Sunny Son

APrf Sunny Son

Program Director: Sport & Rec Mgmt, Tourism & Event Mgmt, Art & Cultural Mgmt

UniSA Business

Teaching Enterprise

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Available For Media Comment.

Associate Professor Insun Sunny Son (née Lee) is the Program Director for Tourism & Event Management, Sport & Recreation Management, and Art & Cultural Management at UniSA Business, University of South Australia. She also serves as the Research Ethics Advisor at UniSA Business. Dr. Son is an active member of the Centre for Enterprise Dynamics in Global Economies (C-EDGE) and the CERM Performance Indicators® (CERM-PI) at UniSA Business.
Dr. Son holds a PhD in Tourism, a Master of Business (Advanced) in International Event Management from the University of Queensland, and a Bachelor of Business in Hospitality Management and Event Management from Victoria University in Melbourne.
Her research and teaching expertise lie in event management, visitor experiences, and the impacts of events. She has conducted extensive research on both local and international festivals and sports events, employing a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Her work provides valuable insights for governments and industries, helping them to leverage events for a variety of objectives and develop strategies for achieving sustainable, successful outcomes. Currently, her research focuses on the strategic use of events for community development, destination management, public diplomacy, well-being, and placemaking. Dr. Son is actively engaged with local councils and government agencies, offering consulting services, and regularly speaks at workshops and conferences for both government and industry professionals.
Dr. Son's research has been published in leading journals in the field of Tourism and Event Management, such as 'Tourism Management' and 'Event Management'. She is member of the Editorial Board of 'Event Management', the 'International Journal of Event and Festival Management,' and 'Frontiers in Sports and Active Living'.

Read the media release and case study about my recent research:

Attending events is the ticket to happiness
Attending local events strengthens neighbourhood bonds
New Placemaking guide gives SA councils a planning edge
Real connections trump virtual gatherings – the magic of in-person events
Events shaping positive perceptions of place

Event impacts

Event experience

Destination Marketing

Placemaking

Visitor economy

Visitor experience 

Year Citation
2025 Son, S., Kitchen, E., & Jones, J. (2025). The value of events for personal well-being: a PERMA perspective. International Journal of Tourism Research, 27(3, article no. e70061), 1-10.
DOI
2024 Son, I. S., & Krolikowski, C. (2024). Developing a sense of place through attendance and involvement in local events: the social sustainability perspective. Tourism Recreation Research, 50(4), 715-726.
DOI
2023 Son, I. S., & Huang, S. S. (2023). Understanding the critical factors driving event leveraging: perspectives from small and medium-sized enterprises. Event Management, 27(3), 423-435.
DOI Scopus2 WoS2
2023 Son, I. S., Krolikowski, C., & Fleming, E. (2023). Intention to attend local events in the time of COVID-19: the case of Australia. Event Management, 27(5), 729-743.
DOI
2023 Kitchen, E., Son, I. S., & Jones, J. J. (2023). Can events impact on social connectedness and loneliness? An analysis of face-to-face and virtual events attended in South Australia. Event Management, 27(7), 1011-1024.
DOI Scopus6
2022 Son, I. S., Krolikowski, C., Rentschler, R., & Huang, S. S. (2022). Utilizing events for placemaking of precincts and main streets: current state and critical success factors. Event Management, 26(2), 223-235.
DOI Scopus12 WoS10
2021 Son, I. S., Huang, S. S., & Padovan, D. (2021). Realising the goals of event leveraging: the tourism and hospitality SME perspective. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 49, 253-259.
DOI Scopus8
2018 King, K., Shipway, R., Lee, I. S., & Brown, G. (2018). Proximate tourists and major sport events in everyday leisure spaces. Tourism geographies, 20(5), 303-306.
DOI
2016 Shipway, R., King, K., Lee, I. S., & Brown, G. (2016). Understanding cycle tourism experiences at the Tour Down Under. Journal of sport and tourism, 20(1), 21-39.
DOI
2016 Lee, I. S., Brown, G., King, K., & Shipway, R. (2016). Social identity in serious sport event space. Event management, 20(4), 491-499.
DOI
2015 Lee, I. S., & Huang, S. S. (2015). Understanding motivations and benefits of attending a multicultural festival. Tourism analysis, 20(2), 201-213.
DOI Scopus19 WoS16
2015 Brown, G., Lee, I. S., King, K., & Shipway, R. (2015). Eventscapes and the creation of event legacies. Annals of leisure research, 18(4), 510-527.
DOI
2015 Filep, S., Volic, I., & Lee, I. S. (2015). On positive psychology of events. Event management, 19(4), 495-507.
DOI
2014 Huang, S., & Lee, I. S. (2014). Motivations for attending a multicultural festival: visitor ethnicity matters. Anatolia, 26(1), 92-95.
DOI Scopus9 WoS8
2014 Lee, I. S., Lee, T. J., & Arcodia, C. (2014). The effect of community attachment on cultural festival visitors' satisfaction and future intentions. Current issues in tourism, 17(9), 800-812.
DOI
2012 Lee, I. S., Arcodia, C., & Lee, T. J. (2012). Key characteristics of multicultural festivals: a critical review of the literature. Event management, 16(1), 93-101.
DOI
2012 Lee, I., Arcodia, C., & Lee, T. J. (2012). Benefits of visiting a multicultural festival: the case of South Korea. Tourism Management, 33(2), 334-340.
DOI
2012 Lee, I. S., Arcodia, C., & Lee, T. J. (2012). Multicultural festivals: a niche tourism product in South Korea. Tourism review, 67(1), 34-41.
DOI
2011 Lee, I., & Arcodia, C. (2011). The role of regional food festivals for destination branding. International journal of tourism research, 13(4), 355-367.
DOI

