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Introduction
The study of event management is a relatively recent phenomenon, and the field has seen rapid change in research focus. The fact that a special issue of the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management (IJCHM) has been reserved for contemporary issues in events, festivals and destination management is an indication of the increased interest in research in the event management field. This suggests that as the event management field has grown, research approaches and locations have become more diverse as diverse approaches and methods are encouraged in the early developmental stages of the area (Ballantyne et al., 2009). As the variety of research topics has grown over the past few decades, review papers on event management research (Getz and Page, 2016; Kim et al., 2013; Lee and Back, 2005; Mair, 2012; Mair and Whitford, 2013; Yoo and Weber, 2005) have not only addressed theoretical and practical themes but also suggested other valuable research areas. Using the priceless contributions of these scholars, Kim et al. (2013) recommended further reviews of articles published in journals focused on event management.
Scholars often attempt to determine progress in their fields or disciplines using content analysis of articles in academic journals. In hospitality and tourism (H&T), several scholars have examined published research to assess the development and future direction in their fields or disciplines (Crawford-Welch and McCleary, 1992; Grazer and Stiff, 1987; Reid and Andereck, 1989). For example, recently published special issues of the IJCHM, “Progress in hospitality research” and in 2004, the International Journal of Hospitality Management (IJHM) with its “2003 Review Issue” included research trends in specific themes like operation, human research or marketing research in H&T. Examining the changes in research themes provides insight into the growth and development of research in the field, as well as highlighting areas that require further investigation (Ballantyne et al., 2009). An examination of past research in a field reveals current boundaries and research practices and techniques as well as advances in research methods in the field (Baloglu and Assante, 1999).
Researchers (Krippendorff, 2004; Lombard et al., 2002) have suggested that a coding instrument for a thematic study, or coding categories, would make such a study more credible by reporting both, the...