The COVID-19 Impact on Chinese Tourism and Hospitality

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Aims, Objectives, Research Questions, and Hypotheses
Annotated Bibliography
Methodological Choices
Sampling Strategy
Data Analysis Plan
Ethics
Reference List

Introduction

The tourism industry is one of the most important and influential areas of any country. This is due to the fact that the economic sphere of states depends on it to a large extent. Thus, it is a profitable type of business that contributes to the optimization of the country’s economic processes. In addition, tourism has a great influence on such sections as the development of transport, communications, catering, construction, and job creation. In addition, it is worth noting that the tourism and hospitality industry greatly contributes to the dissemination of knowledge about the culture and traditions of the country and awareness of the importance of maintaining and preserving it. Thus, there is a lot of evidence of the value of this field, which makes it necessary to focus on the problems that are associated with it. One of the most pressing issues that still affect this area is the contribution of the global coronavirus pandemic. Henceforth, this disease has caused the closure of the world lockdown and the closure of the borders of many countries, which had a negative impact on the tourism and hospitality industry. Therefore, this research aims to study the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism and hospitality industry in China.

In order to find the most relevant and up-to-date information, it is necessary to conduct thorough scientific research. This approach allows one to take into account the opinion of various segments of the population in planning the activities of tourism and service facilities. Moreover, it provides data from various researchers on the effects, and consequences of the pandemic and how to deal with them. Therefore, the scientific research in the field of tourism and hospitality in China will make it possible to use their results in the practical activities of organizations of this profile.

First of all, it is necessary to gain an understanding of how the global coronavirus pandemic has affected the tourism and hospitality industry. Hence, the recent COVID-19 pandemic proved to be an issue of utmost severity, resulting in economy collapse all around the world. UN World Tourism Organization (2022a) reports that, prior to virus outbreak, a sustainable growth was observed in the tourist industry, with around 1.5 billion international tourist arrivals in 2019. However, after the start of the pandemic, 100% of worldwide destinations forced travel restrictions, resulting in the unprecedented decrease in tourism profitability for every country (UN WTO, 2022a). China was among the most affected states, with the virus originating from Wuhan city.

Thus, COVID-19 pandemic served as a significant hindrance for the development of tourism industry, both in China and worldwide. As of 2020, UNWTO (2022a) reports that the indicators dropped drastically, with 74% losses in international tourist arrivals, $1.3 trillion of financial losses, and over $2 trillion of estimated GDP losses. However, after the development of vaccines and mass vaccination, China managed to recover in 2021-2022. UNWTO’s (2022b) recent report shows that international tourism has been steadily growing – the overall arrivals rates reached 57% of pre-pandemic levels in the first 7 months of 2022, and continue to rise. Moreover, World Travel and Tourism Council (2022) reports that Chinese tourism industry is expected to increase its contribution to country’s GDP by more than 60%, as opposed to 30.7% worldwide. This makes China one of the quickest countries to recover from the blow of the pandemic, with predicted annual increase of tourism GDP contribution of CNY 2.8 trillion (WTTC, 2022). Thus, the tourism industry in China is developing rapidly, even after the collapse associated with pandemic lockdowns and travel restrictions of 2019-2021, which gives it a great competitive advantage.

According to the researchers, Chinese tourists previously exported about $50 billion abroad, and every effort should be made to ensure that some of this money remains inside the country. It is worth noting that despite the rather long time that has passed since the pandemic, China is still struggling with its consequences. Therefore, UNWTO noted that “however, arrivals in Asia and the Pacific remained 83% below 2019 levels. China, a key source market for the region, remains closed” (UN World Tourist Organization, 2022b, para. 4). This makes it necessary to study this topic, especially the opinions of tourists regarding the problem, in order to determine the effect of the pandemic on tourism in the country.

The importance of this research paper appears in several aspects. First of all, it will provide insight into the state research on the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism and hospitality industry in China. Such an approach would contribute greatly to the development of measures to improve tourism and hospitality in China after the pandemic. In this regard, this work will be of value for all the main directions of tourist theory and practice that have arisen on the basis of such connections. The principles of the organization of business service and hospitality presented in this paper will have a beneficial effect on the functioning of businesses. The importance of this research for communities is related to the fact that it presents the visual use of various tools that enhance the economic, social, and humanitarian impact of tourism on society.

