When dessert comes close: The effects of anticipating indulgent consumption and dietary restraint on healthy food preference at restaurants

When dining in restaurants, diners often anticipate indulgent consumption, such as enjoying a dessert. This study examined the effects of anticipating such indulgence on preferences for healthy food among restrained and unrestrained eaters. Two experiments revealed that anticipating indulgent consumption reduced restrained eaters’ preference for the immediate consumption of healthy food. Conversely, unrestrained eaters’ expectation of indulgent consumption increased or did not change their preference for a healthy option. The interactive effect of indulgence anticipation and dietary restraint on healthy food preference held regardless of availability of nutrition information. The findings suggest that, despite increasing concern for healthy eating, restrained consumers ironically show a preference for unhealthy food options when anticipating a dessert consumption opportunity. The present study provides theoretical implications for consumption anticipation, sequential consumption, and dietary restraint, and practical implications for restaurateurs as well as for consumers, health professionals, and policymakers regarding healthy eating.     

Managing supply chain relationships in the hospitality services: An empirical study of hotels and restaurants

Limited research examines the effects of interorganizational trust and interdependence on the relationship quality between supply chain partners in the hospitality services. It is also not well understood how the interorganizational joint team manages the relationships between hospitality firms and their suppliers. Drawing on the social exchange theory and the resource dependence theory, we propose a model and hypotheses to articulate the mediation effect of joint teamwork on the relationships between interorganizational trust, interdependence, and relationship quality. We rigorously analyze survey data from hotel and restaurant procurement managers. Our findings confirm that interorganizational trust and interdependence have significant effects on joint teamwork. Meanwhile, the teamwork mediates the effects of interorganizational trust and interdependence on relationship quality. Our work enriches the understanding of supply chain relationships in the hospitality services, and provides meaningful insights for the hospitality firms to manage supply chains. Finally, we conclude our work with suggestions for future research.     

The antecedents and consequence of consumer attitudes toward restaurant brands: A comparative study between casual and fine dining restaurants

This study examined a theoretical model examining interrelationships among three service qualities (i.e., physical environment quality, interactional quality, and outcome quality). In addition, this study investigated the effects of three service qualities on utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands and the mediating effects of such attitudes in forming brand preference in full-service restaurants. To further understand unique differences, this study conducted a multi-group analysis comparing the proposed relationships between 318 casual and 303 fine dining patrons (621 full-service restaurant patrons in total). In the full-service restaurant setting, the results of data analysis indicated significant interrelationships among three service qualities. Physical environment quality explained a large amount of variation in both interactional and outcome quality. In turn, interactional quality had a positive effect on outcome quality. Physical environment quality had a significant effect only on hedonic attitude. Interactional and outcome qualities had significant effects on utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands. Finally, utilitarian and hedonic attitudes toward restaurant brands enhanced brand preference. When separately analyzed, the effect of physical environment quality on hedonic attitude became not significant in casual dining segment. Further, the effect of outcome quality on utilitarian attitude became not significant in fine dining segment. Both theoretical and managerial implications of the results are discussed.     

The roles of brand equity and branding strategy: A study of restaurant food crises

Food crises, such as food borne illnesses, are a major threat to the restaurant industry. However, consumer responses to a food crisis are expected to differ depending on the brand equity and branding strategy of the restaurant involved. In order to test the roles of brand equity and branding strategy in a food crisis situation, this study used a scenario-based experimental survey with a 2 (brand equity: Low/High) × 2 (branding strategy: Corporate branding/House-of-brands) × 2 (presence of crisis: No/Yes) design. The results of the study supported the “amplifying” perspective by providing evidence of the negative role of brand equity during a crisis. Moreover, the three-way interaction between brand equity, branding strategy, and presence of crisis revealed the effectiveness of the corporate branding strategy, which varies depending on the level of brand equity, under crises. The findings of this study will enable marketers to develop appropriate post-crisis strategies based on predicted consumer responses depending on the level of brand equity and branding strategy. Further discussion and implications are provided in the text.     

