ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to review the body of knowledge on the role and measurement of emotions in tourism experiences. The affective experience of consumers has long been recognized as a critical element in the formation of attitudes and post-consumption behaviors. This chapter reviews past topics of research on emotions in the tourism field and critically examines different ways of measuring emotions. A Scopus search reveals several streams of research on emotions in tourism studies and research gaps are identified. From these gaps, suggestions for future research are provided. The chapter also reviews the use of physiological measures as a way to assess discrete and valence based emotions. For example, the suitability of measures based on electrodermal (i.e. sweat gland) or cardiovascular (i.e. blood circulatory system) responses is discussed. Eye movement or eye-tracking measures often supplement other physiological methods as it is important to identify which specific stimuli a subject is looking at when facial muscles move or heart rate changes. The chapter includes a case study on the arousal of discrete emotions at a heritage site.
