Curriculum Vitae

Updated:

October 10, 2026

Seonjin Lee

[email protected] | tourismscientist.com

Updated: October 10, 2026

Research Areas

  • Tourism resilience assessment
  • Tourist mobility and destination connectivity
  • Tourism and society

Analytical Expertise

  • Network and geospatial analysis
  • Big mobility data analysis
  • Bayesian statistics and agent-based modeling

Education

Ph.D. Hospitality Management University of South Carolina, expected May 2027
M.A. Tourism Studies Pusan National University, 2023
B.A. Tourism and Convention Pusan National University, 2021
B.A. International Studies Pusan National University, 2021

Academic Affiliations

University of South Carolina

SmartState Center for Excellence in Tourism and Economic Development
School of Hospitality and Tourism Management 2023 — Present
Graduate research assistant Director: Dr. Lori Pennington-Gray

Institute for Clean Water 2023 — Present
Graduate research assistant Director: Dr. Tammi Richardson

Pusan National University

Specialized Global Marine Tourism and Convention City Development Research Team
Department of Tourism and Convention 2021 – 2023
Graduate research assistant Director: Dr. Insin Kim

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

  1. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2025). Measuring resilience of the tourism sector: Reflective resilience index (REFLEX) approach. Annals of Tourism Research, 114, 103983. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2025.103983
  2. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2025). Metatheorizing tourist flow at macro-level: Universal forces theory and herding among tourists. Annals of Tourism Research, 113, 103961. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annals.2025.103961
  3. Pennington-Gray, L., & Lee, S. (2025). The nexus of politics, pandemic policies, and travel emotions: Insights from a state-level analysis of a pandemic. Journal of Policy Research in Tourism, Leisure and Events, ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1080/19407963.2025.2489411
  4. An, J., Hur, D., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2025). Exploring Metaverse’s impact on the MICE industry from the industry experts’ lens. International Journal of Event and Festival Management, 16(2), 148–167. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEFM-04-2024-0036
  5. Sim, M., Lee, S., Schroeder, A., & Kim, H. (2025). Decisions and prospects of short-term rental hosts under uncertainties. Current Issues in Tourism, 28(1), 79–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2023.2298334
  6. Stepchenkova, S., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2024). Experiencing authenticity in organic and staged settings: Does it matter for tourists? Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 41(9), 1211–1226. https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2024.2404851
  7. Pennington-Gray, L., & Lee, S. (2024). The demand for safety measures in the hospitality industry: Changes over three phases of a pandemic. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 122, 103873. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2024.103873
  8. Hur, D., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2024). The Impact of Airbnb on Long-Term Rental Markets in San Francisco: A Geospatial Analysis Using Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, 13(9), Article 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi13090298
  9. Lee, S., Kim, M., & Kim, H. (2024). Relationality of Objective and Constructive Authenticities: Effects on Existential Authenticity, Memorability, and Satisfaction. Journal of Travel Research, 63(1), 195–214. https://doi.org/10.1177/00472875221143468
  10. Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2023). Four shades of Airbnb and its impact on locals: A spatiotemporal analysis of Airbnb, rent, housing prices, and gentrification. Tourism Management Perspectives, 49, 101192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2023.101192
  11. Hur, D., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2022). Are we ready for MICE 5.0? An investigation of technology use in the MICE industry using social media big data. Tourism Management Perspectives, 43, 100991. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2022.100991
  12. Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2022). Understanding tourism related risk factors and risk response strategies: Application of meta-analysis and content analysis in tourism crisis management. Journal of Tourism and Leisure Research, 34(12), 5–25. https://doi.org/10.31336/JTLR.2022.12.34.12.5
  13. Choe, Y., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2022). The Role of Tourists’ Expectations in Congruency on Forming Authenticity Perception and Memorable Tourism Experience. Journal of MICE & Tourism Research, 22(4), 201–222. https://doi.org/10.35176/JMTR.22.4.11

