Use of the social network analysis methodology to study the image of tourist destinations

Abstract

This paper analyses the image that European tourists have about a destination (Canary Islands), in order to identify keywords that describe the tourist destination through the free elicitation methodology. A Computer-Aided Web Interview (CAWI) was used to conduct the research in 19 European countries, where through the free elicitation methodology, tourists associated words to destinations (Canary Islands). These association words are classified as push and pull factors, and the present study focuses on push factors. The final sample consisted of 30,094 tourist, and 237 words grouped in 23 associations. These association words are classified as push factors. Through the methodology of Social Network Analysis (SNA), the study focuses on detecting motivational push factors that define the Canary Islands as a destination. The network analysis reveals the structural characteristics of the free elicitations words network. This study helps to a better understanding of the image that a tourist has of the Canary Islands and to make a more appropriate promotion of the Canary Islands destination.