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Publication Restaurant Server Perspectives on Gratuity Pooling(2011-01-07) Roe, SusanThis case study is intended to conduct an exploratory investigation of servers’ opinions regarding pooled gratuity restaurants on three related interests – servers, guests, and the restaurant entity itself. Servers that have experience working in a shared gratuity environment were asked their perceptions of advantages and drawbacks of pooling gratuities to the three major stakeholders in the restaurant experience. This inquiry is posed to assist restaurant operators in determining which method of gratuity distribution, either shared or individual, might best fit their establishment. The study resulted in preliminary conceptual model that describes proposed constructs that represent servers’ perceptions of working in a pooled gratuity environment.Publication Perceived Service and Food Quality, Satisfaction, and Behavioral Intentions in Senior Retirement Communities(2011-01-08) Joung, Hyun-Woo; Choi, Eun-Kyong; Goh, Ben KQuality of life becomes a critically important issue in the senior’ later years. This trend has drawn huge attention and higher demand for senior retirement community because it provides the elderly a flexible and assured living environment. The specific objectives of this study were (1) to test the impact of service quality on residents’ satisfaction and behavioral intentions, (2) to examine the impact of food quality on residents’ satisfaction and behavioral intentions, (3) to identify how residents’ satisfaction affects residents’ behavioral intentions, and (4) to investigate the relationship between retention to restaurant and retention to senior retirement center. The result indicated that service quality did not positively influence retention to restaurant with corresponding estimate of .05. This implies that service quality impacts on retention to restaurant by mediating residents’ satisfaction. Also, more satisfied residents are more likely to retain to the restaurant; furthermore, those residents simultaneously tend to show more positive behavioral intention to the community.Publication The Impact of Destination Image on Value, Satisfaction, and Loyalty: Moderating Effects of Tourist Characteristics and Involvement(2011-01-08) Mahasuweerachai, Patcharaporn; Qu, HailinThis study investigates the effect of destination image on perceived destination value, satisfaction and destination loyalty. This study also examines the moderating effects of tourist characteristics and involvement on the relationships between destination image and its outcomes. A total of 783 completed questionnaires were analyzed using structural equation modeling technique. The findings indicate that destination image has significant effects on perceived value, satisfaction and loyalty. The results also reveal that the strength of the effects do not depend on tourists’ gender or material status; however they do depend on tourists’ age, income, and level of involvement.Publication Dynamics of Emotional Responses and Emotion Regulation during Multi-Stage Waits(2011-01-08) Kim, Seon Taik; Miao, LiWhen consumers have to wait during a multi-stage service delivery process, consumers’ emotional responses to the waiting may evolve over the course of interaction with services. Extant literature offers limited understanding of dynamic emotional response during multi-stage waiting. The current study examines the salience of specific types of negative emotions at each stage of waiting and the effect of emotion regulation strategies on encounter satisfaction. The moderating effect of regulatory focus on emotion regulation strategies is also examined. Implications for scholars and service managers are then discussed.Publication The Moderating Effects of Tourist Characteristics and Novelty Seeking on the Relationships between Satisfaction, Revisit Intention and WOM(2011-01-08) Mahasuweerachai, Patcharaporn; Qu, HailinThis study investigates the moderating effects of tourist characteristics and novelty seeking on the relationships among destination attributes, satisfaction, revisit intention and word-of-mouth (WOM). Using structural equation modeling and a multiple group analysis, the findings reveal that the effects of destination attributes on satisfaction, revisit intention and WOM do not differ across age, gender, annual income, and marital status. The results also reveal that the strength of the effect of satisfaction on revisit intention depends on levels of novelty seeking. In other words, for tourists with high novelty seeking, the effect of overall satisfaction on revisit intention is weaker than for those with low novelty seeking.Publication Determinants of Visitor’s Overnight Stay in Local Food Festival: An Exploration of Staycation Concept and It’s Relation to the Origin of Visitors(2011-01-06) Alexander, Amanda C; Lee, Kwang Ho; Kim, Dae-YoungThe primary aim of this study was to explore the determinants of tourist overnight stay at a destination. The data was collected through a questionnaire conducted in two local food festivals in the Mid-west area in the U.S in 2010. The results of this study has both industry and academia implications; this study reveals the geographical distance (i.e., minimum of 100 miles away) that is most beneficial in obtaining overnight stays.Publication A Comparative Study of Motivation across Different Festival Products(2011-01-08) Woo, Eunju; Yolal, Medet; Cetinel, Fatmagul; Uysal, MuzafferFestivals and special events have increased worldwide because