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Medical, Health and Wellness Tourism Research—A Review of the Literature (1970–2020) and Research Agenda

Author

Listed:
  • Lina Zhong

    (Institute for Big Data Research in Tourism, School of Tourism Sciences, Beijing International Studies University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100024, China)

  • Baolin Deng

    (Institute for Big Data Research in Tourism, School of Tourism Sciences, Beijing International Studies University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100024, China)

  • Alastair M. Morrison

    (Greenwich Business School, Old Royal Naval College, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9SL, UK)

  • J. Andres Coca-Stefaniak

    (Greenwich Business School, Old Royal Naval College, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9SL, UK)

  • Liyu Yang

    (Institute for Big Data Research in Tourism, School of Tourism Sciences, Beijing International Studies University, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100024, China)

Abstract

Medical, health and wellness tourism and travel represent a dynamic and rapidly growing multi-disciplinary economic activity and field of knowledge. This research responds to earlier calls to integrate research on travel medicine and tourism. It critically reviews the literature published on these topics over a 50-year period (1970 to 2020) using CiteSpace software. Some 802 articles were gathered and analyzed from major databases including the Web of Science and Scopus. Markets (demand and behavior), destinations (development and promotion), and development environments (policies and impacts) emerged as the main three research themes in medical-health-wellness tourism. Medical-health-wellness tourism will integrate with other care sectors and become more embedded in policy-making related to sustainable development, especially with regards to quality of life initiatives. A future research agenda for medical-health-tourism is discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Lina Zhong & Baolin Deng & Alastair M. Morrison & J. Andres Coca-Stefaniak & Liyu Yang, 2021. "Medical, Health and Wellness Tourism Research—A Review of the Literature (1970–2020) and Research Agenda," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-16, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:20:p:10875-:d:657785
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Chaomei Chen & Fidelia Ibekwe‐SanJuan & Jianhua Hou, 2010. "The structure and dynamics of cocitation clusters: A multiple‐perspective cocitation analysis," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 61(7), pages 1386-1409, July.
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    4. Moghimehfar, Farhad & Nasr-Esfahani, Mohammad Hossein, 2011. "Decisive factors in medical tourism destination choice: A case study of Isfahan, Iran and fertility treatments," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 1431-1434.
    5. Han, Heesup & Hyun, Sunghyup Sean, 2015. "Customer retention in the medical tourism industry: Impact of quality, satisfaction, trust, and price reasonableness," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 20-29.
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    8. Fetscherin, Marc & Stephano, Renee-Marie, 2016. "The medical tourism index: Scale development and validation," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 539-556.
    9. Zhang, Qingfang & Zhang, Hui & Xu, Honggang, 2021. "Health tourism destinations as therapeutic landscapes: Understanding the health perceptions of senior seasonal migrants," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 279(C).
    10. Chaomei Chen & Fidelia Ibekwe-SanJuan & Jianhua Hou, 2010. "The structure and dynamics of cocitation clusters: A multiple-perspective cocitation analysis," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 61(7), pages 1386-1409, July.
    11. Ramya Vijaya, 2010. "Medical Tourism: Revenue Generation or International Transfer of Healthcare Problems?," Journal of Economic Issues, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(1), pages 53-70.
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    Cited by:

    1. Qiong Dang & Zhongming Luo & Chuhao Ouyang & Lin Wang, 2021. "First Systematic Review on Health Communication Using the CiteSpace Software in China: Exploring Its Research Hotspots and Frontiers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-25, December.
    2. Jun Lee & Jeong-Joon Kim, 2023. "A Study on Market Segmentation According to Wellness Tourism Motivation and Differences in Behavior between the Groups—Focusing on Satisfaction, Behavioral Intention, and Flow," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-22, January.
    3. Ting Gan & Jiansong Zheng & Wei Li & Jiaxin Li & Junxian Shen, 2023. "Health and Wellness Tourists’ Motivation and Behavior Intention: The Role of Perceived Value," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-16, February.

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