The Effect of Length of Stay on Travelers' Perceived Satisfaction with Service Quality

SUMMARY

Consumer satisfaction related to service quality during the vacation experience is of paramount importance to the travel and tourism industry. This study tests empirically the effects the number of nights spent on a vacation have on the levels of satisfaction recent travelers report for three service aspects of the travel destination: perceived satisfaction with tourism service providers; perceived “freedom from defects” of tourism services; and perceived reasonableness of the cost of tourism services. Differentiation in satisfaction scores between “short-term visitors” (i.e., those who stayed from one to six nights) and “long-term visitors” (i.e., those who stayed seven or more nights) were examined. Significant differences between the two groups of visitors were present for (1) perceived satisfaction with industry professionals delivering the service experience at the travel destination, (2) perceived satisfaction with “freedom from defects” of the actual services at the destination, and (3) perceived reasonableness of the cost of services at the travel destination. Suggestions for how tourism industry professionals can make use of this information are presented.     

Traveler preferences from online reviews: Role of travel goals,class and culture

Along with being critical performance indicators as well as a rich source of information for potential customers, the overall rating and recommendation behavior also work as a crucial information source for managers of airlines for customer segmentation, service design, and post-purchase evaluation management. In this study, we explore how customer preferences, behavior and post-purchase evaluations differ for travelers depending on their respective travel goals, travel class, and the culture of their native country. Based on the frameworks of the construal level theory and expectation disconfirmation theory, we provide a psychological explanation of why specific service attributes, categorized in process-outcome and tangible—intangible dimensions, get higher importance than others for a particular set of customers. We analyzed consumer review data of 28,341 reviews for 345 airlines by customers from 132 countries. The results yielded critical theoretical contributions to extant literature on airline evaluations and recommendations, construal levels, airline customer segmentation, etc. Moreover, the results also helped managers of an airline to package design, segment customers, enhance targeted communication, and customer relationship management overall. The limitations and future scope of the study have also been discussed.     

The Determinants of Customers' Behavioral Intentions after Service Failure: The Role of Emotions

This study explores the effects of stability and controllability, two dimensions of causal attribution, on airline travelers’ negative behavioral intentions, namely switching and negative word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions, through their negative emotions. Data were collected through a survey of airline travelers who experienced a service failure in the past year. Results indicate that both causal attribution dimensions affect negative behavioral intentions. The results also confirmed the moderating role of negative emotions in the stability/controllability and switching intention relationship as well as stability and negative WOM relationship. Managerial implications of these findings are briefly discussed.     

Visual Data Mining: Analysis of Airline Service Quality Attributes

The objectives of the study are to identify the key airline quality attributes from online review posts and to examine the effect of identified airline quality attributes on eWOM communication. This study employed data-mining techniques and logistic regression on 901 passenger reviews to evaluate the service quality of passenger airlines. The major contribution was identifying the most salient topics of travelers complimenting and complaining reviews. Passengers’ comments support that service, staff, cabin seat comfort, and entertainment are among the most discussed themes in positive and negative reviews. Additionally, value, seat comfort, staff/service, and catering were found to be significant predictors of airline eWOM.     

Staying with the ingroup or outgroup? A cross-country examination of international travelers’ home-sharing preferences

This paper examines the joint effect of host’s cultural identity (i.e., ingroup vs. outgroup), presence of a travel companion, and consumer’s country of origin on international travelers’ evaluations of home-sharing services. A quasi-experimental design was implemented to collect data from U.S. and Chinese consumers. Results indicate a significant three-way interaction: In a culturally different destination, Chinese consumers prefer home-sharing services provided by ingroup hosts whether traveling alone or with a companion, whereas American consumers only show ingroup preference if they travel alone; when traveling internationally with a travel companion, American consumers prefer home-sharing services provided by an outgroup host. Further, psychological closeness and perceived experience authenticity are found to be the mediators underlying international travelers’ home-sharing preferences. Findings of this study offer new insights to the research and management of sharing economy.     