Luxury marketing: The influences of psychological and demographic characteristics on attitudes toward luxury restaurants

This study examined the influences of psychological characteristics (materialism, uniqueness, hedonism, and perfectionism), and demographic characteristics (gender, age, and income) on attitudes toward luxury restaurants. The results showed that consumers who desire materialism and hedonism had favorable attitudes toward luxury restaurants, whereas consumers who desire uniqueness had unfavorable attitudes toward luxury restaurants. Low income populations exhibited more unfavorable attitudes toward luxury restaurants than did middle and high income populations. Consumers who desire uniqueness weakly associate luxury restaurants with overall good service quality, whereas consumers who desire hedonism strongly associate luxury restaurants with overall good service quality.     

Brand knowledge and non-financial brand performance in the green restaurants: Mediating effect of brand attitude

The restaurant business has been increasingly recognized for its ability to help mitigate many negative environmental impacts. To develop a competitive advantage, green restaurants may adopt an innovative branding strategy. Marketing management recognizes that understanding brand attitude is critical for marketing strategies. Studies have examined the relationship between brand knowledge and non-financial brand performance. However, it remains unclear how the green restaurant brand attitude affects this relationship.This study aims to fill this research gap by identifying the composition and structure of the brand attitude in Taiwan’s green restaurants and examining the mediating effects of brand attitude on the relationship between brand knowledge and brand performance. The findings of this study broaden and deepen the current knowledge of the role of brand attitude in Taiwan’s green restaurant industry. In practice, it is suggested that green restaurant management should develop well-known brand knowledge to form brand attitudes and foster brand performance.     

Determinants of Hotels and Restaurants entrepreneurship: A study using GEM data

The objective of this work is to assess the influence of certain factors on the likelihood of being a Hotels and Restaurants (H&R) entrepreneur. The factors evaluated are demographic and economic variables, variables related to perceptions of the environment and personal traits, and variables measuring the individual's intellectual and social capital. The work uses logistic regression techniques to analyze a sample of 33,711 individuals in the countries participating in the GEM project in 2008. The findings show that age, gender, income, perception of opportunities, fear of failure, entrepreneurial ability, knowing other entrepreneurs and being a business angel are explanatory factors of the probability of being an H&R entrepreneur.     

International hotel development: A study of potential franchisees in China

Franchising is a strategic partnership formed by the franchisor and the franchisee, and consequently partner selection between the franchisor and the franchisee is critical to the long-term success of a franchise. However, the literature has primarily taken the viewpoint of franchisors, but failed to explore the perspective of the potential franchisees. As China represents a significant growth opportunity for international hotel franchisors, this study examines the perspective of China's domestic hotel operators regarding franchising and analyzes a mix of factors that may affect such perspective. The study of 182 Chinese hotel general managers shows that China's hotel practitioners have considerable interest in franchising and are knowledgeable about the concept as it pertains to hotels. The findings indicate that the length of work experience and educational background of Chinese hotel operators may influence their franchising preferences. Hotel chains that have strong brand awareness, supportive centralized reservation systems, and offer relatively high returns on investment at relatively low franchise fees, are most attractive to potential Chinese franchisees.     

The motivations and expectations of international volunteer tourists: A case study of “Chinese Village Traditions”

International volunteer tourists devote not only financial support but also time and effort to conservation, preservation, or humanitarian projects outside their original countries. The purpose of this paper is to report the results of a qualitative study on the motivations of ten international volunteer tourists who joined the “Chinese Village Traditions” expedition of the Earthwatch Institute in the summer of 2008. The main research question was, “Why do people join international volunteer tourism trips?” Eleven themes dealing with motivations emerged and were categorized into three groups: personal, interpersonal, and other. Four personal factors were measured: authentic experience, interest in travel, challenge/stimulation, and other interest. Four interpersonal factors were also considered: desire to help, interaction with locals/cultures, encouraged by others, and enhancing relationships. Other factors included unique style of the trip, time/money, and organization goal. The findings of this study echo previous literature reviews in different settings.     

