Tourism-Induced Data Envelopment Analysis (T-DEA): An Application in the Eurozone Economic Space

This study investigates technical efficiency scores and performance change patterns by applying the tourism-induced Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to the Eurozone from 1996 to 2019. The study uses direct employment in tourism and capital investment spending directly related to the travel and tourism sector as input variables, whereas it considers the direct contribution of tourism to a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and arrivals as output variables. This set of tested variables is rarely found in the relevant literature, as many studies focus on hotel business-related proxies. After receiving the scores, we regress them on renewable energy sources using panel data. Based on the results, the Eurozone countries’ technical efficiency scores increase by approximately 1% per year on average. On the contrary, productivity growth declines slightly (−0.1% per year), signaling the need for additional effort in technological advancement. The error correction term is negative and significant in the tested models, whereas long-run coefficients are insignificant. Moreover, the empirical results indicate the absence of statistically significant short-run linkages, consistent with a neutrality-type outcome. Practical implications call for accelerating the adoption of renewables in the sector by simultaneously integrating additional measures to support innovation and sustainable investment plans.