Research Methodology in Gastronomy in the Scientific Field of Tourism

Abstract

This exploratory and descriptive paper characterized the methodological procedures adopted in the master's theses produced in the scientific field of tourism with themes focused on gastronomy between 2001 and 2016. For this purpose, 61 theses at the CAPES Thesis Bank were treated employing content analysis from categories based on referential authors. Exploratory and descriptive researches, with a qualitative approach, were the most recurrent. The main research strategies adopted are case studies and ethnography, while the most recurrent techniques for data collection were interviews and document analysis. Many authors did not inform about data analysis techniques. The results agreed with the scientific field of tourism in Brazil, but not with the international scenario. There are no trends of change regarding the methodological procedures, which may indicate that Gastronomy as a tourism research theme does not move towards a maturation stage.