Aims, Objectives, Research Questions, and Hypotheses

The aim of this research is to study and identify the effect that the COVID-19 had on the tourism and hospitality industry in China and the ways that the country has been fighting its consequences. The work also would focus on assessing the current state and prospects for the development of hospitality. The main objectives of the research are to define the concept of the tourism industry and determine its place and role in the Chinese economy. Further, the research aims to analyze the structure and dynamics of the current development of the tourism industry in China and assess the effectiveness of integration processes in the activities of tourism enterprises there. The final objective is to determine the main prospects for the development of hospitality in China after the global pandemic.

For the qualitative part of the study, there are several research questions that will be investigated. The first question that concerns this research is, “What effect has the coronavirus had on the operations and productivity of the tourism and hospitality industry in China?” The necessity to study this statement is due to the fact that after the worldwide lockdown, the number of tourists in the country decreased significantly, which had a very obvious effect on its economy. Therefore, a study of the scientific literature will provide a more detailed understanding of this topic and allow us to identify and evaluate measures that can be taken to limit the problem. The next research question will be: “What are the current and relevant prospects for the development of hospitality and tourism in China?” This is a necessary step in identifying the prospects for improving the tourism infrastructure and how they align with the current trends. The solution of these problems has an impact on the development of adjacent sciences and the strategy of tourism development.

Several hypotheses for the quantitative part of the study are formulated as follows. The coronavirus pandemic infection was critical for the tourism industry in China, and its consequences of preventive measures related to it can be traced to this day. The second hypothesis is that the practical strategies and policies adopted by the government to combat COVID-19 have enabled the industry to recover from the global pandemic quite quickly and return to effective operations.

Annotated Bibliography

Hong, Y. et al. (2020) “The impact of COVID-19 on tourist satisfaction with B&B in Zhejiang, China: An importance–performance analysis,” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(10), 2020, p. 3747.

The first article that has been investigated in this paper is the work of Hong et al., who studied the effect of coronavirus on the level of tourist satisfaction regarding the B&B (bed and breakfast) industry. There is quite a small number of studies on this topic, which makes this scientific paper valuable to study. The authors state that “tourist satisfaction, as a marketing tool, plays a key role in the construction of strategies in the tourism market” (Hong et al., 2020, p. 4). Consequently, it can be concluded that in order to transform China’s tourism and hospitality industry, it is necessary to conduct research and implement measures regarding the desires and needs of tourists.

Hoque, A. et al. (2020) ‘The effect of Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the tourism industry in China,’ Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, 3(1), pp. 52-58.

This research paper provides a clear and complete explanation of how global diffusion has affected China’s tourism, which is relevant to this research paper. The information within this paper has been compiled using a literature review of academic sources. This represents the strength of the research as it is a evidence-based research. Therefore, the authors concluded that “due to this virus threat, outside people fear mixing up with the Chinese population” (Hoque et al., p. 52). For this reason, many airlines canceled flights to the country, and travel agencies canceled the sale of trips to China. Because of this, the state’s economy suffered serious shocks and “created a major downfall in the tourism industry from domestic as well as international perspectives” (Hoque et al., p. 52). Thus, the results and findings of this article will be useful for researching the questions and hypotheses of this paper.

Li, Z. et al. (2021) “Urban and rural tourism under COVID-19 in China: Research on the recovery measures and tourism development,” Tourism Review, 76(4), pp. 718–736.

Urban and rural tourism are among the most important parts of Chinese tourism industry. The authors of the article discuss the effect of the COVID-19 outbreak of 2019-2021 on urban and rural tourism in China, focusing on major milestones of the course of pandemic. Moreover, the study reviews a significant amount of published works, various measures, and attitudes of the stakeholders towards these types of tourism and their development in the future. The authors analyzed news reports and determined most frequent words using mining software to provide insight into the official discourse related to urban and rural tourism. The study offers valuable insight into current trends of Chinese tourism industry and its future prospects.

Nazneen, S., Hong, X., and Ud Din, N. (2020) ‘COVID-19 crises and tourist travel risk perceptions,” SSRN Electronic Journal.

