Past, present, and future of anthropomorphism in hospitality & tourism: conceptualization and systematic review

The employment of anthropomorphism in promotion has witnessed a notable surge in recent times, surpassing prevous levels in the hospitality and tourism sectors. This research examines the development of anthropomorphism in hospitality and tourism over the past 13 years between 2010 and 2023, showcasing recent research themes, methods, national, international, interdisciplinary, or multidisciplinary alliances, and prominent anthropomorphism researchers and institutes in the hospitality and tourism field. One hundred and twenty-five research papers were published for hospitality and tourism in anthropomorphism. The research reveals that this topic is exponentially growing. This is the first study to provide a bibliometric analysis followed by content analysis of anthropomorphism research in the hospitality and tourism research niche, with theoretical and practical contributions. The findings of cluster analysis reveal several futuristic themes, such as machine learning, robotics, etc., which marketers can focus on for building resilient strategies in the long run. The last section of the paper discusses the conclusion and future research avenues.