Locating Asian Research and Selves in Qualitative Tourism Research

The main aim of this chapter is to “set the scene” of this book, which attempts to provide an overview of the ontologies, epistemologies, methodologies, and methods constituting Asian qualitative tourism research. The following chapter is organized around three main parts. In the first part, we will discuss the notion of qualitative research in general. More specifically, with a journey through selected episodes of Western history, we will provide an overview of the main beliefs that have informed the development of qualitative research in the social sciences from classical antiquity to the current times. We believe that this part is important as several episodes of Western history influenced (and still influence) the development of both tourism qualitative research and Asian qualitative tourism research. In the second part, the current scenario concerning qualitative research in tourism will be presented. In this part, we will place emphasis on the various “turns” (e.g., the “critical turn,” the “narrative turn,” etc.) that have shaped the scholarly production of qualitative tourism scholars. Finally, in the third part, we will review and critically assess Asian qualitative tourism research, with the intent to critically evaluate its current status quo and the challenges faced by Asian tourism scholars and tourism scholars working in/on Asia. Based on the epistemological studies conducted by tourism scholars on Asia, we will highlight the existing gaps in knowledge concerning Asian qualitative tourism research and how the following chapters in the book attempt to address them.