Year Citation
2024 Son, I. S. (2024). Event concepts for place activation. In J. Mair, G. Aktas, & M. Kozak (Eds.), Source details - Title: International Case Studies in Event Management (pp. 1-7). UK: Routledge.
DOI
2017 Brown, G., & Lee, I. S. (2017). Sport tourism. In T. Bradbury, & I. O'Boyle (Eds.), Source details - Title: Understanding sport management: international perspectives (pp. 259-272). US: Routledge.
2017 Lee, I. S., & Brown, G. (2017). Sport event management. In T. Bradbury, & I. O'Boyle (Eds.), Source details - Title: Understanding sport management: international perspectives (pp. 243-258). US: Routledge.
2014 Lee, S., & Kim, A. (2014). Re-creation of traditional ritual into festival: the case of Kangnung Danoje festival in South Korea. In J. Laing, & W. Frost (Eds.), Source details - Title: Rituals and traditional events in the modern world (pp. 67-77). UK: Routledge.
Scopus3
2011 Lee, I. S. (2011). Effects of servicescape. In T. Lee, & G. Stanciulescu (Eds.), Source details - Title: Practical principles in the tourism and hotel industry (pp. 121-131). Bucharest, Romania: ASE Publishing House.
2011 Lee, I. (2011). Servicescape in the tourism and hospitality industry. In T. Lee, & G. Stanciulescu (Eds.), Source details - Title: Practical principles in the tourism and hotel industry (pp. 109-120). Romania: ASE Publishing House.
2011 Lee, I. (2011). Event tourism and community benefits. In T. Lee, & G. Stanciulescu (Eds.), Source details - Title: Special interest tourism for community benefits (pp. 105-116). Bucharest, Romania: ASE Publishing House.

  • Barossa Council 2025 - Understanding Placemaking in Barossa, The Barossa Council, 12/01/2026 - 30/06/2026

  • Voices of TANDANYA: The Significance of Aboriginal Culture in South Australia’s Cultural Identity: Shaping the Future of TANDANYA, National Aboriginal Cultural Institute Inc, 20/10/2025 - 03/04/2026

  • Placemaking Benchmarking project for Local Governments 2025, Lismore City Council, 15/09/2025 - 28/02/2026

  • Placemaking Benchmarking project for Local Governments 2024, City of Charles Sturt, 04/10/2024 - 28/02/2025

  • Quality public spaces: developing placemaking indicators and benchmarks, Local Government Association of South Australia, 01/11/2022 - 31/01/2024

  • Creating quality places: Placemaking and Events. Impacts of Events on Place Identity., Adelaide City Council, 02/06/2023 - 30/11/2023

  • Quality public spaces: developing placemaking indicators and benchmarks - Partner Organisations, Campbelltown City Council, 01/11/2022 - 15/11/2023

  • Value of events: Beyond the short-term economic impact (LCB-UniSA Research Grant Scheme), City of Port Adelaide-Enfield, 31/10/2019 - 30/04/2023

  • Campaspe Shire Community Satisfaction Project 2021, Campaspe Shire Council, 01/09/2021 - 10/12/2021

Programs I'm associated with

  • DBBT - Bachelor of Business (Tourism and Event Management)
  • DBBS - Bachelor of Business (Sport and Recreation Management)
  • DMMC - Master of Management (Arts and Cultural Management)
  • DGAC - Graduate Diploma in Management (Arts and Cultural Management)

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2025 Co-Supervisor - Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Julia Josefa Jones
2022 Principal Supervisor - Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Gregorius Suri

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