Unfolding cognitive themes and emotion dynamics in the ‘metaverse and tourism’: an LDA-DTM in the Chinese context
Zhen Su, Chunmu Wang, Zheng Kuang · Current Issues in Tourism · 2025
The ‘metaverse and tourism’ represent a critical intersection in the digital era. This study explores this under-researched domain through mainstream social media perceptions in China by employing the Cognitive–Affective Personality System (CAPS) and advanced deep learning techniques. A multidimensional analysis reveals key cognitive themes and behavioural trends within this evolving context. Using the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA)-Dynamic Topic Models (DTM), this study identifies ten primary cognitive themes and their evolutionary trajectories. Emotional intensity aligns with these themes but displays phase-specific variations, with certain themes experiencing a decline in stakeholder engagement over time. Spatial analysis of emotional heat highlights higher intensity in the eastern regions, diminishing inland, with Guangdong emerging as a focal point where metaverse and tourism themes significantly influence technology adoption. This research extends CAPS theory to virtual environments, providing a novel framework for analysing cognitive–affective dynamics and spatial variations in digital tourism, while offering insights to drive sustainable innovation, stakeholder engagement, and strategic growth in the metaverse and tourism sectors.