Information about the doctoral dissertation of PhD candidate Nguyen Thi Hong Cam

1. Full name of doctoral candidate: Nguyen Thi Hong Cam             2. Gender: Female

3. Date of birth: March 10, 1981 4. Place of birth: Khanh Hoa

5. Decision to recognize doctoral students: No. 2775/QD-XHNV dated December 31, 2020, of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

6. Changes to the training process (if any): Extension from January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025

7. Thesis title:Factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations: A case study of Khanh Hoa.

8. Major: Tourism. 9. Code: 981010.01

10. Scientific supervisor:

Supervisor 1: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Anh Tuan; Supervisor 2: Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Dung

11. Summary of the new findings of the thesis:

• Purpose and scope of research for the thesis

- Research objective: To identify and analyze the factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations in Khanh Hoa province, and thereby propose policy implications to promote the effective and sustainable construction and development of smart tourism destinations.

- Research subject: factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations.

• Research methods used

The study utilizes both secondary and primary data. Secondary data was collected from policy documents, statistics, and research reports related to smart tourism development. Primary data was collected through survey questionnaires and interviews. Regarding data processing, the study combines qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative methods were applied in literature reviews, bibliographic measurements, expert interviews, and focus group interviews to build and refine the model and scales. Quantitative methods included two stages: preliminary (Cronbach's Alpha reliability test, exploratory factor analysis - EFA) and formal (further Cronbach's Alpha test, EFA, confirmatory factor analysis - CFA, and structural equation modeling (SEM) to test hypotheses).

• Key results, new contributions, and conclusions

• Key results

Theoretically, the thesis has systematized and clarified the concept and components of a smart tourism destination. Based on a literature review, the study has developed a theoretical model comprising 10 factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations, divided into two groups: intrinsic factors and extrinsic factors.

Methodologically, the thesis developed and validated measurement scales for the relevant factors and concepts. The scales were adjusted to suit the context of tourism in Khanh Hoa, with the addition of several new indicators of high practical significance.

In practice, the model validation results show that 9 out of 10 factors have a positive impact on the development of smart tourism destinations. Therefore, the thesis offers specific recommendations to promote smart tourism development in Khanh Hoa – a locality with many favorable conditions and undergoing a strong digital transformation.

In terms of novelty, the thesis not only proposes and tests a theoretical model suitable for the local context, but also contributes to concretizing the influencing factors in the conditions of a developing coastal destination. In particular, the thesis approaches the topic from a sustainable development perspective, emphasizing the interactive role of various components in the development of a sustainable smart tourism destination.

• New contributions

Theoretical contributions

Firstly, the thesis has systematized, inherited, and developed relevant foundational theories, thereby proposing an integrated model for studying the factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations in the specific context of Khanh Hoa province.

Secondly, based on a literature review both domestically and internationally, the thesis has systematically identified and categorized 10 factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations.

Rank Third, the thesis has developed, refined, and validated a set of measurement scales for key concepts related to the development of smart tourism destinations. Several new indicators have been proposed and added. This is a significant contribution to standardizing the measurement system, providing future researchers with a basis for further quantitative, comparative, or expanded research on smart tourism in other localities.

Practical contribution

Firstly, the research results help to clearly identify the key factors influencing the development of smart tourism destinations in the locality. Through the proposed research model, managers and policymakers can identify which internal factors need investment and strengthening, and which external factors need to be effectively linked and exploited to create a sustainable smart tourism ecosystem that is appropriate to the actual conditions.

Secondly, the practical scales and indicators developed and validated by this thesis are not only valuable within the research framework but can also be used as tools to assess and measure the level of smart tourism development at other destinations within and outside the province. This will help build a set of criteria to support the evaluation, monitoring, and planning of smart tourism development policies in the locality in the future.

Thirdly, the findings from this thesis contribute to providing scientific data and evidence to support policy consultation and the development of tourism strategies for Khanh Hoa province in the coming period, especially in the context of digital transformation being an inevitable trend.

