Research

Graduate Students

Yanxi Li, Master's student

Dept. of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources

Colorado State University

Bryan Breidenbach, Ph.D. student

Dept. of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources

Colorado State University

Meghan Teumer, M.S. student

Dept. of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources

Colorado State University

Visiting Student Scholars

Tang Yanan, Ph.D. student

College of Urban and Environmental Planning

Central China Normal University

Haimeng Liu (Doris), Ph.D. student

College of Urban and Environmental Planning

Central China Normal University

Qianhong Quan, Ph.D. student

College of Urban and Environmental Planning

Central China Normal University

Xiangqiang Li, Ph.D. student

College of Urban and Environmental Planning

Central China Normal University

Previous Students

Record of previous graduate students and visiting scholars.

Project Highlights

Chinese National Parks

A graduate student project collecting, compiling, and analyzing data associated with China’s national park pilot program launched in 2015.

Destination Resilience

Presents a framework for analyzing destination resilience, with case studies in progress available for viewing.

Select Publications

  • Knight, D. W., Xiong, L., Gong, J., & Zhou, X. (2024). Why do the neighbors keep their distance? Evolutionary Psychology Theory and 2020 COVID-19 travel recovery in central China. Journal of China Tourism Research. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19388160.2024.2306211.
  • Branstrator, J. R., Cavaliere, C. T., Xiong, L., & Knight, D. W. (2023). Extended reality and sustainable tourism: Restorying human-wildlife relationships for biocultural conservation. Journal of Ecotourism, 22(1), 103-119. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14724049.2022.2055046.
  • Knight, D. W. Empowerment in Tourism. (2022). In D. Buhalis’ (Ed.) Encyclopedia of Tourism Management and Marketing (pp. 84-87). Edward Elgar Publishing. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800377486.empowerment.in.tourism.
  • Xiong, L., Knight, D. W., Gong, J., & Zhou, X. (2022). How do travelers go back to COVID-hit destinations? Examining the patterns and underlying motivations. Travel and Tourism Research Association – 52nd International Conference (Regenerative Tourism: Building Resilience). British Columbia. June 13-16. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/ttra/2022/researchabstract/80/.
  • Zhang, C., Knight, D. W., Li, Y., Yi, Z., Zhou, M., & Zi, M. (2022). Rural tourism and evolving identities of Chinese communities in forested areas. Journal of Sustainable Tourism. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2022.2155829.
  • Truong, V. D., Knight, D. W., Pham, Q., Nguyen, T. T., Nguyen, T. D., & Saunders, S. G. (2022). Undertaking fieldwork in Pro-Poor Tourism: A reflexive account. Tourism Recreation Research. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02508281.2022.2126923.
  • Li, Y., Ouyang, C.-X., Zhou, S., Hu, Y., & Knight, D. W. (2022). Tourism dependence and poverty alleviation thresholds in Chinese ethnic tourism. Journal of Mountain Science, 19(10), 3026-3036. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-022-7479-2.
  • Gong, J., Shapovalova, A., Wei, L., & Knight, D. W. (2021). Resident support in China’s new national parks: An extension of the Prism of Sustainability. Current Issues in Tourism. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2021.1890699.
  • Knight, D. W., Xiong, L, & Gong, J. (2020). Impact of COVID-19: Research note on tourism and hospitality sectors in the first epicenter of Hubei, China. Int. Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 13(12), 3705-3719. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-04-2020-0278.
  • Knight, D. W., Nian, W., & Chen, E. (2020). Launching an online graduate degree for tourism management in China: Lessons in Chinese-foreign cooperation. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15313220.2019.1707148.
  • Gong, J., Detchkhajornjaroensri, P., & Knight, D. W. (2019). Responsible tourism in Bangkok, Thailand: Resident perceptions of Chinese tourist behaviour. International Journal of Tourism Research, 21, 221-233. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jtr.2256.

Recent Projects

  • Building community: Mandarin course and Student Nature Vids film festival. Provost Support for Professional Development (Contract and Continuous Appointment Faculty); Spring 2023 (8,000 USD).
  • Characteristic village brand internalization and mechanism from a resident perspective. Chinese National Social Science Fund, Project No. 18BGL159; 2022-23 (200,000 RMB, ~30,100 USD).
  • Tourism-driven Chinese ethnic festival evolution: Mechanism and reproduction path. Chinese National Social Science Fund, Project No. 20CMZ033; August 2020 to December 2023 (200,000 RMB, ~$30,100).
  • Building beautiful China and healthy tourism development. Chinese National Social Science Fund, Project No. 14AJY024 (200,000 RMB, ~30,100 USD).
  • 2019 Hubei Province Tourist satisfaction survey project. 1.48 million RMB (~224,804 USD).
  • Recreational Boating Survey at Joe Pool and Lewisville Lakes, Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX. Army Corps of Engineers and Center for Environmental Management of Military Land; 2018-19 (288,000 USD).

Conferences and Symposia
(always in collaboration with others!)

Travel and Tourism Research Association

Paper / Presentation Title (52nd International Conference, British Columbia, June 13-16, 2022):

How do travelers go back to COVID-hit destinations? Examining the patterns and underlying motivations