Book Chapters

  1. Lee, S. (2027). Tourism Research in the Age of Persistent Connectedness: Challenges and Opportunities of Using Smart Mobility Data. In D. J. Timothy (Ed.), Comprehensive Foundations of Tourism. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-443-27698-9.00076-3
  2. Pennington-Gray, L., Lee, S., & Ballouli, K. (2024). Stakeholder Sentiment of SDGs of the Beijing Olympics 2020. In A. Sharma, M. Lesjak, & D. Borovčanin (Eds.), Sport Tourism, Events and Sustainable Development Goals: An Emerging Foundation (pp. 114–139). https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003384786

Manuscripts In Progress

  1. Lee, S., Pennington-Gray, L., & Kim, H. Algorithmic Monoculture or Personalization in Tourism?
  2. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. Uneven Globalization and Latent Proximity in the International Tourism Network.
  3. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. Where Tourist Risk Appraisals Come From: Referent-Specific Effects of Disposition and Experience.

Research Projects

Externally Funded

Lanterns in the Wild: An Economic Development Strategy for Firefly Tourism ($13,080)
Southeast Crescent Regional Commission 2026 — Current

  • PI: Dr. Eric LoPresti
  • Role: Scenario analysis of economic impacts using visitor surveys, mobility data, and simulations

Identifying Adaptation and Limits in the Face of Persistent River and Coastal Flooding and Its Impacts on the Gullah Communities ($94,053)
South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium/NOAA 2025 — Current

  • PI: Dr. Lori Pennington-Gray
  • Role: Geospatial analysis of flooding and mobility data

Planning: CHIRRP: Exploring a Gullah-Geechee Community-Driven Effort to Mitigate Risks and Impacts of Coastal Flooding ($189,083)
National Science Foundation 2024 — Current

  • PI: Dr. Tammi Richardson
  • Role: Geospatial analysis of flooding and mobility data

Measuring the economic value of South Carolina open spaces ($56,740)
State of South Carolina 2023

  • Co-PIs: Dr. Paul Gayes & Dr. Lori Pennington-Gray
  • Role: Geospatial analysis of credit card transaction and mobility data

Conceptualizing and developing scales for Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) and Joy of Missing Out (JOMO)
National Research Foundation of Korea 2021 — 2023

  • PI: Dr. Hany Kim
  • Role: Literature review, survey design, and data analysis

Understanding tourism related risk factors and risk response strategies: Application of meta-analysis and content analysis in tourism crisis management
National Research Foundation of Korea 2020 — 2021

  • PI: Dr. Hany Kim
  • Role: Literature review and content analysis

Internally Funded

Algorithmic Redlining of Travel: Evaluating Sociodemographic Bias in Generative AI Travel Recommendations ($4,954)
SPARC Graduate Research Grant Program, University of South Carolina 2026

  • PI: Seonjin Lee

From Human Signals to Insights: Integrating Wearable Biometric Tools into HRSM Research ($9,970)
College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management, University of South Carolina 2026

  • Co-PIs: Dr. Lori Pennington-Gray & Seonjin Lee
  • Role: Biometric wristband device deployment, data collection, and analysis

Decision to host under uncertainties: Prospects of short-term rental hosts and their impact on local economy
Global Fellowship Funding, Graduate School, Pusan National University 2023

  • PI: Miyeong Shim
  • Role: Geospatial analysis of Airbnb and housing market data

Teaching

Undergraduate Courses

Hospitality and Tourism Marketing (HTMT450; In-person)
Instructor Fall 2026
Instructor (evaluation: 4.92 / 5.00) Spring 2026

Foundations of Tourism (HTMT280; In-person)
Instructor (evaluation: 4.59 / 5.00) Fall 2025
Instructor (evaluation: 4.47 / 5.00) Spring 2025
Co-instructor (evaluation: 4.53 / 5.00) Fall 2024

Tourism Resources (TC3500285; In-person)
Co-instructor Fall 2022

Special Seminars

Reproducible Scientific Visualization in R
Department of Tourism and Convention, Pusan National University Aug 2026

  • Graduate-level seminar introducing R, ggplot, and Quarto

Reading, Writing, and Generative AI
Graduate School, University of South Carolina Feb 2026

  • Guest lecture for Grad Launch seminar class (GRAD 700)

Using Python for Tourism Research
Department of Tourism and Convention, Pusan National University Dec 2022

  • Introductory programming seminar for master’s and doctoral students

Foundational Statistical Methods
Department of Tourism and Convention, Pusan National University Jan 2022