The article by Nazneen, Hong, and Ud Din looks at the negative impact of COVID-19 on the tourism and hospitality industry, as well as how it has changed the way tourists think about traveling to China. Thus, the global disease has largely influenced people’s tourist behavior as a result of the fear associated with visiting the country where the virus was first found (Nazneen, Hong, and Ud Din, 2020). In addition, the scientific paper notes that individuals began to pay great attention to safety and hygiene. Henceforth, tourists will not visit countries and tourist places and locations that do not comply with the newly established rules to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The information given in the article may be useful for studying the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on China’s tourism and hospitality industry.

Wen, J. et al. (2020) ‘COVID-19: potential effects on Chinese citizens’ lifestyle and travel,” Tourism Review, 76(1), pp. 74-87.

The article by Wen et al. is valuable because it examines the changes that the pandemic has brought to domestic tourism in the country. Thus, the research paper “aims to examine how the outbreak may alter Chinese tourists’ lifestyle choices, travel behavior, and tourism preferences in the short and long term” (Wen et al., 2020, p. 74). The authors conclude that the country’s residents may significantly change their preferences for tourist activities. Therefore, free and independent travel, luxury trips, and health and wellness tourism may become among the most popular ways of leisure. Moreover, it is noted that the transformation caused by COVID-19 can have a positive impact on the activities of the tourism and hospitality industry. This can happen through changes in the functioning of agencies and offering new ways of tourism, such as fast and smart travel. Thus, this paper is important for this research as it has a unique perspective on the problem under consideration.

Wu, W. et al. (2021) ‘The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on Chinese-listed tourism stocks,” Financial Innovation, 7(1), pp. 1-18.

The research paper by Wu et al. is important for this research paper because it focuses on the economic side of the spread of coronavirus in the world and changes in the tourism field. Thus, the authors note that “China reported the first COVID-19 case in Wuhan, leading to its GDP to decline by 6.8% in the first quarter of 2020 compared with the same period of 2019” (Wu et al., 2021, p. 2). In addition, the main consequences were a decline in the stock market, fewer jobs, and lower profits from tourism activities. This was the reason for the increase in unemployment and poverty in the country, as well as the reduced emphasis on improving the infrastructure of major tourist destinations. Due to the fact that the problem of the impact and spread of coronavirus is not completely solved, the authors note the need for further research to support the economic and tourism activities of countries.

Methodological Choices

When conducting research, it is important to define the appropriate method for data collection. In this study, the researcher would collect data from secondary sources such as books and academical publications, focused on tourism industry of China. It is important to review related literature to determine what other scholars have found in this field. The process would also involve critical assessment of articles that used experimental/quasi-experimental methods to discuss the existing phenomena in tourism and hospitality on a more global scope. The goal is to collect evidence-based data that corresponds with the aim of the study and analyze it. The wide variety of sources to be used in the study would provide assurance that the report has sufficient reliability and validity.

Qualitative research articles are considered the most appropriate for determining the current and the most relevant trends in Chinese tourism and hospitality industry. This is due to the fact that qualitative method makes it possible to investigate a phenomenon beyond statistical calculations. It focuses on interpretation, contextualization, and understanding of the studied issue, providing better framework for defining causes, effect, and outcomes of it (Silverman, 2020). However, despite all benefits, there are specific challenges associated with implementing qualitative methodology. First of all, it is time-consuming: gathering sufficient amount of data for a reliable sample can take long periods of time (Silverman, 2020). From there, another problem stems: the reliability of research is lacking, as small samples of population or problem might not be representative. Finally, there is the issue of methodology – there are no standard procedures for conducting qualitative research, as opposed to quantitative methods. Still, qualitative research would suit this research goal better, as it offers necessary background for the studied issue.

The researcher considers it equally important to review findings made by scholars who conducted experimental or quasi-experimental studies on the topic of tourism and hospitality. In general, these methods allow to model the studied issue in real-life conditions, with partial control over the factors that might influence it. This can be quite helpful in studies where the causal correlation is explored, and the need to determine the levels of influence of different factors is present. However, the flexibility of experimental and quasi-experimental studies is also considered their significant weakness: partial control over the elements of the experiment means that it is less reliable in the end. Thus, while experimental and quasi-experimental studies would be reviewed, they would constitute the minority of all researched studies.

It is also worth noting that this study will apply the philosophy of positivism. This approach “relates on the importance of what is given in general, with a more strict focus on considering pure data as well as facts without being influenced by the interpretation of bias of humans” (Alharahsheh and Pius, 2020, p. 41). It is this characteristic of this paradigm that is the basis of this choice. When conducting a study of literary sources, particular importance must be given to the data that is examined in the paper. Thus, this paper focuses on respondents’ answers, statistical information, and analysis of scientific data on the impact of COVID-19 on the Chinese tourism industry. Moreover, the limiting role of bias becomes an important component in order to obtain more valuable and effective research results.