Conclude

Overall, the thesis has achieved its research objectives and made certain contributions in terms of theory and practice. The research results identify 9 out of 10 factors that have a positive influence on the development of smart tourism destinations in Khanh Hoa.

12. Directions for further research:

- Develop a set of criteria to measure the intelligence level of a destination.

- Further research could be expanded to other contexts/locations across the country; or by conducting a simultaneous survey of two groups of tourists and residents—those who have experienced smart tourism and those who have not—to propose specific solutions for each group.

- Focus on quantitatively comparing the level of influence between these two groups of factors, through methods such as multi-group analysis or hierarchical structural model analysis. The results of these studies will provide further scientific evidence to determine which group of factors should be prioritized for investment and development in each stage and under the specific conditions of the destination.

13. Publications related to the dissertation:

1. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam (2022), “Application of information technology in the development of smart tourism in Khanh Hoa”Industry and Trade Magazine (17),ISSN 0866-7756,pp. 160-165.

2. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam (2022"Research model of factors affecting intelligent tourism destination development: A theoretical approach”,Vietnam National University, Hanoi, ISBN: 978-604-9990-98-4, pp. 699-718.

3. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam, Nguyen Phuong Thuy (2022), “Digital Transformation in tourism: smart tourism development platform in Khanh Hoa”, TED-2022 Proceedings of the International Conference on Culture, Education, Tourism with Economic Development, ISBN: 978-604-79-3291-7,pp. 375-384.

4. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam (2023), “Development of Khanh Hoa tourism in the direction of smart tourism”, National Economics University Publishing House, ISBN: 978-604-330-575-3,pp. 198-210.

5. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam, Le Anh Tuan, Nguyen Ngoc Dung (2024), “Determining factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations: case study in Khanh Hoa - VietNam”,IJCHT-24, Proceedings of The 4th^thInternational Joint Conference on Hospitality and Tourism 2024, ISBN: 978-604-79-4564-1, pp. 128-138.

1. Full name of PhD student: Nguyen Thi Hong Cam               2. Gender: Female

3. Date of birth: March 10, 1981 4. Place of birth: Khanh Hoa

5. Decision on Recognition as Doctoral Candidate: No. 2775/QD-XHNV dated December 31, 2020, issued by the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

6. Changes during the training process (if any): Extended from January 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025

7. Dissertation Title:Factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations: Case study in Khanh Hoa

8. Major: Tourism. 9. Code: 981010.01

10. Supervisors:

Supervisor 1: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Anh Tuan Supervisor 2: PhD. Nguyen Ngoc Dung

11. Summary of the thesis's new findings:

• Purpose and research focus of the thesis

- Purpose: To identify and analyze the factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations in Khanh Hoa Province, thereby implying policy implications to promote the effective and sustainable development of smart tourism destinations.

- Research focus: Factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations.

• Research methodology

The research utilizes both secondary and primary data. Secondary data were collected from orientation documents, statistics, and research reports related to smart tourism development. Primary data were collected through survey questionnaires and interviews. For data processing, the research combines qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative methods were applied in literature review, bibliometric analysis, expert interviews, and group interviews to develop and refine the model and measurement scales. Quantitative methods include two stages: preliminary (testing Cronbach's alpha, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA)) and formal (further testing Cronbach's Alpha, EFA, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to test hypotheses).

• Key findings, new contributions and conclusions

• Key Discoveries

Theoretically, the thesis systematized and clarified the concept and components of a smart tourism destination. Based on the literature review, the research a theoretical model includes 10 factors that influence the development of developed smart tourism destinations, categorized into two groups: internal and external factors.

In terms of methodology, the thesis developed and validated measurement scales for the relevant factors and concepts. The scales were adjusted to fit the context of Khanh Hoa tourism, incorporating new indicators of significant practical value.