  • Introductory statistics seminar for master’s and doctoral students

Presentations

International Conferences

  1. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2026). Biases in Generative AI and What They Mean for Tourism Destinations. 56th Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference.
  2. Djafarova, N., Kim, H., & Lee, S. (2026). Spatial Analysis of Tourism Supply and Its Impact on Regional Visitor Flows. 56th Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference.
  3. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2026). Network Mechanisms in the Formation and Persistence of Visa-Free Travel Agreements. 2026 Workshop on Informatics, Data Science, and Economics in Hospitality and Tourism Research
  4. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2026). Simulating How Large Language Models Will Shift Travel Patterns. 31st Annual Graduate Education and Graduate Student Research Conference in Hospitality and Tourism.
  5. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2025). The Role of Intra-region Travel in Tourism Resilience. 30th Annual Graduate Education and Graduate Student Research Conference in Hospitality and Tourism.
  6. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2024). Macro Understanding of Tourism Through Universal Forces Framework: Spatial Big Data Approach. 54th Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference.
  7. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2024). Anthropogenic impact of tourism on water: Spatiotemporal analysis of lake water quality. 29th Annual Graduate Education and Graduate Student Research Conference in Hospitality and Tourism.
  8. Lee, S., Yeom, Y., & Kim, H. (2022). Quantifying the effect of Airbnb on renters: Spatial analysis of San Francisco residents’ rental spending. 92nd Annual Tourism Society of Korea International Conference.
  9. Lee, S., Kim, M., & Kim, H. (2022). Effect of perceived authenticity on tourism experience, satisfaction, and memorability: Differences between settings and authenticity orientations. 52nd Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference.
  10. Kim, H., Lee, S., Hur, D., & An, J. (2022). Will metaverse forever change the meeting industry? A qualitative study on industry experts’ perspective. 52nd Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference.
  11. Hur, D., Lee, S., & Kim, H. (2021). Use of event technologies in the era of MICE 5.0: Social media sentiment analysis approach. 90th Annual Tourism Society of Korea International Conference.
  12. Lee, S., Gong, Y., Kim, H., & Schroeder, A. (2021). What does the landscape of tourist safety videos on social media look like? Exploring the presence of tourist safety videos on YouTube. 51st Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference.

Regional / Non-refereed Conferences

  1. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2026). The More Popular, the More Favored: Testing Popularity Bias in Generative AI Using the Baseline-Rescaling Outcome Model. 2026 HRSM Research Symposium.
  2. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2025). How did the pandemic change the role of recreational waters in bringing visitors? Analysis of South Carolina mobility big data. 2025 REC Net National Conference.
  3. Ali, F., Kwon, A., Kumari, V., & Lee, S. (2025). The Power of AI Disclosure Uncovering the Empowerment–Algorithmic Control Paradox in Generative AI Cocreated Experiences. USC Graduate Scholar Roundtable.
  4. Lee, S. (2025). Heterogeneity of Airbnb and Its Impact on Locals. 2025 South Carolina Short-term Vacation Rentals Workshop.
  5. Borji, S., Kim, M., Lee, S., & Zhang, J. (2025). The Power of AI Disclosure. 7th CIC Research & Creative Scholarship Symposium.
  6. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2024). Understanding Post-Pandemic Visitors for Managing Recreational Waters in South Carolina. 2024 South Carolina Water Resources Conference.
  7. Lee, S., & Pennington-Gray, L. (2024). Value beyond money: Health benefits of recreational water accessibility. 9th biennial University of Florida Water Institute Symposium.

Honors and Awards

Paper Awards

Best research paper award
56th Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference Jun 2026

Best presentation award
56th Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference Jun 2026

Best paper award
2026 HRSM Research Symposium Apr 2026

Excellence in research award
2025 REC Net National Conference Oct 2025

Best big data research award
90th Annual Tourism Society of Korea International Conference Jul 2021

3 Minute Thesis (3MT) runner up
51st Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference Jun 2021

Fellowships / Scholarships

Presidential fellowship
Graduate School, University of South Carolina 2023 — Present

  • University-wide fellowship for students who have shown a track record of significant accomplishments and special interests, exceptional creativity, commitment to improving the lives of others, and capacity for leadership