To distinguish the degree of the influence of pandemic in China, respondents will be inquired to fill out a survey. The survey would require them to assess a selection of parameters on a 10-point scale. The frequencies and divisions (in %) with which certain values of subjective highlights happen within the test would be utilized. As for the test normal, a 95% confidence interval would be calculated for the test division and proportion. After the tests are conducted, posteriori comparisons would be performed – pairwise comparisons of the considered bunches to distinguish contrasts between them, which would facilitate report visibility.

The research strategy would be to apply the interconnection of theories and concepts related to indicators and factors related to the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism and hospitality industry. The scientific papers selected for consideration would be the basis for the integration of knowledge from related scientific disciplines. The synthesis strategy would be applied in the theoretical generalization of empirical data accumulated in the course of these research. Using this strategy of the study, a single picture would be compiled from the disparate data obtained as a result of using empirical survey methods. It would give a holistic view of hospitality and tourism development perspectives in China after the pandemic.

Sampling Strategy

For the quantitative part of the study, the sample would consist of articles written by scientists about tourism and the effect of COVID-19 on the country. These articles should be published in reliable scientific journals and written within last 5 years. This will provide the opportunity to find the most relevant and up-to-date data for the study. The literature would be selected according to the key concepts that make up the topic of the study and containing the definitions considered at the beginning of the report. For the qualitative part of the study, the sample would consist of people who have traveled to China during the last 5 year. It would consider men and women between ages 18 and 60 belonging to different cultural and racial groups.

Among the advantages of the first sample, it can be noted that the selected criteria for articles allow to achieve greater depth, detail, and accuracy of recorded facts. Such a sample expands the possibilities to introduce additional sources, which provides comprehensive overlook. The advantages of the second sample lie in the relatively small survey sample, as well as low labor and financial costs. It is also possible to distinguish as advantages the efficiency of obtaining data, a wide scope of application, and a sufficiently high reliability.

The limitations of the first sample lie in the fact that there is a greater risk of data manipulation with systematic sampling. Researchers may unknowingly build their systems in such a way as to increase the likelihood of achieving the intended result, instead of allowing random data to give a representative answer (Galdas, 2017). In addition, the literature sample suggests that the number of factors representing the effect of COVID-19 on tourism is available or can be approximately determined. If the researcher does not have sufficient estimation of the contribution of the disease, they cannot systematically choose the starting point or the size of the interval when compiling a list of references for analysis.

The limits of the second sample refer to the need for a natural degree of randomness. The population of respondents who have traveled to China over the past year should demonstrate a natural degree of randomness according to the chosen metric. If the population has a standardized model type, the risk of random selection of very common cases becomes more obvious (Hayes, 2022). Therefore, it is necessary that a large degree of variety by age, origin, occupation, and tourist preferences should randomly appear among the respondents.

Data Analysis Plan

The analysis of the collected information in the process of literary review and survey is valuable, as it directly affects the productivity and effectiveness of the research results. Thus, within the framework of this paper, such methods as testing the proposed hypotheses and cluster analysis can be undertaken. These tools will provide a detailed study of the data and information obtained during the experimental work and will allow the formation of knowledge into groups (Aggarwal, 2018; Wierzchoń and Kłopotek, 2018). Therefore, the researchers will be able to identify such aspects as the consequences of the pandemic for the Chinese tourism sector, the areas that have been most affected, and the measures that can be taken to change the situation in the country.

For the quantitative part of the study, statistical test will be used. This is due to the fact that in order to analyze the information, one needs to visualize the data and find out an important value – the degree of variation (Mariani and Baggio, 2020). To do this, as part of the ongoing experiment, the necessary information will be collected and implemented in graphs to obtain data visualization. For example, in this way, researchers will be able to compare the difference between the frequency of visits to China before the pandemic and after. In addition, it is possible to determine the understanding of the degree of implementation of the necessary hygiene measures before, during and after COVID-19.

