Spatiotemporal role of tourism in mitigating social vulnerability

The importance of vulnerability in shaping the continued prosperity of communities has gained traction across social sciences. This study seeks to delineate the way tourism demand and supply have spatially and temporally influenced community social vulnerability. A spatiotemporal tourism-vulnerability model was developed for all counties in the contiguous United States, empowering practitioners to continually assess the impact of tourism on vulnerability at the local level. Despite assertions of declining tourism supply and demand during initial crisis periods, this research suggests these concerns did not translate into continuous widespread negative effects on community social vulnerability. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of social vulnerability by underscoring its dynamic interplay with tourism demand and supply, ultimately endorsing localized strategies for managing high-risk communities.