Patrick L'Espoir Decosta

Contacts

Associate Professor, Research School of Management
ANU College of Business and Economics

Patrick hails from Mauritius. He obtained his BCom in Tourism Management from the University of South Africa and his Masters and PhD at the SHTM of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. His PhD dissertation dealt with the legacy of colonialism in the tourism development of former island colonies.

Countries where Patrick taught: Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Sweden, Colombia, Poland, Germany, Australia and the USA.

Teaching

Courses lectured in:

  • Marketing
  • Strategic Tourism and Hospitality Marketing
  • Tourism and Hospitality Marketing Management
  • Airline Management
  • Events and Tourism Management
  • International Marketing
  • Cultural Branding
  • Grounded Theory
  • Advanced Qualitative Methods
  • Marketing Research
  • Tourism Planning and Policy

He also acts as an academic supervisor for Bachelors,' Masters' and Doctorate theses.

Teaching philosophy

Patrick's teaching philosophy goes beyond simply imparting knowledge; he also endeavours to enhance his students' learning experience by creating opportunities for inspiration and empowerment. His classroom motto is: " I am not interested to know what you know but in how you think." For Patrick, teaching is a two-way process that not only requires classroom participation but also draws on students' personal experiences and their diverse backgrounds.

Patrick believes in an interactive form of teaching that creates a synergistic classroom atmosphere through the direct involvement of students. He always endeavors to engage students in genuine inquisitive conversations on issues relating to both their knowledge base and beliefs. His goal is to cultivate rational analysis and critical judgement through in-class dialogue and critique, with due respect to each individual's dignity.

Others

Patrick is also an advocate of advances in education quality assurance and the use of evidence-based approach in curriculum and course development. He is the Accreditation Director of the Centre of Evidence Based Management (CEBMa).

Research interests

Patrick's current research interest lies in the relationship between colonialism and tourism and is at the crossroads between social sciences and history. He is intrigued by multi-disciplinary knowledge systems and is particularly drawn to qualitative research methods. His research interests include:

  • Creation of the tourism space, with an emphasis on peripheral and marginal tourism space as opposed to mainstream tourism.
  • Tourism in the postcolonial
  • Small island tourism destination development
  • Critical tourism studies (tourism and politics, knowledge production and transmission in tourism)
  • Tourism, travel, space and place
  • The role of social artifacts such as religion and culture on destination marketing and how they influence the tourism experience.
  • Destination marketing in general and the role of events and branding the building of a tourist destination
  • The role of social media destination image and promotion
  • Cultural heritage and disaporic tourism in general.
  • Tourism education and the incorporation of tourism curricula in business studies.
  • Marketing role in value creation in B2C, B2B and C2C context
  • Evidence-Based approach to curriculum development and teaching

Groups

  • Kan John, P, Lear, E, L'Espoir Decosta, J et al. 2020, 'Designing a visual tool for teaching and learning front-end innovation', Technology Innovation Management Review, vol. 10, no. 9, pp. 16-26.
  • Eagar, T & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2018, 'The Nomadic Consumption Community: The recursive role of space in community mobility', Journal of Marketing Management, vol. 34, no. 7-8, pp. 569-591pp.
  • Andehn, M & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2018, 'Re-imagining the country-of-origin effect- a promulgation approach', Journal of Product and Brand Management, vol. 27, no. 7, pp. 884-896.
  • L'Espoir Decosta, J & Andehn, M 2018, 'Looking for authenticity in product geography
    ', in J.M. Rickly & E.S. Vidon (ed.), Authenticity & Tourism: Materialities, Perceptions, Experiences,, Emerald Publishing Limited, United Kingdom, pp. 15-31.
  • L'Espoir Decosta, J & Wikstrom, S 2018, "How is value created?": Extending the value concept in the Swedish context', Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, vol. 40, pp. 249-260pp.
  • Dale, N, L'Espoir Decosta, J & Weir, B 2017, 'Semantics of learning outcomes for a tourism degree across institutions, industry and governing bodies', Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, vol. 30, no. March 2017, pp. 15-21pp.
  • Dale, N & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2017, 'Editorial - Perspectives to implementing threshold learning outcomes in tourism, hospitality and events education', Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, vol. 30, pp. 1-3pp.
  • L'Espoir Decosta, J, Ryu, J & Andehn, M 2016, 'From branded exports to traveler imports: Building destination image on the factory floor in South Korea', Tourism Management, vol. 52, pp. 298-309.
  • Andehn, M & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2016, 'The Variable Nature of Country-to-Brand Association and its Impact on the Strength of the Country-of-Origin Effect', International Marketing Review, vol. 33, no. 6, pp. 851-866pp.
  • Wikstrom, S, Jonsson, H & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2016, 'A clash of modernities: Developing a new value-based framework to understand the mismatch between production and consumption', Journal of Consumer Culture, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 824-851.
  • L'Espoir Decosta, J 2015, 'Mauritius, Tourism', in Jafar Jafari and Honggen Xiao (ed.), Encyclopedia of Tourism, Springer International Publishing Switzerland, Online, pp. 1-2pp.
  • Zhang, C, L'Espoir Decosta, J & McKercher, B 2015, 'Politics and tourism promotion: Hong Kong's myth making', Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 54, pp. 156-171.
  • Lo, C, Nuryyev, G, Su, S & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2015, 'Teaching Evaluation and students' perception of their grades: a game theory approach.', The Journal of Social Sciences Research, vol. 1, no. 7, pp. 86-93.
  • Giovanardi, M, Lucarelli, A & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2014, 'Co-performing tourism places: The "Pink Night" festival', Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 44, pp. 102-115.
  • Nilsson, M, L'Espoir Decosta, J & Ostrom, A 2012, 'School meals: to develop trust and appreciation', 5th European Conference on Sensory and Consumer Research 'A Sense of Inspiration', Elsevier, Florence, Italy.
  • Gao, B, Zhang, H & L'Espoir Decosta, J 2012, 'PHANTASMAL DESTINATION A Post-modernist Perspective', Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 39, no. 1, pp. 197-220.
  • L'Espoir Decosta, J 2012, 'A Review of 'Sex, tourism and the postcolonial encounter: landscapes of longing in Egypt'', Tourism Geographies, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 524-528.
  • L'Espoir Decosta, J & Grunewald, A 2011, 'Logies of Tourismology: the need to include meta-theories in tourism curricula', Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 289-303pp.

Updated:  25 June 2024/Responsible Officer:  College of Science/Page Contact:  https://iceds.anu.edu.au/contact