The choice of this particular statistical test is due to the fact that the estimate of the sample average in the analysis of scientific literature is always slightly different from the true average for the general population. The lower the variance and the larger the sample size, the smaller the representativeness error (Wen et al., 2020). If the sample obeys a normal distribution and does not contain outliers, then the errors of this sample will also obey the Cox-Stuart test.

For the qualitative part of the study, the thematic analysis approach will be used. The procedure of thematic analysis includes multi-stage coding, as is customary in the tradition of content analysis. This approach will be chosen because, unlike content analysis, the resulting codes are not only collected into semantic clusters united by a certain general category but a narrative line is formed from the codes (Neuendorf, 2018). What stands out in using this approach is the form of themes resembles individual chapters of a book, the designations of which reveal its main content (Pasca et al., 2021). The highlighted topics will take the form of a story structure about the research subject of hospitality. The frequency of occurrence of the topic can be calculated, but it is not important in itself. Much more important is the semantic weight of the topic, i.e., its contribution to the ability to reveal the general content of the subject of hospitality in China.

Ethics

The basic principles of ethical research in this case include compliance with the principle of benefit from research activities, the principle of fair selection of research participants, the principle of respect for the personality and autonomy of the subject. Compliance with the benefit principle implies that this study will not bring any harm to its participants. Compliance with the principle of fair selection of participants states that any person who meets the selection criteria (for example, gender, age, social status) has the same chance to participate (Chiumento et al., 2017). Compliance with the principle of respect for the personality and autonomy of the subject implies that all participants in the study are provided with sufficient information about the study. They shall independently and voluntarily decide whether or not to participate in the research project. The researcher would explain the objectives of the study and describe the actions that the subjects will have to perform.

Reference List

Aggarwal, C.C. (2018) An introduction to cluster analysis. In Data Clustering (pp. 1-28). Chapman and Hall/CRC.

Alharahsheh, H.H. and Pius, A. (2020) ‘A review of key paradigms: Positivism VS interpretivism,’ Global Academic Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2(3), pp. 39-43.

Chiumento, A. et al. (2017) ‘Ethical standards for mental health and psychosocial support research in emergencies: review of literature and current debates,’ Globalization and Health, 13(1), pp.1-19.

Galdas, P. (2017) ‘Revisiting bias in qualitative research: Reflections on its relationship with funding and impact,’ International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), p.1609406917748992.

Hayes, A. (2022). Systematic sampling: What is it, and how is it used in research? Web.

Hong, Y. et al. (2020) “The impact of COVID-19 on tourist satisfaction with B&B in Zhejiang, China: An importance-performance analysis,” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(10), 2020, p. 3747.

Hoque, A. et al. (2020) ‘The effect of Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the tourism industry in China,’ Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, 3(1), pp. 52-58.

Li, Z. et al. (2021) “Urban and rural tourism under COVID-19 in China: Research on the recovery measures and tourism development,” Tourism Review, 76(4), pp. 718–736.

Mariani, M. and Baggio, R. (2020) ‘The relevance of mixed methods for network analysis in tourism and hospitality research’, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 32(4), pp. 1643-1673.

Nazneen, S., Hong, X., and Ud Din, N. (2020) ‘COVID-19 crises and tourist travel risk perceptions,” SSRN Electronic Journal.

Neuendorf, K. A. (2018). Content analysis and thematic analysis. In Advanced research methods for applied psychology (pp. 211-223). Routledge.

Silverman, D. (2020) Qualitative research. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publishing.

UN World Tourism Organization (2022a) COVID-19 and Tourism | 2020: A year in review, UNWTO. Web.

UN World Tourist Organization (2022b) Impact assessment of the COVID-19 outbreak on international tourism, UNWTO. Web

UN World Tourist Organization (2022b) Tourism recovery accelerates to reach 65% of pre-pandemic levels. Web

Wen, J. et al. (2020) ‘COVID-19: potential effects on Chinese citizens’ lifestyle and travel,” Tourism Review, 76(1), pp. 74-87.

Wierzchoń, S.T. and Kłopotek, M.A. (2018) Modern algorithms of cluster analysis. Springer International Publishing.

World Travel and Tourism Council (2022) China’s Travel & Tourism sector set to recover by more than 60% this year, reveals WTTC, World Travel and Tourism Council. Web

Wu, W. et al. (2021) ‘The impact of the COVID-19 Outbreak on Chinese-listed tourism stocks,” Financial Innovation, 7(1), pp. 1-18.

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