network approach application in the tourism sector, and this paper is aimed at fulfilling this gap. Type of paper. Theoretical paper.