THE APPLICATION OF ROBOTS IN THE TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY: A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

In this paper, we used bibliometric analysis to indicate the current state of scientific literature on the use of robots for the improvement of services and work activities in the tourism and hospitality industry in terms of the most significant topics, as well as the contribution of journals, authors, and countries. The research included an analysis of 27 journals in the field of tourism and hospitality indexed on the Journal Citation Report within the Web of Science. Papers in the selected journals were searched according to the criteria of the presence of the words robot or robotics in the title, keywords and abstract. A total of 208 papers were identified, which were published in the period between 1984 and 2023. A total of 463 authors from 38 countries participated in writing papers, of which 98 have more than one published paper. Broadly speaking, the two most important topics/fields of analysis were ‘service robot’ and ‘artificial intelligence.’ The research results represent a significant basis for the further development of this field and a holistic approach to the study of the existing literature dealing with the application of robots in tourism and hospitality.