A new paradigm for meetings and events studies

Abstract

The aim of the article is to propose a new way of perceiving and researching meetings and events, which in turn will contribute to our understanding of how to stimulate the development of this sector more effectively. Thus far, researchers have tended to emphasize the economic importance of meetings. The article presents an innovative research approach concerning one specific type of meetings, namely "congresses". This new paradigm focuses on the institutional role of congresses. The analysis has identified the functions that congresses perform in relation to market stakeholders and the relationships between them that create cooperation. Convention Bureaus and Congress Ambassadors were identified as new institutions that have added to the development of the entire congress market. As the most important for the development of Meeting Industry, the article indicates the synergy between the stakeholders of the sector and the activation of the demand side by strengthening the role of associations.