they provide significant economic, socio-cultural, and political impacts on their destination. While, a plethora of studies have examined tourists’ motivation and socio-economic impacts, little research has been conducted on the motivation and socio-economic impact of festival attendees with regard to different product offerings. The first objective of this paper, therefore, is to investigate the underlying dimensions of motivation for attending an international festival in Turkey and whether motivation will vary across six different festival products (Symphony, Rock, World Music, Dance, Ballet, and Theater). The second purpose is to understand how festival attendees perceive the socio-economic impacts of the festival and how these perceived impacts vary across different festival attendee groups. Finally, the study examines the overall satisfaction of festival attendees with respect to different festival products. The results show that there were significant differences in motivation among attendees from six different festival products. Duncan’s multiple-range tests were performed to further examine differences in motivation among these attendees. The mean scores of different groups indicate that ‘Rock Event’ attendees tended to have lower motivation scores than other groups and have the lowest ratings on the factor of ‘family togetherness’. However, attendees did not differ on the perceived importance of socio-economic impacts and satisfaction of the festival irrespective of the festival product attended.Publication Push and Pull Factors: Influence on Female Managers and Executives’ Exit From the Workplace, Impact on Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment(2011-01-07) Ntumba, Lila N; Chen McCain, Shiang-LihThe entry of women into the professional world has, without a doubt, changed the dynamics of the workplace over the past few decades. That observation still holds true today and becomes more prevalent with the changing face of the labor market in terms of diversity. However, in spite of that strong overall female presence, there still exists an unfair share between the number of women compared to the number of men holding high managerial and executive positions. Women experience difficulties advancing in their careers because of various factors that Hewlett and Luce (2005) divided in two separate categories called “push” and “pull”. This research determined how those factors negatively influence those women's job satisfaction as well as organizational commitment, and therefore increase their propensity to leave the workforce, even after they have achieved somewhat high levels in their career. The research also attempted to provide recommendation approaches to assist organizations in implementing effective retention initiatives.Publication Depicting Image of China as a Tourism Destination: A Travel Blog Approach(2011-01-08) Li, Xu; Wang, YouchengThe purpose of this study was to examine the destination image of China as perceived by international tourists as represented in travel blog discourse. Data were obtained from blog entries relating to trip to China posted on www.tripadviser.com, www.travelpod.com, and www.virutaltourist.com. Content analysis facilitated by Atlas.ti 6.0 was performed on a total of eighty-nine China-related travel blogs. The study identified the most frequently discussed aspects of tourists’ experience in China. The results also indicated that the blog authors had mixed images of China, which was consistent with the conclusion of paradoxical images of China drawn by Xiao and Mair (2006). Marketing implications for China’s tourism development based on the results were discussed.Publication Use of Alignable and Nonalignable Attributes in Decision Making: The Role of Between-Alternatives Heterogeneity(2011-01-08) Xie, Hui; Mattila, Anna S.; Kerstetter, Deborah L.With the help of information technology, consumers today can easily compare tourism and hospitality products directly based on various attributes. Grounded in Structural Alignment Theory and the notion of process goals, this study investigated how between-alternatives heterogeneity affect consumers’ use of alignable (i.e., attributes shared by all the alternatives) and nonalignable attributes (i.e., attributes not shared by all the alternatives). Results of two experiments showed that consumers attach more relative importance to alignable attributes when the between-alternative heterogeneity is high, but attach more relative importance to nonalignable attributes when the between-alternative heterogeneity is low. Important theoretical and practical implications are discussed.Publication A Study of Customers’ Attitudinal and Behavioral Responses toward Lodging Companies’ Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives(2011-01-06) Lee, Suna; Qu, HailinDespite the increasing interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR) marketing practices, the role of CSR has little been explored in the area of hospitality marketing. The main purpose of the study was to propose and assess a theoretical model on the effects of hotels’ CSR and corporate ability (CA) on customer-company identification (CCID), customers’ corporate evaluation (CE), and purchase intention (PI). On-line survey was conducted and a total of 683 responses were collected and analyzed using structural equation modeling method. The results demonstrated that (1) corporate ability (CA) still had a stronger effect on customers’ corporate evaluation (CE) and purchase intention (PI) than CSR associations, (2) CSR showed stronger impact