Introducing Flow Theory to Explain the Interactive Online Shopping Experience in a Travel Context

Online travel commerce has evolved significantly from the initial sales of less-complex products such as airline tickets, accommodations, and car rentals, to include more complex products like vacation packages and cruises. Many online travel portals, however, have fallen behind in terms of creating a compelling online environment for customers. Online shopping behavior is becoming increasingly complex with the evolution of experiential and utilitarian shopping practices. These two types of practices have a significant effect on the formation of a customer's attitude towards a Web site and eventual purchase intention. The proposed model delineates the customer's preference towards a Web site within experiential and utilitarian purchase contexts when flow variables control, cognitive enjoyment, and focus are involved. This article may help online travel businesses identify unique Web features that satisfy the needs of both the experiential and utilitarian customer. Moreover, this model shows that a successful travel site could entice a utilitarian customer to engage in experiential site features that might result in positive attitude formation and consequent future revisits.     

VACATION AND FAMILY FUNCTIONING

This study explores the unique interplay of family vacation travel, family cohesion, and family communication through a sample of 265 family travelers. The results reveal that family vacation contributes positively to family bonding, communication and solidarity. Family interaction styles differ during the family leisure travel process. Two types of families are identified differing on the dimension of cohesion, corresponding to separated and connected families. Three types of families are identified differing on the dimension of adaptation, corresponding to flexible, confused and structured families. This research represents an attempt to use a unique theoretical framework to empirically assess family functioning in the leisure travel setting.     

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on travelers’ preference for crowded versus non-crowded options

Crowding is a critical determinant of consumers' satisfaction with and preferences for different shopping and travel situations. When considering a selection of travel and hospitality options, travelers are influenced by perceived crowding. This research examined how the current health crisis (i.e., the COVID-19 pandemic) affects travelers’ preferences for crowded and non-crowded options. Specifically, we predicted that travelers would have a diminished preference for crowded (vs. non-crowded) travel and hospitality options when the ongoing pandemic is salient. We demonstrated that the primary effect of the salience of the threat was persistent across different travel categories and contexts. We also found that travelers with high levels of sensation seeking and a high need for uniqueness show the opposite pattern, suggesting a possible recovery strategy from the pandemic. Five experimental studies provide several theoretical and managerial implications for travel and hospitality business marketers.     

IDENTIFYING LEISURE TRAVEL MARKET SEGMENTS BASED ON PREFERENCE FOR NOVELTY

The motivation and knowledge of travelers affects their choice of destination and selection of activities while on vacation. Understanding motivation is important for all stakeholders in the tourism industry. The search for novelty is one motivating factor when planning leisure trips and vacation activities. A foreign destination offers a form of novelty to the traveler because it can provide experiences that are not of the everyday variety. The chosen location may have specific geographical features, a different cultural background, special shopping opportunities, a different language, new foods, and unique leisure activities that can provide a novel experience. The purpose of this study is to identify segments of potential U.S. leisure travelers based on their level of novelty seeking and to investigate the relationship between travelers' levels of novelty seeking and their knowledge of a destination and preferred travel style.     

Information technology usage,motivation, and intention: a case of Chinese urban senior outbound travelers in the Yangtze River Delta region

Chinese outbound travel is thriving, with seniors taking an increasing market share. However, although outbound travel in general has been researched quite well, little is known specifically about the outbound travel behavior of Chinese seniors, or the effects of information technology (IT) on their vacation patterns. This study is an initial and exploratory attempt to understand the relation between IT usage and tourism behavior (travel motivation, travel intention, and sociodemographics) of Chinese senior outbound travelers. The results reveal four segments of IT usage, each with significantly different traveler profiles in terms of sociodemographics, travel motivation, and travel intention.     

The Role of Airline Travelers’ Pre-Recovery Emotions during the Service Recovery Process

This study examines (1) the relationships between airline travelers’ casual attribution (stability and controllability), pre-recovery emotions, post-recovery emotions, and overall satisfaction; and (2) analyzes the mediating effect of pre-recovery emotions on the relationship between causal attribution and post-recovery emotions. Theoretical hypotheses were derived based on a literature review, and to empirically test the hypotheses, data were collected from 210 airline travelers in Malaysia. These respondents were airline travelers who experienced some service failure and relevant service recovery within the past year. According to the results, the two dimensions of casual attribution both influenced pre-recovery emotions. Pre-recovery emotions were significantly related to positive and negative post-recovery emotions, and post-recovery emotions were significantly related to overall satisfaction. In addition, pre-recovery emotions moderated the relationship between casual attribution and post-recovery emotions. These results have important practical implications.     

Family Vacation Activities and Family Cohesion

Family is an important unit of individuals seeking experiences together during vacation. This consumptive unit deserves explicit attention not only because of its market size but also because of ramifications of family vacation on family functioning. This study explores the interplay of vacation activity patterns and family cohesion. It reveals a taxonomy of four types of family travelers with respect to their patterns of activities and needs for cohesion. They are “bonded and nature seeking”; “attached and enthusiastic”; “self-directed and recreation oriented”; and “sociable but static” family travelers. This research provides empirical evidences for the proposition that vacation activities are valuable contributors to family cohesion. Implications are provided pertaining to the development of quality family vacation programs and enhancement of family life satisfaction.     

China's Generation Y's Expectation on Outbound Group Package Tour

This paper aims to identify China's Generation Y's (Gen Y) preference toward joining group package tour (GPT) when traveling abroad and explore their expectations on a number of service attributes. Six service attribute dimensions were identified through factor analysis, including: group leader/local guide(s), optional tour and shopping arrangement, safety, cleanness, and comfortableness, accommodation, activities, and shopping length and frequency. This study confirmed the importance of group leader/local guide(s) with a special emphasis on their honesty. It is found that current group and non-group travelers of Gen Y shared similar expectations on six service feature dimensions, while having different expectations on four service attributes: food hygiene, tour leader's emergency handle ability, Chinese food offering, and park as attraction choice. Results also showed that potential group travelers had higher concern over the factor of group leader/local guide(s) than non-group travelers.     

The Situational Influence of Travel Group Composition

Abstract

A substantial amount of statistics and articles in travel magazines indicated that family vacation travel is one of the major worldwide trends. However, very limited empirical research has been dedicated to this special market segment. This study examined Japanese family travelers to Taiwan by comparing and contrasting them with other travel companionship groups including traveling with friends and traveling alone. The importance of travel group composition segmentation was explained and conceptualized through the understanding of the value of social groups from sociology perspective. The results indicated that Japanese family travelers exhibited unique characteristics when traveling. Family travelers tended to be more motivated by learning oriented themes and participated enthusiastically in activities that facilitated experiential learning as well as total physical relaxation. The “traveling with friends” and “traveling solo” segments tended to be seeking more of activities that had strong entertaining and socializing undertones. The traveling solo group appeared to be the most evasive or the least understood in what their needs and preferences were. Marketing implications were discussed.     

The Senior Travel Market

Abstract

Demographically, the senior market segment is the fastest growing travel segment in the United States. While existing as one of the most influential groups of leisure travelers, they are often forgotten in the world of hotel marketing, advertising, and overall design of the hotel itself. This study examined the “Do's & Don'ts” of the senior market, as well as the importance seniors hold on service attributes, hotel layout, and building design. Findings are derived from literature reviews and observations. In addition, personal interviews were conducted to compare what hotel employees thought was an important need to the seniors in contrast to what the senior travelers thought was. Recommendations were made to assist hotel companies in attracting the senior market ranging from lifestyle advertising to building guestrooms with particular amenities.     