American theme restaurants: A study of consumer's perceptions of the important attributes in restaurant selection

In recent years, a number of American theme restaurants have established in Hong Kong. Keen competition exists for this type of restaurants. Customers who visit this type of restaurant seem not only to enjoy their food but also to enjoy their environment. However, little is known about what customers expect and how they select this type of restaurant. In order to have an understanding of customers’ behaviour in relation to the customers’ perceptions of important restaurant attributes in selecting an American theme restaurant in Hong Kong, a study was conducted. The results indicated that ‘Food quality’, ‘Servers’ attitude’, ‘Value for money’, ‘Atmosphere’ and ‘Word‐of‐mouth’ were the five important restaurant dimensions as considered by consumers in selecting an American theme restaurant. Customers for this type of restaurant are likely to be professionals, highly educated and belong to the middle‐income group in the society. Customers usually go to the American theme restaurants for meetings, fun and enjoyment. Marketing implications and directions for future studies are discussed.     

A blended model of restaurant deliveries,dine-in demand and capacity constraints

The fast-growing food-delivery services are expected to continue to expand following Covid19. While considered a favorable strategic initiative, delivery might not be profitable for all restaurants. Accordingly, this study provides an analytical model to assess the impact of adding delivery service to a traditional dine-in restaurant. The theoretical contribution is a mathematical model depicting the strategic allocation of the restaurant’s production capacity, revealing a surprisingly complex balance between production (capacity constraints), marketing (customer utility), cannibalism and markets interdependency, leading to a range of business outcomes. A large-scale empirical investigation uses over a million unique transactions to test some of the model’s insights. The results show the introduction of delivery may increase transactions and revenue. However, the theoretical model suggests capacity constraints can limit growth potential over time. Correlations between dine-in and delivery demand reveal weekday patterns between both channels as an important indicator for how delivery may impact restaurant operations.     

The dynamics and evolution of knowledge transfer in international master franchise agreements

The paper identifies and evaluates the antecedents, contextual factors and inter-organisational processes that influence knowledge transfer in international hotel master franchise agreements and how these evolve from the perspective of both franchisors and franchisees. A single, purposively selected in-depth qualitative case study reveals the specific factors relevant to knowledge transfer at different stages of the franchise agreement. Drawing on the alliance literature, the impact of four partner-specific variables on inter-organisational design processes used to transfer knowledge and on three antecedents to knowledge transfer; shared identity, absorptive capacity and casual ambiguity is identified. The study contributes to our understanding of the dynamics and evolution of knowledge transfer in master franchise agreements by highlighting the relative importance of partner-specific variables and relational management to knowledge transfer evolution and the relative importance of shared identity as an antecedent to knowledge transfer in these agreements     

Impact of distance on the arrivals,behaviours and attitudes of international tourists in Hong Kong: A longitudinal approach

This study revisits the impact of distance on international tourist behaviours in Hong Kong. This work divides and cross-validates the concept of distance into physical and cultural distance. This work also proposes an alternative cultural distance measure by introducing optimal weight amongst Hofstede's dimensions and then compares the proposed measure with the traditional Kogut and Singh's and Kandogan's measures. By using data from the Visitor Profile Report of the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the World Trade Organisation from 2002 to 2017, along with latent growth curve modelling, multivariate regression and panel data analysis, findings confirmed the significant role of physical and cultural distance. In addition, quadratic relationships are detected using cross-validation methods. The effect of physical distance on tourist demands clearly dominates that of cultural distance in the overall market. The problem of spurious correlation and the results of three cultural distance measures are also discussed.     

A review of restaurant research in the last two decades: A bibliometric analysis

The present paper presents the results of a bibliometric analysis of published academic research dealing with restaurants in the fields of hospitality, leisure, sport and tourism. In particular, it aims to identify the structure of relationships between previous and current themes, predict emerging trends and provide a longitudinal perspective on this research, covering the period 2000–2018. This approach provides an exhaustive analysis for the past two decades from over 700 papers.The findings show, for example, that customer satisfaction is the motor theme with the greatest impact and the study of emotions is an underdeveloped theme; interest in healthy eating is witnessing gradual growth; and brand equity, culture and innovation all constitute new research themes. The future of research dealing with restaurants will tend to focus on new emerging technologies, both in the restaurant sphere and in the context of research methodologies.     

