Capsule hotels: Offering Experiential Value or perceived as risky by tourists? An optimum stimulation level model

Capsule hotels are a novel Japanese approach to accommodation that arose in 1979. For most travelers outside Japan, however, the concept of capsule hotels is relatively new. They provide experiential value to the traveler; they also pose some risks. Travelers seeking familiarity view unfamiliar environments as riskier, and perceived risk has a negative influence on consumer behavior. This study aims to establish a behavioral model of capsule hotel visitors by incorporating optimum stimulation level (OSL), perceived risk, and experiential value into its analytical framework. A total of 276 respondents who stayed in a capsule hotel participated in the study. Findings suggest that the OSL has a positive effect on experiential value and perceived risk. Experiential value, in return, negatively affects perceived risk. Experiential value further plays a mediating role between perceived risk and OSL. We discuss theoretical implications and offer recommendations for capsule hotel operators.     

Tourists' intention to visit heritage hotels at George Town World Heritage Site

George Town, Penang, has always been one of the most popular destinations among Malaysian and international tourists. In 2008, George Town was accorded a listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site (WHS). With the listing, increasing tourist arrivals and intentions to visit heritage hotels have been very promising in recent years, prompting the emergence of the adaptive reuse of heritage buildings into heritage hotels. In line with this development, this study examines the effects of perceived price, experience quality, prior knowledge, perceived authenticity, and social influence on tourists’ intention to visit heritage hotels at the George Town WHS, Penang, with perceived value as a mediator. The findings indicate that perceived price, experience quality, prior knowledge, perceived authenticity, social influence and perceived value exert positive and significant effects on tourists’ intention to visit heritage hotels. The study also determines the mediating effect of perceived value on the relationships between independent variables and the intention to visit heritage hotels. This study provides an in-depth understanding of the attributes that affect tourists’ intention to visit heritage hotels at the George Town WHS and helps the owners and operators of heritage hotels to formulate future strategies in designing and promoting their services.     

Developing and validating a mobile catering app success model

This study develops and validates a mobile catering app success model based on the e-commerce system success model and marketing literature. Specifically, a research model which describes the relationships among system quality, information quality, service quality, product quality, perceived price, perceived promotions, perceived value, user satisfaction, intention to reuse, and eWOM is examined. Data collected from an online survey are analyzed against the research model using PLS-SEM. The results indicate that product quality, perceived price, perceived promotions, and eWOM can be added to the e-commerce system success model to form a mobile catering app success model. Additionally, the findings show that perceived value influences eWOM more strongly than does user satisfaction while user satisfaction affects intention to reuse more strongly than does perceived value. The findings of this study provide several important theoretical and practical implications for developing a successful mobile catering app.     

Classifying technological innovation attributes for hotels: an application of the Kano model

ABSTRACT

Technological facilities and services have become attractive features in hotel selection. However, limited research has been conducted on how technological innovation attributes are perceived by hotel tourists. This paper aims to highlight and categorize the technological innovation attributes of hotels based on the Kano model. Empirical testing shows four technological innovation factors: Internet and app usage, smartphone usage as a room key and for payment, E-housekeeping, and the use of electronic self-service systems. Findings provide practical implications for hotel operators planning to introduce technologies into their hotels.     

Extending the scope of hotel client reactions to employee injustice: Hotel employer reviews on the Internet

Third-party literature is concerned about the way others perceive what happens in organizations. When dealing with the perceived justice of the employer-employee relationship, it has mainly adopted an on-site approach. The scarce research focusing on the consequences of perceived justice for client variables in hotels has shown that it can impact client loyalty. In this study, we adopt an on-line view, and we analyze how the comments posted by hotel employees on the Internet about their work conditions influence guest perceptions. This topic is relevant because it is well known that clients’ perceptions influence client satisfaction, WOM and revisit intentions. Through an experiment based on real hotel employer reviews, results confirm that these comments have an impact on the organizational image dimension of service quality, hotel clients’ satisfaction, WOM, and revisit intentions. Thus, as occurs with client eWOM, hotel managers should be aware of these comments and manage them appropriately.     

