The home exchange phenomenon in the sharing economy: a research agenda

Abstract

The emergence of the sharing economy has been driven by the increasing value of temporary access to goods over ownership as an alternative mode of consumption. This economy has been enabled by the rapidly evolving Web 2.0 technologies. Scholars have turned their attention to the implications of this sharing economy for the tourism and hospitality industries. However, research on peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation-sharing has mainly focused on a few global (monetised) platforms, especially Airbnb, while other manifestations of P2P sharing accommodation have remained underexplored. This is the case for “home exchange”, an example of non-monetised P2P sharing accommodation where individuals exchange their homes via web-based platforms. Aiming to address this gap, this paper reviews existing literature on the topic and identifies three key research dimensions, namely, economic, social-psychological and spatial. The paper also argues for the value of using second-home tourism literature in the examination of the home exchange phenomenon. Main research gaps and directions for future research are then addressed. Finally, the conclusions and limitations are presented.