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Publication Formal Education and Lodging Managers' Competence: An Industry Update(2009-07-29) Kralj, Anna L; Downey, James F; Solnet, David J; Brown, KarltonThis paper presents a partial replication of a study on the influence of formal education on lodging management success published in 2005 and compares the major findings of both studies. The findings of the current research demonstrate that today’s industry professionals perceive formal education as having a significantly higher positive impact on lodging management success. However, they still view formal education as having a moderate level of influence on their current knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs). Study findings have implications for educators, professionals and industry, by providing the opportunity to enhance the delivery of education and achieving lodging management success.Publication The Influence of the Resident’s Identification with a Tourism Destination Brand on Their Behavior(2009-07-29) Choo, Hyungsuk; Park, Sun-YoungThis study empirically tests the role of residents in branding tourism destinations, which has rarely been explored. Results from a survey of 371 residents in Hawaii show positive relationships between residents’ identification with their destination brand and their behavior in three ways: 1) activities to help increase visitors’ satisfaction with their experience; 2) intentions for positive word-of-mouth; and 3) participation in tourism and leisure activities. Results imply that destination marketing organizations and tourism service providers should understand the importance of the internal branding processes among residents, and should incorporate them into their destination branding strategy.Publication Assessing Teaching Effectiveness in a Basic Foods Laboratory Setting: Phase Four - Pilot Testing the Instrument(2009-07-29) Weber, Melvin R; Chandler, James A.; Finley, Dori AThis is the fourth phase of a research project to develop a student evaluation tool (SET) to evaluate teaching effectiveness in a basic foods laboratory taught at senior institutions. The goal of phase four is to test the instrument among students enrolled in basic foods laboratories. Four hundred seventy five students at eight U.S. universities who were enrolled in a basic food laboratory completed the SET and a demographic questionnaire. Reliability using Cronbach’s coefficient alpha was .962 and factor analysis yielded 3 factors comparable to those identified by the Delphi Panel. Results from the first part of pilot testing indicate a reliable instrument preferred by students enrolled in basic food laboratory classes.Publication Development Of Parameters For Incorporating Security Studies Into Hospitality Education(2009-07-29) McCool, Barent N.; McCool, Audrey C.Worldwide concern with security issues and disaster management within the hospitality industry is creating opportunities for hospitality management education. This study investigated essential curriculum content, student characteristics, instructional modalities, and program competencies potentially important for hospitality industry based security studies programs. Findings indicate that such programs should have non-traditional, flexible structure as initial students will likely hold middle and upper management industry positions. Executive leadership, agencies involved in emergency preparedness, and integration of systems focused on security and disaster management, both as program content and resulting competencies are important program components.Publication Differences in Work and Family Stress Experienced by Managers and Hourly Employees in the Hotel Industry(2009-07-29) O'Neill, John W; Davis, KellyDuring economic downturns like the present one, hospitality industry employees are often asked to do more with less, and this situation creates stress among employees. Employee stress is becoming a significant issue in the hospitality industry, and it is costly for employers and employees alike. Stress results in overall declines in employee productivity, job performance, and customer service, and also results in increases in hostility, withdrawal, and costly turnover and health care costs. While there is agreement that addressing and reducing stress in the hospitality industry is both a noble goal and is capable of resulting in expense reductions for employers, the nature and quantity of hospitality employee stress is not fully understood. Research regarding stress in the hospitality industry is an understudied topic. This study aims to identify the most common work stressors of a sample of 164 managerial and hourly workers who were each interviewed for eight consecutive days, and were employed at 36 different hotels across the United States. Further, this study examines whether there are differences in the types and frequency of work and family stressors between managers and non-managers, and also for men/women and parents/non-parents.Publication Senior Casino Gaming Motivation(2009-07-29) Phillips, WooMi J; Jang, SooCheong (Shawn); Canter, Deborah DCasino gaming is emerging as a leisure activity for the senior adult population. Finding out key motivations for older adults to spend time in casino gaming is fundamental to determining the future casino patronage intention of this growing customer segment. This study developed a comprehensive inventory of senior casino gaming motivations by way of an exploratory approach. The research also generated a scale development procedure to find five distinctive senior casino gaming motivation dimensions: winning and thrill, socialization, escape, enjoyment, and curiosity. Ultimately, confirmatory factor model was parsimonious and captured various dimensions of senior casino gaming motivation.Publication Changing Demand for British Holiday Travel in Ireland(2009-07-29) Prosser, GaryBritain is Ireland’s main source of overseas visitors. Major changes have occurred over the last ten years in British holiday travel