Linking servicescape and customer engagement: An investigation in the hotel context

Servicescape and customer engagement are important concepts in the hospitality literature, but scant research pays attention to their relationship. To fill the gap, the present study proposes a “servicescape–value–engagement” framework to examine the effects of servicescape elements on different components of customer engagement by addressing functional and wellness values as mediators. Structural equation modeling was applied to analyze the data surveyed from 619 hotel customers in China. Findings indicate that substantive and communicative servicescapes have positive effects on customers’ cognitive, affective, and behavioral engagements. Wellness value mediates all of these effects whereas functional value only mediates the effects on customers’ affective and behavioral engagements. Through the establishment of the framework, the present study theoretically broadens current knowledge on the servicescape-driven responses and the antecedents of customer engagement. Practically, the findings prompt hotels to effectively design and deliver servicescape elements to improve customer engagement and value perceptions.     

Designing lifestyle hotels

Art creates irreplaceable added value and serves as a source for satisfying the spiritual needs of hotel customers. To provide customers with memorable services, hotels not only need to continue improving their services (exploit), but also have to design artistic new services (explore). Thus, customer willingness to return to the hotel could be increased, enhancing customer loyalty. However, few hotels simultaneously implement these two types of trade-off activities (i.e., exploitation and exploration). According to the ambidexterity perspective, this study applied a case study approach to investigate the process through which hotel operators design lifestyle hotels. Moreover, this study involved constructing an operational framework that adopted art as the basis for differentiation. The research results revealed that in introducing art concepts into a hotel service system, hotels operators must attach a high level of importance to several key activities, including hiring a full-time executive artistic manager in the top management team to engage in innovation, integrating local culture and the natural environment into the design of an artistic servicescape, catering to customers’ needs, and adopting high-performance human resource practices. These activities enable hotels to enhance their service capability in simultaneously implementing the two mutual trade-off activities, specifically designing new artistic services (explorative innovation) and continually improving their services (exploitative innovation).     

Medical Hotel in the Growth of Global Medical Tourism

This study was designed to identify international patient-travelers’ perceived advantages of staying at a medical hotel; to examine associations among perceived advantages, price perceptions, and willingness to stay by considering price perception as mediator; to investigate relative importance among advantage components; and to identify differences in study variables between first-time international medical tourists and experienced/repeat travelers. Eleven advantages were identified in a qualitative study. Findings from a quantitative analysis indicated that dimensions of perceived advantages, price perception, and willingness to stay are, in general, significantly associated. In particular, among advantage components, a decisive role was found for physical convenience in willingness to stay and time/effort savings in perceived price. In addition, level of perceived advantages, price perception, and stay willingness were found to differ significantly between first-timers and repeaters. There has been limited research on the medical hotel. The findings provided valuable insights for both medical-tourism researchers and practitioners.     

Satisfaction and positive emotions: A comparison of the influence of hotel guests’ beliefs and attitudes on their satisfaction and emotions

This research provides a comparative study of two comprehensive servicescape models to explore the underlying influence of various hotel elements on guests’ satisfaction with, and emotional responses to, their hotel stays. Based on the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this research sought to identify the differences in guests’ beliefs and attitudes about the elements of hotels’ public areas, rooms, ambiance, social, and green practices in determining their satisfaction and emotions. Two structural models were developed illustrating the theorized interrelationships between identified constructs. Data collected through an online survey from 310 guests stayed in upscale hotels with four-star ratings were used for the analysis. Results from two structural models revealed that the model with attitudes is a better predictor of guest satisfaction and emotions than the model with beliefs. Further, emotionally attached guests engage more in WOM than did satisfied guests. Hotel managers need to offer experiences that consist of elements that matter to customers since customers’ attitude towards various service elements determine their satisfaction and emotional attachment with hotels. Additionally, in order to get brand promoters through WOM recommendations, hotels need to focus on emotionally attached customers than satisfied customers.     