Practically, the model validation results indicate that 9 out of the 10 factors positively influence the development of smart tourism destinations. Consequently, the thesis provides specific recommendations to promote smart tourism development in Khanh Hoa – a locality with many favorable conditions and currently undergoing strong digital transformation.

In terms of novelty, the thesis not only proposed and validated a theoretical model that fits the local context but also contributed to concretizing the influencing factors within the conditions of a developing coastal destination. Particularly, the thesis approaches the topic from a sustainable development perspective, emphasizing the role of interaction among components in sustainable development of smart tourism destinations.

• Seed contributions

Theoretical contributions

Firstly, the thesis systematized, inherited, and developed relevant foundational theories, thereby implying an integrated model to study the factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations within the specific context of Khanh Hoa Province.

Secondly, based on a review of domestic and international literature, the thesis identified and categorized 10 factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations.

 Thirdly, the thesis developed, adjusted, and validated the measurement scales for key concepts related to the development of smart tourism destinations. Several new indicators were proposed and supplemented. This is a significant contribution to standardizing the measurement system, laying the groundwork for future researchers to conduct further quantitative, comparative, or expand the scope of research on smart tourism in other localities.

Practical Contributions

Firstly, the findings help clearly identify the key factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations in the locality. Through the proposed model, managers and pulling can determine which internal factors need investment and reinforcement, as well as which external factors should be effectively linked and leveraged to create a sustainable smart tourism ecosystem tailored to local conditions.

Secondly, the practical scales and indicators developed and validated by the study are not only valuable within the study framework but can also serve as assessment tools to measure the level of smart tourism development in other destinations, both within and outside the province. This facilitates the establishment of a criteria set to support assessment, monitoring, and planning in deploying smart tourism development policies in the locality in the future.

Thirdly, the findings from the thesis contribute to providing data and scientific evidence for the policy consultation process, developing the tourism development strategy of Khanh Hoa Province in the coming period, especially in the context of digital transformation being an inevitable trend.

Surgery

Overall, the thesis achieved the research objectives and made certain theoretical and practical contributions. The research findings identified that 9 out of 10 positively influence the development of smart tourism factors destinations in Khanh Hoa.

12. Directions for future research:

- Develop a set of criteria to measure the smartness level of a destination.

- Future research may expand to different contexts/localities across the country, or conduct a survey study simultaneously with two groups: tourists and residents who have and have not experienced smart tourism, to propose specific solutions for each target group.

- Focus on quantitative comparison of the level of influence between these two groups of factors, using methods such as multi-group analysis or hierarchical structure model analysis. The findings of these researches will provide further scientific evidence to determine which group of factors should be prioritized for investment and development, depending on the destination's specific conditions and stages of growth.

13. List of publications related to the thesis:

1. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam (2022), “Application of Information Technology in Smart Tourism Development in Khanh Hoa” Vietnam Trade and Industry Review (17), ISSN 0866-7756, pp. 160-165.

2. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam (2022), “Research model of factors affecting intelligent tourism destination development: A theoretical approach”, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, ISBN: 978-604-9990-98-4, pp. 699-718.

3. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam, Nguyen Phuong Thuy (2022), “Digital Transformation in tourism: smart tourism development platform in Khanh Hoa”, TED-2022 Proceedings of the International Conference on Culture, Education, Tourism with Economic Development, ISBN: 978-604-79-3291-7,pp. 375-384.

4. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam (2023), “Development of Khanh Hoa tourism in the direction of smart tourism”, National Economics University Publishing House, ISBN: 978-604-330-575-3, pp. 198-210.

5. Nguyen Thi Hong Cam, Le Anh Tuan, Nguyen Ngoc Dung (2024), “Determining factors that influence the development of smart tourism destinations: case study in Khanh Hoa - VietNam”,IJCHT-24, Proceedings of The 4th^thInternational Joint Conference on Hospitality and Tourism 2024, ISBN: 978-604-79-4564-1, pp. 128-138.