Impact of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of households on demand for Food Away from Home in the United Arab Emirates

Using a random sample of 485 household from Al-Ain, Abu Dhabi, the study estimates household demand for Food Away from Home (FAFH). The study uses household production model to estimate the demand for FAFH. The estimated income elasticities for FAFH are positive and elastic implying that growth in expenditure on FAFH outpaces growth in income. Urdu speaking have the highest growth in expenditure on FAFH as their income grow, followed by Emiratis, English and Arabs. As compared to Emiratis, Arabs and English spend significantly less amount on FAFH while Urdu speaking spend significantly higher amount. The expenditure on FAFH in popular restaurants is statistically less as compared to Asian restaurants. Hence, the industry should expect a growth in demand for FAFH especially keeping in view the expanding Emirati economy.     

A comparative analysis of international tourists’ satisfaction in Mongolia

The purpose of this study was to examine international tourism development in Mongolia in the last decade and analyze international tourists’ satisfaction of their travel experience with tourist attractions, facilities, services and prices. This study identified the demographic characteristics of international tourists from four regions: Europe, the US, Japan and other Asia/Pacific countries by surveying a sample of 530 visitors by air travel. Satisfaction level of international tourists from these four different regions were analyzed and compared to find regional similarities and differences. Recommendations were made for the Mongolian tourism authority to target efficiently its international tourism markets and improve tourism services in Mongolia.     

Empirical investigation of the roles of attitudes toward green behaviors, overall image, gender, and age in hotel customers’ eco-friendly decision-making process

This study examined hotel customers’ eco-friendly decision-making processes. Specifically, the current study tested the relationships among attitude toward green behaviors (ATGB), overall image (OI), visit intention (VI), word-of-mouth intention (WOMI), and willingness to pay more (WPM) by considering the effects of gender and age in a green hotel context. The results of structural equation analyses showed that OI is a positive function of ATGB and that OI significantly affects VI, WOMI, and WPM. Additionally, the findings from a structural modeling comparison revealed that OI completely mediates the effect of ATGB on components of behavioral intentions. Subsequent tests for metric invariances demonstrated that the relationships among study variables were generally stronger among females and high age groups. However, only the paths from OI to VI, WOMI, and WPM in the gender group and from OI to WPM in the age group were statistically significant. Implications and future research issues were discussed.     

生态节事活动投射形象与感知形象的差异研究——以2019北京世界园艺博览会为例

生态节事活动的成功举办与形象传播对建设生态城市、弘扬生态文明理念具有重要意义。以2019北京世界园艺博览会为案例,基于"投射形象-感知形象"的分析框架,运用内容分析、对应分析、成分分析方法,评估了典型生态节事活动的形象投射与感知差异。研究发现：（1）北京世园会形象可以划分为旅游吸引物、环境与地方氛围、设施与服务、旅游体验4个维度。（2）投射形象与感知形象仅在旅游吸引物维度方向差异小,在环境与地方氛围、设施与服务、旅游体验维度方向差异大。（3）投射形象与感知形象在旅游体验、环境与地方氛围维度上成分差异大;在旅游吸引物和设施与服务维度,投射形象内部存在明显分异,反映在官方微博的投射形象与感知形象成分差异大,设施与服务维度官方公众号的投射形象与感知形象成分差异大。（4）北京世园会努力建构的绿色生态的环境与地方氛围在游客感知层面接受度较差,核心原因是供需两侧的目标、需求与策略的不匹配。本研究对北京世园会投射形象与感知形象的方向差异与成分差异进行了重点分析,揭示了其在不同主题维度的区别化特征。这有助于促进生态节事活动的科学化、精细化评估,为其形象传播效果提升提供支持。     

Do organizational practices matter for hotel industry employees’ jobs? A study of organizational practice archetypical configurations and job outcomes

Earlier research has demonstrated that organizational environment variables influence employees’ job outcome variables. This study focuses on the organizational practice dimensions of the hospitality industry and demonstrates that: (1) employees’ perceptions of practices can be construed as a limited set of archetypical configurations, and (2) the configurations are related to job outcome variables. The practice configurations are generated by cluster analysis, and the reliability and validity of the classification is demonstrated.