Value of a hotel stay: a case study in Hong Kong

This study examines the value of a hotel stay from the perspective of hotel customers and hotel service professionals. Respondents, including hotel customers and hotel service professionals, were asked the extent of their agreement or disagreement with statements related to four different value dimensions: functional value, emotional value, social value, and customer-perceived sacrifices. Results showed that there are significant differences between the hotel service professionals’ perceived value of the hotel stay and customers’ perceived value of the hotel stay. The differences are found in social value and customer-perceived sacrifices.     

Human resource management and performance in the Barbados hotel industry

This article measures the effect of human resource management (HRM) on performance in the hotel industry in Barbados. It used a quantitative survey covering 46 hotels out of a population of 75 hotels. The respondents were hotel's management, being either a general manager, human resource (HR) manager or line manager. Similar to Hoque's study of UK hotels, the impact of internal and external fit and the universal relevance of HRM were tested. The findings showed no major support for external fit, universal relevance and internal fit in the Barbados hotel industry. All the hotels perceived themselves as performing well, given the focus on quality and targeting high spending tourists. A quest for high service pushes the industry more towards best-practice ‘HRM’ rather than best fit.     

Interaction between hotel service robots and humans: A hotel-specific Service Robot Acceptance Model (sRAM)

The growing implementation of robotics in hospitality and tourism requires broader research into customers' experience with service robots. This study explores human-robot interaction (HRI) in the context of tourists interacting with hotel service robots. The data, 7994 online TripAdvisor reviews of 74 hotels, were subjected to a content analysis based on the Service Robot Acceptance Model (sRAM) and its dimensions (functional, social-emotional and relational). A sentiment analysis was also carried out. The results identify the principal dimensions and variables involved in HRI and the feelings robots inspire in different types of travellers. Guests most often comment on the functional dimension. Robots' functions determine this experience and influence the interaction between robots and hotel guests.     

Understanding repurchase intention of Airbnb consumers: perceived authenticity,electronic word-of-mouth,and price sensitivity

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this paper is to extend the research on consumer repurchase intention, perceived value, and perceived risk into the realm of the peer-to-peer economy, specifically in the context of Airbnb. A total of 395 surveys were collected in Canada and the United States. The results showed that perceived risk negatively impacts Airbnb consumers’ perceived value and repurchase intention while perceived value positively enhances their repurchase intention. Interestingly, price sensitivity was found not to reduce customers’ perceived risk but can improve their perceived value and positively influences them to repurchase the Airbnb products. Perceived authenticity was found to have a significant effect in reducing Airbnb consumers’ perceived risk and positively influencing their perceived value. Electronic word-of-mouth has a positive effect on repurchase intention as well as perceived value whereas it negatively affects perceived risk. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed and future study directions are offered.     

Tipping: The case of hotel turndown service

Turndown services are experiential and value-added practices to make guests feel cared-for in luxury hotels. Previous research has found that when receiving an additional or exceptional service, people may feel obligated to respond with a reciprocal behavior, such as providing tips. This study aims to investigate the effects of hotel turndown services on tips given to hotel room attendants. The results revealed that the room attendants received more tips for providing turndown service, both in terms of the frequency of receiving tips and the amount of those tips. The findings suggest that without the existence of a tipping norm in hotel guest rooms, the relationship between service and tip seems much clearer.     

Perceived similarity in third places: Understanding the effect of place attachment

Based on the sociological notion of homophily, this research explores the extent to which similarity in the social servicescape is a significant predictor of attitudes and repurchase intention under varying levels of attachment in the restaurant industry. Results indicate that the effects of perceived similarity in the social servicescape on both attitudes and behavior are affected by the level of attachment to restaurant; however, the effects are not the same when perceptions of the other customer are distinguished from perceptions of the employees. The results of these findings are considered in terms of their implications for both theory and practice.     

Tourist motivation and place attachment: the mediating effects of service interactions with hotel employees

Using social facilitation theory, this study evaluates the mediating effects of service interactions with hotel employees on the relationship between tourist motivation and place attachment. The moderating effects of nationality and hotel star-rating on these relationships are also examined. The overall model tested on a sample of 545 international visitors to the island of Mauritius showed that service interactions mediated the relationship between tourist motivation and place attachment. Partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) multi-group analysis found that the relationships among the constructs differed according to tourists’ nationality and the hotels’ star rating. The findings have important implications for hotel managers and destination marketing and management.     

Role of Perceived Fit With Hotels’ Green Practices in the Formation of Customer Loyalty: Impact of Environmental Concerns

With the increasing concern for ecological issues among hotel customers, this study pursues an investigation of customers' perceptions of hotels' core business in association with green practices and the resulting purchase-related loyalty (i.e. intentions to visit, accept price premiums, and recommend). In addition, the study examines the moderating role of environmental concerns in the relationships among perceptions of hotels' green practices and loyalty components. A survey of tourists using hotels showed that customers related hotels' core businesses and green practices positively, which consequently affected customers' purchase intentions toward the hotels. This study is unique in academia in that it investigates the fit theory for the hospitality industry by considering the impact of environmental concerns, while employing environmental practices as an emerging social cause, which is, increasingly, important for the society. This study is beneficial by providing hotel managers with insight into hotel customers' decision-making processes regarding green practices.     

Preferences and Willingness to Pay for Green Hotel Attributes in Tourist Choice Behavior: The Case of Taiwan

Although many companies in the hotel industry aim to pursue more sustainable and socially responsible practices, the present literature shows mixed results with regard to tourist reactions to such moves, especially for the service quality perception impacted by implemented green practices and the willingness to pay more for such actions. Unlike previous research examining tourists’ preferences for separate green hotel attributes, this study identifies the determinants of tourists’ choice of green hotel attributes. Additionally, the study measures the willingness to pay (WTP) for such services, in the context of the Taiwanese market, using the stated preference of combined green hotel attribute scenarios. A multinomial logit (MNL) model is employed to estimate the relative influence of behavioral and facility attributes on choice behavior. Furthermore, the study examines determinants influencing respondents’ choice of green hotel attributes. A latent variable class model (LVCM) approach is applied in the estimation of the unobserved heterogeneity, and a total of 390 valid respondents were used in the analysis. The empirical MNL results indicate that while tourists prefer luxury rooms and the provision of personal toiletries, they are also willing to accept reduced service quality. Additionally, sex, income, and age have significant influences on tourist choice behavior. The results of the LVCM model demonstrate that respondents with high levels of the green consumption trait are more likely to choose hotels that have a greater number of environmentally friendly attributes. The implicit amount that tourists are willing to pay for room quality is around US$13, for the provision of personal toiletries is about US$22, and for service quality is US$12, but they also require a discount of approximately US$11 in order to accept the common practices of green hotels. This study is useful in providing the hotel industry and government with quantitative information that can be used to develop and implement better green hotel policies.     

Relationships Among Perceived Value,Satisfaction, and Loyalty: Community-Based Ecotourism in Korea

Community-based ecotourism (CBE) is a significant segment of the rapidly growing tourism industry in Korea. This study examines the relationships among perceived value, satisfaction, and destination loyalty of CBE tourists in Korea. Data were collected from 254 visitors (aged 20 years and over) of six CBE villages. The Linear Structural Relationships (LISREL) statistical package was used for the analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis identified four dimensions of perceived value from 14 variables: economic, functional, emotional, and social. Through structural equation modeling (SEM), functional, social, and emotional value was found to have positive effects on overall value. Further, overall value and tourist satisfaction were a significant antecedent of destination loyalty. The empirical results indicate that a varied experiential program must be developed to increase the efficiency of CBE as a sustainable development tool.