Profiling Asian and Western family independent travelers (FITS): An exploratory study

This study explored perceptual and behavioral differences in service quality, satisfaction, and intention to revisit between Asian and Western family independent travelers (FITs) and to profile each group by its demographic and vacation characteristics as well as its family vacation decision‐making modes. Qualified FITs (n = 183) from seven major source markets were interviewed in the departure lounge at the Hong Kong International Airport. Results indicated that, compared to Asian FITs, Western respondents were more likely to favorably evaluate service quality, be first time visitors, and be younger. However, they were less likely to return to Hong Kong for leisure. Most Western travelers shared all decisions together between spouses, whereas their Asian counterparts were more likely to report individual dominant decisions, especially for those trip specific decisions. Marketing implications and future research directions are discussed.     

The moderating role of context in the effects of choice attributes on hotel choice: A discrete choice experiment

This study used discrete choice modeling to identify the moderating role of context in the effects of cognitive, affective, and sensory attributes on hotel choice. To evaluate a hotel consumer's choice for attributes in a different choice context (leisure vs. business), a stated preference experiment based on D-optimal design was conducted using both a multinomial logit (MNL) model and a random parameter logit (RPL) model. The results show that while leisure travelers' choices for family vacation trips were more influenced by price and overall atmosphere than were business travelers', business travelers put an emphasis on room quality and comfort when on a business trip alone. The study demonstrates the trade-offs made by leisure and business travelers when choosing a hotel through discrete choice modeling. The findings provide hotel managers with important insights and implications in terms of target segmentation, product development, and marketing communication strategy.     

Does Tourism Change Our Lives?

Does tourism change our lives? The mainstream of tourism psychology research is mostly concerned with tourist motivation, behavior in and satisfaction with destination, and few studies explore how tourism might affect people's perceptions of themselves, home, neighborhood, work, friends, relatives, and life in general. This study seeks insights into the effect and influence of travel and tourism on people, not momentary impact during vacation but longer-term impact in terms of sense of being, direction in life, and well-being. It is found that there are positive changes in the perception of life among Chinese travelers in general and the perception changes among travelers are significantly stronger than the perception changes among the control group of non-travelers. There is clear evidence that travelers feel more positive than non-travelers in their general well-being, attitude toward life, sense of control, and outlook.     

First-Class in-Flight Services and Advertising Effectiveness: Antecedents of Customer-Centric Innovativeness and Brand Loyalty in the United States (US) Airline Industry

In this study we consider the first-class passenger market to identify in-flight service-related triggers of customer-centric innovativeness, test the effect of customer-centric innovativeness on brand loyalty, and examine the moderating role of advertising effectiveness. A series of theory-based hypotheses was examined through structural equation modeling using empirical data collected from a sample of 205 first-class airline passengers in the United States (US). The results indicate that various experiential dimensions of in-flight service designs (including food, entertainment, physical environment, and flight attendant performance/physical appearance) in the first-class passenger market had significant effects on perceived firm innovativeness. In addition, advertising effectiveness moderated the effects of in-flight food services and flight attendant physical appearance on perceived firm innovativeness. These results clearly suggest that customer-centric innovativeness is a strong driver of brand loyalty in the first-class passenger market. The study provides a theoretical basis for future research and offers some effective management methods for enhancing first-class passengers’ loyalty in the airline industry.     

VACATION LIFESTYLE AND TRAVEL BEHAVIORS

In marketing research, tourism scholars have often developed a variety of scales and integrated them into segmentation studies. Since vacation lifestyle variables, which could be utilized as a base for marketing research, have not received much attention from market researchers, this article attempts to further purify the extant scale and use Taiwanese travelers as a case study. The study survey was conducted of 443 tourists staying at least one night at the Ken‐Ting National Park in Taiwan from April to May, 2002. This study collected 420 useful samples. Three groups of users merged from the cluster analysis: (a) Family Oriented Travelers, (b) Social Oriented Travelers, and (c) Stylish Travelers. The study shows that the differences in trip characteristics are the frequencies of domestic travel, the frequencies of international travel, the hotel preferences, and the average expenditure on accommodations. The variations in demographic characteristics relate to age, family life cycle, education, and household income. This study on vacation lifestyle subsequently renders a new assessment tool to tourism professionals in Taiwan to grasp the lifestyle profile of their customers and develop strategies to entice the travel market.