Graduate scholarship for excellence
Graduate School, Pusan National University 2021 — 2023

  • University-wide scholarship for students who have shown a track record of academic excellence

Honors / Other Awards

Outstanding doctoral student researcher of the year
College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management, University of South Carolina Apr 2025

  • Given to an exemplary doctoral student who has shown outstanding contributions and academic achievements in scholarly research

Alumni award of excellence
Pusan National University Alumni Faculty Association Jul 2023

  • Given to the outstanding future doctoral student who completed undergraduate and graduate studies at Pusan National University

Summa Cum Laude
Pusan National University Feb 2021

  • Ranked 1st out of 44

Award of excellence
Hana Financial Group Feb 2021

  • Given to exemplary students who showed outstanding academic performance

Award of excellence
ASEAN Community-Based Tourism Program, ASEAN-Korea Centre Jan 2018

  • Given to the team who showed exceptional performance and a high level of dedication

Best Student Tutor Award
Center for Teaching and Learning, Pusan National University Dec 2017

Academic Memberships and Services

Memberships

  • Travel and Tourism Research Association (TTRA) 2020 — Present
  • American Association of Geographers (AAG) 2023 — Present
  • South Carolina Networks Consortium (SCNC) 2025 — Present

Journal Reviewer

  • Annals of Tourism Research
  • Tourism Management
  • Information Technology & Tourism
  • Tourism and Hospitality Research
  • Tourism Planning & Development
  • Scientific Reports
  • Humanities and Social Sciences Communications
  • Cities
  • Applied Economics Letters
  • Local Development and Society
  • Cogent Business & Management

Conference Services

Moderator
2026 Workshop on Informatics, Data Science, and Economics in Hospitality and Tourism Research Apr 2026

Conference reviewer
2026 International Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education Global Conference Mar 2026

Poster session reviewer
Discover USC 2025 Apr 2025

Conference reviewer
30th Annual Graduate Education and Graduate Student Research Conference in Hospitality and Tourism Jan 2025

Volunteer
54th Annual Travel and Tourism Research Association International Conference Jun 2024

Volunteer
2024 SECSA CHRIE Conference Mar 2024

Poster session reviewer
29th Annual Graduate Education and Graduate Student Research Conference in Hospitality and Tourism Jan 2023

OTHER SERVICES

Advisory council
Presidential fellowship, University of South Carolina 2023 — Present

  • 2023-2024 cohort representative

Honors thesis second reader
Student: Waddington, C.
Honors College, University of South Carolina 2026

Practical exam evaluator (HRSM301)
Graduate School, University of South Carolina 2026

Rising star fellows mentorship
Graduate School, University of South Carolina 2024

  • Participated in a mentorship session on doctoral program applications

Student ambassador
Department of Global Studies, Pusan National University 2017 — 2018

  • Outreach role for Global Studies Program

Student tutor
Pusan National University 2017 — 2017

  • Subject: TC16185—Introduction to Accounting

Service Monitor
BEXCO (Busan Exhibition & Convention Center) 2016 — 2017

  • Participated in exhibitions held in BEXCO and gave feedback to improve facility operations and the visitor experience

Open campus student ambassador
Department of Tourism and Convention, Pusan National University 2016 — 2017

  • Hosted tours of the campus and information sessions for potential applicants

Work Experience

Freelance interpreter and translator 2020 — 2022

  • Interpreter and translator for American International School Chennai
  • Listed translator at APlus Translations, Cadence Translate, and WhizWordz International
  • Consecutive interpretation for virtual meetings
  • Translated publications and documents in Korean, English, and Japanese
  • Localization of the website and mobile application

Navy interpreter (Enlisted, Petty Officer Second Class)
Commander Third Fleet, Republic of Korea Navy 2018 — 2020

  • On-the-bridge interpreter
  • Facilitated 2019 ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus)
  • Consecutive interpretation for Commander, Maritime Battle Group 3 (Capt.)

Interpreter and Designated Liaison Officer 2016 — 2018

  • Provided interpretations and liaison services for government officials
  • Assisted minister of finance of Niger during 2018 African Development Bank Annual Meeting
  • Assisted minister of foreign affairs of Brunei during 2017 Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation