Bibliometric Analysis of the Cittaslow Movement in the Dilemma of 'Sustainability' and the 'Tourism Paradox' through Academic Studies

Year 2026, Volume: 7 Issue: 1, 79 - 102, 31.01.2026

Gizem Dural , Ayfer Aytuğ

Abstract

The ‘Slow Movement’, which emerged as an anti-globalization movement, spread throughout the
city, and the Cittaslow movement emerged in 1999. Irregular construction, deterioration of the
cultural fabric, and environmental problems caused by the increase in the urban population have
been the starting point of this movement. The reaction against these developments overlaps with
sustainability policies to a great extent. However, the transformation of slow cities into tourism
destinations as a result of this title brings with it a ‘tourism paradox’. In this context, in some
Cittaslow cities, notably Seferihisar, the interest brought by the status and the uncontrolled
tourism pressure are progressing in parallel. This study examines the Cittaslow movement in
relation to the concepts of ‘sustainability’ and ‘tourism paradox’ and analyzes the academic
literature related to these three concepts through a bibliometric methodology. Publications
obtained from the Web of Science database were analyzed at the level of year, country, and field
of study; keyword relationships, citation networks, and conceptual clusters were visualized with
the VOSviewer program. The findings revealed that studies on ‘Cittaslow’ were mostly produced
in Türkiye compared to other countries, while publications on the concept of ‘sustainability’
showed interdisciplinary prevalence. Citation networks show that studies on Cittaslow and tourism
are often located in distinct clusters of authors. The study has enabled a systematic analysis of the
relationships between the concepts through numerical data.

Keywords

Cittaslow , sustainability , tourism paradox , overtourism , VOSviewer

References

• Amrhein, S., & Hospers, G. J. (2024). Cittaslow: Degrowth approach or place promotion? An analysis exemplified by the case of Artà, Mallorca. European Planning Studies, 33(3), 377–397. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2024.2443626
• Augé, M. (1995). Non-places: Introduction to an anthropology of supermodernity. Verso. Bahtiyar Karadeniz, C. (2014). Sürdürülebilir turizm bağlamında sakin şehir Perşembe. The Journal of International Social Research, 7(29), 84–107.
• Cittaslow. (n.d.). Cittaslow International Network. https://www.cittaslow.org/
• Coşar, Y. (2013). Yavaş şehir (Cittaslow) olgusunun turist davranışları ve yerel halkın kentsel yaşam kalitesi algısına etkileri [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Dokuz Eylül University.
• Coşar, Y. (2019). Yavaş şehir–sürdürülebilir turizm paradoksu üzerine eleştirel bir bakış. Journal of Tourism Theory and Research, 5(1), 40–50. https://doi.org/10.24288/jttr.476350
• Craig, G., & Parkins, W. (2006). Slow living. Oxford: Berg Publisher.
• Ekinci, M.B. (2014). The Cittaslow philosophy in the context of sustainable tourism development; the case of Turkey. Tourism Management, 41, 178–189.
• Garhammer, M. (2002). Pace of life and enjoyment of life. Journal of Happiness Studies, 3(3), 217– 256. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020676100938
• Genç, K. (2021). Turizm ve sakin şehir paradoksu: Seferihisar örneği. To & Re, 3(2), 150–157.
• Hargreaves, A. (2004). Building communities of place: Habitual movement around significant places. Journal of Housing and the Built Environment, 19, 49–65. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JOHO.0000017706.38123.43
• Hatipoğlu, B. (2015). “Cittaslow”: Quality of life and visitor experiences. Tourism Planning & Development, 12(1), 20–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/21568316.2014.960601
• Honoré, C. (2004). In praise of slowness: How a worldwide movement is challenging the cult of speed. San Francisco, CA: Harper San Francisco.
• Hospers, G.-J., & Amrhein, S. (2023). Columbus’ egg or Trojan horse? Assessing the value of Cittaslow-membership to avoid local overtourism. In G.-J. Hospers & S. Amrhein (Eds.), Coping with overtourism in post-pandemic Europe: Approaches, experiences and challenges (pp. 98–109). LIT Verlag.
• Jaszczak, A., Kristianova, K., Pochdyla, E., Kazak, J.K., & Mlynarzcyk, K. (2021). Revitalization of public spaces in Cittaslow towns: Recent urban redevelopment in Central Europe. Sustainability, 13, 2564. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052564
• Jivén, G., & Larkham, P. J. (2003). Sense of place, authenticity and character: A commentary. Journal of Urban Design, 8(1), 67–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/1357480032000064773
• Juma, L. O., & Khademi-Vidra, Y. (2019). Community-based tourism and sustainable development of rural regions in Kenya: Perceptions of the citizenry. Sustainability, 11(17), 1–23.
• Keskin, E. B. (2010). Sürdürülebilir kent kavramına farklı bir bakış olarak yavaş şehirler (Cittaslow): Seferihisar örneği (Unpublished master’s thesis). Dumlupınar University.
• Knox, P. L. (2005). Creating ordinary places: Slow cities in a fast world. Journal of Urban Design, 10(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1080/13574800500062221
• Koens, K., Postma, A., & Papp, B. (2018). Is overtourism overused? Understanding the impact of tourism in a city context. Sustainability, 10(12), 4384.
• Martin, J. M., Martinez, J. M. G., Fernandez, J. A. S. (2018). An analysis of the factors behind the citizen’s attitude of rejection towards tourism in a context of overtourism and economic dependence on this activity. Sustainability, 10(8), 2851.
• Mayer, H., & Knox, P. L. (2006). Slow cities: Sustainable places in a fast world. Journal of Urban Affairs, 28(4), 321–334. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9906.2006.00298.x
• Mayer, H., & Knox, P. L. (2010). Small-town sustainability: Prospects in the second modernity. European Planning Studies, 18(10), 1545–1565. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2010.504336
• Miele, M. (2008). Cittàslow: Producing slowness against the fast life. Space and Polity, 12(1), 135– 156.
• Milano, C., Novelli, M., & Cheer, J. M. (2019). Overtourism and degrowth: A social movements perspective. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 27(12), 1857-1875. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2019.1650054
• Naumov, N., & Green, D. (2015). Mass tourism. In J. Jafari & H. Xiao (Eds.), Encyclopedia of tourism. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01669-6_378-1
• Newman, P., & Jennings, I. (2008). Cities as sustainable ecosystems: Principles and practices. Washington: Island Press.
• Nilsson, J. H., Svärd, A., Widarsson, A., & Wirell, T. (2010). “Cittáslow” ecogastronomic heritage as a tool for destination development. Current Issues in Tourism. DOI: 10.1080/13683500.2010.511709
• Özdemir, E., & Kaptan Ayhan, Ç. (2021). Sakin Şehir Hareketi ve neoliberalizmin Sakin Şehir Gökçeada’da mekânsal izdüşümü. Çağdaş Yerel Yönetimler Dergisi, 30(3), 87–112.
• Özmen, A., & Can, M. C. (2018). Cittaslow hareketine eleştirel bir bakış. Planlama, 28(2), 91–101.
• Pink, S. (2008). Sense and sustainability: The case of the Slow City movement. Local Environment, 13(2), 95–106.
• Pink, S. (2009). Urban social movements and small places. City, 13(4), 451–465.
• Pink, S., & Servon, L. J. (2013). Sensory global towns: An experiential approach to the growth of the Slow City movement. Environment and Planning A, 45, 451–466.
• Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Touchstone Books/Simon & Schuster.
• Radstrom, S. (2011). A place-sustaining framework for local urban identity: An introduction and history of Cittaslow. Italian Journal of Planning Practice, 1(1), 90–113.
• Sadalla, E. K., Sheets, V., & McCreath, H. (1990). The cognition of urban tempo. Environment and Behavior, 22(2), 230–254. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916590222003
• Semmens, J., & Freeman, C. (2012). The value of Cittaslow as an approach to local sustainable development: A New Zealand perspective. International Planning Studies, 353-375. https://doi.org/10.1080/13563475.2012.726851
• Sırım, V. (2012). Çevreyle bütünleşmiş bir yerel yönetim örneği olarak “sakin şehir” hareketi ve Türkiye’nin potansiyeli. Journal of History Culture and Art Research, 1(4), 119–131. https://doi.org/10.7596/taksad.v1i4.100
• Scott, D., & Gössling, S. (2025). Beyond ambition: A review of tourism climate change declaration outcomes and prospects from Baku. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2025.2508878
• Soylu, Y., Bahtiyar Karadeniz, C., & Genç, K. (2023). Slow city and tourism coexistence. Coğrafya Dergisi, 47, 123–134. https://doi.org/10.26650/JGEOG2023-1264642
• Tucker, H. (2001). Tourists and troglodytes: Negotiating for sustainability. Annals of Tourism Research, 28, 868–891.
• Ünsever, İ. (n.d.). Turizm paradoksu: Sakin Şehir (Cittaslow) hareketi. http://unsever.com/assets/unsever/docs/Turizm-Paradoksu-Sakin-Sehir-Hareketi.pdf
• United Nations. (n.d.). Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). https://unosd.un.org/content/sustainable-development-goals-sdgs
• Virilio, P. (1991). The lost dimension (D. Moshenberg, Ed.). Semiotext(e).
• Weaver, D. B. (2016). Core–periphery relationships and the sustainability paradox of small island tourism. Tourism Recreation Research, 42, 11-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/02508281.2016.1228559
• Williams, P. V., & Ponsford, I. A. (2009). Confronting tourism’s environmental paradox: Transitioning for sustainable tourism. Futures, 41(6), 396–404.
• World Tourism Organization & United Nations Development Programme. (2017). Tourism and the sustainable development goals: Journey to 2030. UNWTO. https://doi.org/10.18111/9789284419401
• World Tourism Organization. (2021). Recommendations for the transition to a green travel and tourism economy. UNWTO. https://doi.org/10.18111/9789284422814
• Yaşar, E., Tür, E., & Ataman, H. (2025). The problem of overtourism in slow cities. Journal of Tourism and Gastronomy Studies, 13(1), 48–72. https://doi.org/10.21325/jotags.2025.1546
• Yurtseven, H. R., & Kaya, O. (2011). Slow tourists: A comparative research based on Cittaslow principles. American International Journal of Contemporary Research, 1(2), 91–98.