on customer-company identification (CCID) than corporate ability (CA), and (3) both CSR and CA showed positive effects on the relationships toward corporate evaluation (CE) and purchase intention (PI) mediated by customer-company identification (CCID). The study concluded with discussion and future research.Publication Are You A Tourist? Tourists’ Self-identification and the Definition of Tourism(2011-01-08) Yu, Xiaojuan; Kim, Namhuyn; Chen, Chih-Chien; Schwartz, ZviThis study empirically investigates the question of who is a tourist, building on the literature of what is tourism, how to measure tourism, and the negative characterization of the term tourist. The study’s main contribution is that it contrasts the distance-based practical definitions with tourists’ self-identification and characterizes those who define themselves as tourists. Data came from 1,619 responses to a visitor survey, conducted at a midwestern destination. A surprisingly high proportion of the respondents self-identified as tourists suggested that while it might still exist, the negative connotation of the term “tourist” is not always as dominant as suggested by the literature. The statistical analyses (chi-square test, Marascuilo procedure, and a binary logistic model) suggest that the propensity to self-identify as tourist is positively related to the distance traveled and first-visit status, and it is lower among visitors whose trip purpose was to visit friends or relatives. These findings on how travelers might feel about the role of distance in the definition of tourism could assist policy makers who use distance to define and measure tourism. The characterization of those who self-identify as tourists has important implications for CVBs and DMOs who wish to better address the negative connotation of the term “tourist” in their communication.Publication Effects of Workplace Fun on Employee Behaviors: Focused on Generation Y in the Hospitality Industry(2011-01-07) Choi, Young Gin; Kwon, Junehee; Kim, WansooThe conceptual model of this study was tested based on responses from 234 hospitality students in the US who are Generation Yers and had worked in the hospitality industry for more than 3 months. This study revealed that Generation Y employees’ attitude toward workplace fun positively affects their experienced workplace fun. In turn, Generation Yers’ experienced workplace fun showed direct effects on their job satisfaction, task performance, and interpersonal citizenship behaviors. Affected by experienced workplace fun, job satisfaction significantly enhanced employees’ task performance and interpersonal job satisfaction. In essence, for Generation Y employees in hospitality businesses, workplace fun is a significant factor in their job satisfaction, task performance, and interpersonal citizenship behavior. These findings provide a significant insight to hospitality employers who typically have a hard time to attract best young talents and motivate them mainly due to low-paying, low-status nature of hospitality jobs.Publication Culinary Graduates’ Career Decisions and Expectations(2011-01-07) Yen, Chih-Lun (Alan); Cooper, Caroline A.; Murrmann, Suzanne K.This study investigates the expectations of career opportunities and career decisions of prospective culinary graduates in the food service industry. The study analyzed data from a sample of 336 college students majoring in culinary arts from three different culinary schools located in the northeastern region of the United States. The results show that the availability of the new labor force for entry and mid-level positions appears to be lower than the growth of student enrollment. Research findings suggest that monetary factors, including salary and benefits, along with advancement opportunities are the major factors influencing culinary graduates’ career decisions. The familiarity with career opportunities and willingness to accept job offers were also assessed. Recommendations are offered to bridge the gap between the expectations of culinary graduates and recruiters for improved recruitment results.Publication Rural Tourism and Community Empowerment: Practice of Local Democracy in Pomerania(2011-01-08) Strzelecka, MariannaIn rural areas of Poland the understanding of development as a participatory process supports local practice of democratic decision-making. LEADER program justifies activities of Local Action Groups, which enhance democratic practices in Poland.Local Action Groups (LAGs) have become distinguished organizations at the local level that engage partners from multiple localities. LAGs can influence local representatives (local leaders) participating in decision-making. The study was conducted in Pomerania, where rural stakeholders responded to initiatives toward tourism development because they understood that could benefit. Tourism development motivated stakeholders to become involved in investigated Local Action Group and LEADER program. LAGs that have been investigated have emerged around rural tourism development theme.The presentation discusses currently perceived features of LAGs that suggest the interactional character of these groups, and disadvantages of LAGs perceived by participating stakeholders.Publication To Tip or not to Tip? An Exploratory Study of the Motivations Driving Consumer Tipping Behavior(2011-01-07) Whaley, Jeremy E; O'Neill, Martin AThe paper attempts to shed light on the key drivers of consumer tipping behavior and reports the findings from an exploratory study aimed at addressing consumer motivations and their influence on