Retro-methodologies: insights for city tourism research

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the applicability of older methodologies to contemporary city tourism research.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews and identifies categories of methodologies for new uses.FindingsFour methods are considered to advance the toolkit of city tourism researchers – two are projective techniques and two are judgment tasks. More specifically a version of the thematic apperception test and the cognitive mapping approach belong to the first category while the use of the triad judgement tasks and just noticeable differences assessments belong to the latter category.Research limitations/implicationsThe techniques are advanced as proposals for further development. They have had only limited tourism city use and testing their usefulness offers creative possibilities for researcher insights.Practical implicationsNew techniques are needed for the contemporary times and the suggested proposals fit this requirement.Social implicationsNon-questionnaire techniques provide better access to the social lives of those less familiar with surveys.Originality/valueThe work revitalizes older ideas and offers approaches which may prove a useful addition to the researcher toolkit.