Dr Nicole Ferdinand

Purpose. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) natural language processing may see the emergence of algorithmic word of mouth (aWOM), content created and shared by automated tools. As AI tools improve, aWOM will increase in volume and sophistication, displacing eWOM as an influence on customer decision-making. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the socio technological trends that have encouraged the evolution of informal infulence strategies from WOM to aWOM.

Design/methodology/approach. This paper examines the origins and path of development of influential customer communications from word of mouth (WOM) to electronic word of mouth (eWOM) and the emerging trend of aWOM. The growth of aWOM is theorized as a result of new developments in AI natural language processing tools along with autonomous distribution systems in the form of software robots and virtual assistants.

Findings. aWOM may become a dominant source of information for tourists, as it can support multimodal delivery of useful contextual information. Individuals, organizations and social media platforms will have to ensure that aWOM is developed and deployed responsibly and ethically.

Practical implications. aWOM may emerge as the dominant source of information for tourist decision-making, displacing WOM or eWOM. aWOM may also impact online opinion leaders, as they may be challenged by algorithmically generated content. aWOM tools may also generate content using sensors on personal devices, creating privacy and information security concerns if users did not give permission for such activities.

Originality/value. This paper is the first to theorize the emergence of aWOM as autonomous AI communication within the framework of unpaid influence or WOM. As customer engagement will increasingly occur in algorithmic environments that comprise person–machine interactions, aWOM will influence future tourism research and practice.

After 50 years in development, virtual reality (VR) has now become commercially available to consumers. The events industry has started to adopt this transformational technology, by implementing it into live events, or using it as an alternative method for providing event experiences. However, little research attempts to compare real to virtual event experiences to understand perceived user benefits and drawbacks. Using Uses and Gratifications (UG) Theory, this study aims to understand the possible user benefits provided from virtual event experiences. A process was designed that incorporated the viewing of a VR experience that was similar to an event previously attended by respondents. They were then interviewed and performed a Product Reaction Card exercise to compare their experiences. Analysis of the data suggests that current 360 VR technology can be used to extend the experiencescape but not replace live events. Respondents indicate that VR provides emotional gratifications that may build positive associations with event organizations and brands. However, VR in its current form does not provide the social and sensory gratifications of live events. VR can therefore be used to deepen relationships with existing participants or encourage future participation at events.

This paper examines the role of politics and power in the Notting Hill Carnival's evolution from a community festival to a hallmark event and tourism product. It overcomes the limitations of previous event/festival tourism research by utilizing Actor Network Theory's conceptualization of power as an evolving, relational and transformational phenomenon to analyse the development of the Notting Hill Carnival's festivalscape. Findings reveal over its fifty-plus-year history, non-human actors (such as, money) and human actors (such as, organizing committees) have engaged in continuous, complex ordering processes that have led to the development of six distinct festival frames – Community Festival, Trinidad Carnival, Caribbean Carnival, Black Arts Festival, Business Opportunity and City-led Hallmark Festival. These changes have taken place within a festivalscape that includes objects, space, the translation process, pivotal events and dissenting actors. Within the festivalscape, political actors have exerted significant influence due to their asymmetrical power creating challenges for festival organizers.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework that describes the characteristics and the underlying drivers of publically shared electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) for destinations. Tweets about a destination were collected while the destination hosted a hallmark event over a 5-year period (2011–2015). In each year, interactions on Twitter were analysed using macro and meso-level social network analysis to identify the network structure and hubs of eWOM activity. A K means clustering algorithm was then applied to create clusters of nodes with similar characteristics and eWOM content within each cluster was analysed using automated content analysis. The resulting model indicates that destination and event eWOM maintains a macro network structure in which a small number of accounts or hubs influence information sharing. Hub characteristics evolve over time, whereas eWOM content can fluctuate in response to emergent destination activities.

The purpose of this article is to examine the network structure of online stakeholder discussions in the planning stage of a UK public megaproject, High Speed Rail 2. By providing new rail connections between London, Birmingham, and Manchester, this project is highly complex as it is embedded in a network of stakeholder relationships that may support or oppose the project. Data drawn from Twitter were analyzed using Social Network Analysis and inductive analysis of user profiles and content. Findings indicate that the majority of online stakeholders oppose the project and form stable clusters. Larger clusters within this network may attempt to deploy power directly in the form of a manipulation strategy, whereas smaller clusters may seek to ally themselves with more powerful groups, a pathway strategy. Overall, the methodology is a useful complement to existing methods and may provide real-time insights into the complex, evolving discussions around megaprojects.

Research suggests that festivals can promote a destination via online word-of-mouth (eWOM) on social media, even though the nature of this effect is not yet fully understood. Using a combination of Social Network Analysis and text analysis (qualitative and quantitative), this article examines eWOM at a tourism destination (Bournemouth) when a festival (Bournemouth Air Show 2013) is staged. The Communities of Interest of eWOM interactions on Twitter were captured and analysed to understand the structure and content of eWOM. Findings indicate that key users are usually already prominent individuals and that festivals act as both a direct generator as well as an online animator of eWOM. Finally, network size, span and scope may be useful indicators when comparing eWOM networks.

Despite their heavy dependence on international markets, small developing countries or small states have been underrepresented in the internationalization literature. Unlike developed or large developing countries, small states face dual constraints of relatively weak institutions and a narrow resource base along with an open market environment. A changing domestic environment in small states requires firms to adapt and a process approach was employed in order to examine sustained internationalization firms from Trinidad and Tobago (TT). Analysis of the findings indicates that changing economic circumstances result in varying domestic production and market resource availability. In response, firms from small states may engage in phased rather than staged patterns of activity that include accelerated, reverse, and inward internationalization.

Purpose. While the area of project management maturity (PMM) is attracting an increased amount of research attention, the approaches to measuring maturity fit within existing social science conventions. This paper aims to examine the potential contribution of new data collection and analytical approaches to develop new insights in PMM.

Design/methodology/approach. This paper takes the form of a literature review.

Findings. The current trends of rapidly growing digital data collection and storage may have the potential to develop approaches to PMM assessment that overcome the limitations of existing qualitative and quantitative approaches.

Research limitations/implications. Future research in PMM can employ techniques such as social network analysis and text analysis to develop insights based on the flow and content of information in organizations.

Practical implications. Adoption of data analytical approaches from big data can enable the creation of new types of holistic and adaptive maturity models. Holistic maturity models provide insights based on both structured and unstructured data within organizations. Adaptive maturity models provide rapid insights based on the flow of information within an enterprise.

Originality/value. The recent trend towards digitising of organizational knowledge and interactions has created the possibility to apply new analytical approaches and techniques to the understanding of PMM in firms. This paper identifies possible tools and approaches that can be applied to create new types of maturity models based on structured and unstructured data.

Festivals, once local celebrations of culture and heritage, can become international events spreading to countries outside their region of origin. However, the processes by which such festivals have become international have largely been ignored in existing literature. The purpose of this paper is to present an illustration of the festival internationalization process based on a case study of Trinidad and Tobago (TT) style carnivals. Using a combination of archival and interview data, the paper first identifies the international origins and evolution of festival elements. It then examines the outward trajectory of development from an event on a small Caribbean island to a major feature of cities in North America and Europe. The findings are synthesized to create a framework describing festival internationalization that draws on research in cultural production systems. It proposes that the TT Carnival can be viewed as an experience production system that provides an infrastructure for the exploitation of indigenous intangible resources by entrepreneurs and cultural practitioners. This perspective suggests that policymakers and festival organizers expand their activities from managing individual celebrations to governance of shared resources.