consumers’ willingness to tip. When approaching the research issue, the phenomenon presents an interesting subject for study. In the United States alone, such occupations as servers, bartenders, maitre’d, concierges, hair stylists, bus boys, and bellhops all depend on tips as a primary source of income. Considering that many occupations derive the majority of compensation from tips, “estimated tips in US restaurants alone are about $27 billion annually.” (Azar, 2007, 252) In an economic sense, tipping is not only a custom throughout numerous countries; for many individuals it is a way of life. Clearly, the custom of tipping impacts the lives of millions on a daily basis and while there are no definitive answers regarding why consumers tip the way they do, previous research does provide plausible theories on tipping behavior(s). Research suggests that consumers tip for a variety of reasons, such as compliance to social norms and pressures, social approval, equity in exchange relationships, service received and a variety of other environmental factors (Grassman & Lynn, 1990). Against this background, this study has one overriding objective, to shed light on those motivations driving the consumer’s decision to tip while utilizing exploratory factor analysis.Publication Cash Holdings of Hotel Firms: The Financial Constraints Perspective(2011-01-08) Koh, Jung Hwan; Jang, SooCheong (Shawn)Financial literature of cash or liquidity management has recently focused on the role of financial constraints on firms’ liquidity decision. Even though the accessibility to capital market is considered as one of major topics in hotel firms’ financial management considering high usage of debt financing, litter effort has been made. Considering the extent of hotel firms’ financial constraints, this study examines the precautionary motive of cash holding toward external financing (debt) and internal financing (cash flow). Using two financial constraint measurements, bond rating and dividend payment, the study tests the relation of cash to debt and cash flow. Regardless of the extent of financial constraints, cash holding is negatively related to debt, which is partially different from the expectation, indicating the accessibility to capital market of hotel firms. Practical implication for manager and future researches are discussed.Publication Effects of Leadership Style and National Culture on Restaurant Employees’ Affective Commitment(2011-01-07) Kim, Yong J; Hancer, MuratThe topics of leadership and culture have attracted substantial interest from both academics and practitioners. This study examines the effects of leadership styles and national culture on affective commitment in samples of the restaurant employees in US. The findings support the primary assumption of this study: restaurant employees’ affective commitment is related to the leadership styles of their supervisors. Interestingly, both participative leadership style and supportive leadership style have effects on affective commitment but instrumental leadership style does not. Finally, in order to increase the employees’ affective commitment, it is recommended for managers to employ supportive leadership style toward employees of different national cultures. A participative leadership style is more effective when a manager is familiar with his or her employees’ national culture.Publication An Analysis of Freshmen Students’ Motivation to Eat at On-Campus Dining Facilities(2011-01-08) Choi, Eun-Kyong; Wilson, Amanda; Fowler, Deborah; Yuan, Jingxue Jessica; Goh, BenThe purposes of the study were (1) to determine which attributes university freshmen consider most important when choosing to dine at on-campus foodservice venues, and (2) to reveal the students’ level of satisfaction with several experience elements related to on-campus foodservice operations. The results of this study demonstrated that university freshmen consider “flavor and taste of food”, “quality and freshness of food,” and “operating hours” most important when choosing to dine at on-campus facilities. The study also revealed that university freshmen, attending a major institution in Texas, were most satisfied, by rank as follows, with the (1) Social Environment, (2) Atmosphere, (3) Customer experience, and (4) service of campus foodservice venues.Publication Perceived Availability of and Attitudes toward Healthy Food Choices in Assisted-Living Facilities in Kansas(2011-01-07) Liu, Pei; Kwon, JuneheeThe purpose of this project was to assess perceived availability of healthy food choices and examine relationships between attitudes, subjective norms (SN), perceived behavior control (PBC), and behavior intention (BI) to consume healthy food at assisted-living facilities using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TpB). An instrument based on the theory of planned behavior (TpB) was developed and tested with 115 elderly residents in eight facilities in Kansas. The results showed that attitudes toward healthy food and SN were positively associated with consumption intention. However, PBC among residents was not a significant predictor of the intention to select healthy food choices. The results of this study confirmed that elderly population living in elder care facilities desires and are willing to choose healthy food choices but feel the lack of their control over food choices. Managers from these facilities may utilize this data to recognize their residents’ needs, investigate ways to improve residents’ diets, and potentially increase healthy food consumption of their elderly clients.