Researcher Marta Salvador Almela, winner of the best thesis at the ENTER25 Congress
Marta Salvador Almela, professor and researcher of the Tourism, Culture and Territory Research Group, has won the first prize for her doctoral thesis research proposal: Social media's role in shaping tourism imagery and experiences: a case study of volunteer tourism for the Enter25 eTourism Conference: eTourism towards 2060, organized by the International Federation for IT and Travel & Tourism.
Social media’s role in shaping tourism imagery and experiences: a case study of volunteer tourism
This thesis, co-directed by Dr. Jordi Arcos Pumarola (CETT) and Dr. Estela Marine Roig (University of Lleida), explores how social networks, specifically Instagram, contribute to the configuration of the imaginary of the phenomenon of volunteer tourism. Thus, it examines the representation of these experiences by different agents and the influence that this imaginary can cause in the behavior and discourse of tourists during their volunteering.
Social networks have transformed the way in which tourism services and destinations are marketed and promoted, as well as the way tourism experiences are shared. Instagram, being the main platform for sharing images, has made it possible for different agents in the tourism sector to increase their visibility and impact. Although volunteer tourism is a widely studied phenomenon, nowadays online images play an important role in shaping the imaginary of voluntourism experiences and tourists' motivations.
The main methodologies used are qualitative, more specifically, content analysis and semi-structured interviews. Therefore, through this thesis, the typology of images and online narratives about voluntourism is determined, as well as a relationship between the imaginary of Instagram and the motivations, stereotypes and behaviors of voluntourism tourists. Finally, this thesis discusses the need to establish ethical and/or behavioral codes of social media use to promote responsible image practices and online narratives in the tourism phenomenon.
In the words of researcher Marta Salvador Almela: “I would like to thank the International Federation for IT and Travel & Tourism for this recognition. This award represents not only the recognition of the dedication during my thesis, but also a great motivation in this final stretch of the doctorate and an impulse to continue dedicating myself to research in tourism. I would also like to express my gratitude to my thesis directors and to all the people who are accompanying me on this path.”