patterns in Ireland, including length of stay, expenditure, accommodation preferences, spatial distribution, transport mode and activity patterns. This paper investigates the factors that have generated those changes and their differential impact on tourism and hospitality operators in specific sectors and locations. The analysis of demand and supply data identifies ‘triggers’ that have brought about these rapid and unexpected changes in consumer behaviour, including elements within the tourism system and exogenous factors. The implications of the changes for tourism operators and for industry and government organisations are discussed, as are conceptual implications for understanding tourism development processes and, specifically, the Tourism Area Life Cycle.Publication A Case for Selective Marketing: Identifying the Ecological Wine Tourist(2009-07-29) Barber, Nelson; Taylor, D. Christopher; Deale, Cynthia SThe main resource for many tourism destinations is the natural environment. Tourists are increasingly interested in visiting unspoiled locations. Accordingly, managers are pressured to execute ecologically sustainable practices. One approach is selective marketing. The feasibility of this approach remains untested for wine and other types of tourists. This study investigated how respondents viewed wine tourism’s influence on a community. As consumers’ environmental knowledge increases, their attitudes change, influencing perceptions of a wine region’s, environmental policies. Results suggest environmental attitudes differed, by demographics, regarding wine tourisms influence on a community, providing those involved in wine tourism ideas for further marketing efforts.Publication Trip Characteristics of Casino and Racino Visitors in Oklahoma(2009-07-29) Scott-Halsell, Sheila A; Palakurthi, Radesh; Dunn, Greg; Saiprasert, WanlanaiGaming is a revenue driver for many areas, as it is in Oklahoma. This study seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of the characteristics profile and expenditures of Oklahoma casino and racino visitors. This information will be valuable as a resource that can be used by those in tourism planning in Oklahoma to better determine who is coming into their state for gaming purposes and how they might better accommodate them with other tourism driven experiences.Publication Old Food was Never Better: Augmenting event authenticity at a medieval festival(2009-07-29) Robinson, Richard N.S.This study aimed at developing an understanding of a medieval festival’s visitor attitudes towards how food and beverage (F&B) service might augment an event’s authenticity mission. It applies an authenticity framework to relatively untested aspects of the tourist/visitor experience. Initially, an exploratory ethnographic study was conducted at a pre-festival medieval banquet to explore dimensions of F&B apparent in the literature. This informed a resultant survey which was administered at the festival tournament. Herein is reported the exploratory study and preliminary findings from the survey. In conclusion the paper proposes theoretical contributions, practical implications and considerations for future research.Publication Can a Validated Quality Instrument be Developed for Undergraduate Hospitality, Tourism, and Leisure Programs across Boarders?(2009-07-29) Horng, Jeou-Shyan; Teng, Chih-Ching; Lee, Ming-HueiThis study attempted to develop and cross-validate a transnational instrument for measuring the quality of international hospitality, tourism and leisure programs (HTLPs) from academic perspectives. Survey responses from full-time HTLP teachers in Taiwan (N= 430) and the US (N = 303) were used to verify this instrument via exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The results identified the instrument consisting six quality standards, 12 dimensions, and 62 indicators, with a significantly better fit than other competing models. The six standards, in terms of relative value attached to each of the dimensions, are faculty, administrative management, curriculum and instruction, student achievements, strategic planning, and resources. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed in the study.Publication Validating a DEA-based Menu Analysis Model using Structural Equation Modeling(2009-07-29) Reynolds, Dennis; Taylor, JamesTraditional menu management and analysis models share the common and irremediable shortcoming of variable interdependency, in which the central intersection between vectors in a matrix is dictated by the means for the associated variables. Moreover, the limited number of inputs casts suspicion on any conclusions that are drawn. More recent models, such as those that integrate non-parametric statistics including data envelopment analysis (DEA), promise greater utility but have gone largely untested. This paper extends the more holistic model made possible by applying DEA and then tests the resulting archetype using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results suggest that DEA models are valid and that even more complex models are possible.Publication An Examination of the Four Realms of Tourism Experience Theory(2009-07-29) Jurowski, ClaudiaTo meet the expectations of sophisticated and affluent consumers seeking memorable experiences hospitality and tourism industries must redesign and reposition their services. A better understanding of the nature of tourism experiences is necessary for successful redesign. This study examines the four realms of tourism experience theory as a structure for the study of tourism experiences. The four theorized realms appear to exist when tested on actual tourist participation in activities but participation in one realm does not preclude participation in an opposing realm.Publication Tourists’ Emotional Experiences with an Event and Their Consequences(2009-07-29) Lee, Seonjeong; Jeong, MiyoungSuccessful tourism marketing requires assessing a tourist’s satisfaction because this satisfaction will influence their destination choices, products/services consumption, behavioral intentions, and quality of life (QOL) to return to the same destinations or events. This study attempts to develop a conceptual framework, based on the Consumption Emotion Set (CES), to identify relationships among consumption emotions, overall tourists’ satisfaction, perceived QOL, and loyalty towards a specific event. The theoretical framework also identifies important emotional factors affecting tourists’ overall satisfaction as well as loyalty and perceived QOL. Furthermore, implications for tourism/destination marketers or event/festival planners and suggestions for future research are discussed.Publication An Investigation of the Effects of Front-Line Employees' Work-Family Conflict on Customer Satisfaction through Exhaustion and Emotional Displays(2009-07-29) Zhao, Xinyuan; Mattila, Anna S.; Ngan, Nei NaThe present study investigates the distal effects of front-line employees' work-family conflict on customer satisfaction. Based on data from 200 paired employee-customer interactions at six hotels, a Structural Equation Modeling was conducted to test the hypothesized model and the results supported most of our predictions. Specifically, participants' FIW (family interfering with work) was positively linked to physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion, while WIF (work interfering with family) did not have such associations. Further, individuals with higher levels of physical exhaustion were more likely to manage their emotions by faking positive emotions and suppressing negative emotions, whereas participants with higher levels of emotional exhaustion were more likely to fake positive emotions. Although faking positive emotions enhances the employee's role performance, such actions failed to enhance customer satisfaction. The current research extends our knowledge of work-family conflict on employee-customer interactions and suggests that hospitality organizations need to be aware of the critical effects of employees' family affairs on work behaviors and ultimately on customer satisfaction.Publication Making Management Manageable: An Empirical Investigation into the Stress and Emotional Health of U.S. Hotel Managers(2009-07-29) Woods, Robert; Youn, Hyewon; Johanson, Misty MThis study measures the amount of stress hotel managers feel on a daily basis. A total of 211 managers self-reported their stress levels using the 43-item Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS). Results show that more than half of hotel managers report stress levels which are very likely to cause stress-related illnesses. The findings of this study are then compared to an earlier study done in 1998 and key differences are discussed. Implications and suggestions for the industry are provided.Publication Work Experience and Education: Their effect on food safety practices of university students(2009-07-29) Farrish, John R; Kitterlin, Miranda D; Hertzman, Jean; Stefanelli, JohnThe continued prevalence of foodborne illness (FBI), the large population of young adults in the foodservice industry, and the contradictory results of previous studies indicate a need for further investigation of food safety practices among young adults. The goal of this study was to evaluate the personal food safety practices of undergraduate students based on their level of foodservice industry work experience and college major. Being a hotel major did significantly affect practices, but having foodservice work experience did not. This suggests that industry operators are not doing an adequate job of educating their staff about proper food safety practices.Publication A Comparison of Skills Considered Important for Success as an Entry Level Manager in the Hospitality Industry vs. The Skills Recent Graduates Possess(2009-07-29) Staton-Reynolds, Jennifer A; Ryan, Bill; Scott-Halsell, Sheila AThis paper presents and discusses the findings of a study to determine if the historic gap between the skills industry and education consider important for success as an entry level manager still exists. A review of literature identified a list of skills considered important for success by both industry and higher education. Of the eighty nine skills identified, forty two showed no significant difference, six skills were considered more important by the recruiters and forty one skills were considered more important by the educators. The top 10 skills were the same for both groups; however their order is slightly different.Publication A Model for Understanding Residents' Support for Tourism in Small Islands(2009-07-29) Nunkoo, Robin; Ramkissoon, Haywantee; Gursoy, Dogan; Chi, Christina GSmall island economies have traditionally been popular tourist destinations. Achieving sustainable tourism development is a major challenge facing such economies. Yet, little research focusing on understanding small islands’ residents attitudes have been conducted in the literature. Faced with unique characteristics, they deserve special attention, raising concerns about whether existing models and findings can be applied to understand community responses to tourism in such economies. To lessen this gap, this study develops a unique model for understanding small island community’s attitudes to tourism. Pertinent factors likely to influence support for tourism are incorporated in the model.Publication An Exploratory Study of Restaurant Leadership Approaches: Some Preliminary Findings(2009-07-29) Testa, Mark R.; Sipe, Lori JGiven the current difficulties faced by the restaurant industry, effective leadership may be even more vital than ever before. This exploratory study seeks to investigate leadership approaches used by multi-unit restaurant leaders in difficult times. As part of a larger study, in-depth interviews were conducted with nine top leaders to assess their strategies for developing trust, reinforcing key values and developing employee accountability. A number of specific tactics are discussed which reveal interesting ways of leading and may be useful for multi-unit management.