A Pilot Study on Spectators’ Motivations and Their Socio-Economic Perceptions of a Film Festival

The main objective of this pilot study is to examine spectators’ motives for attending a film festival, their perceptions of socio-economic impacts of the festival to the host community, and their satisfaction with the festival utilizing data collected from the attendees of the Transylvania International Film Festival, which takes place on a regular basis in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. The results indicate that there are significant variations in motivations, satisfaction, and perceptions of impacts across gender, age, level of education, and occupation of attendees. Theoretical contributions, managerial implications, and limitations are addressed.     

大型节事中志愿者参与动机的实证研究——以2010年上海世界博览会为例

文章以2010年上海世界博览会为案例,通过对上海世博会的405名志愿者进行问卷调查,探讨了大型节事中志愿者的参与动机,并验证了志愿者参与动机与岗位服务满足感之间的关系。主成分因子分析的结果显示,志愿者的参与动机有学习动机、职业取向、价值观取向、社会交往动机和公民责任5个因子;多元线性回归的分析结果显示,学习动机和价值观取向因子在不同程度上对志愿者的岗位服务满足感产生正的影响,大型节事的组织机构应针对志愿者的参与动机,提供有吸引力的激励措施。依据中国人的思维理解习惯,文章对现行文献中的量表进行了相应的调整,具有一定的探索意义。实证研究表明,文中采用的量表对测量大型节事志愿者的参与动机有一定的参考价值。     

日本节庆活动对我国旅游节庆开发的启示

节庆活动是市民对城市历史的年复一年的认同,是挖掘地方历史文化、创造城市特色的一个有显著成效的手段。日本的节庆活动有着全社会的影响,不仅促进了传统文化的保存和传播,而且促进了社区的形成和传统文化的认同,甚至塑造了当代的日本基层社会——社区的人际关系。本文开篇概括了我国各地建设正从“标准化”走向个性化发展的时代背景,阐述了日本旅游节庆的重要性,不仅在于经济效益重大(约占日本GDP的1％),曼在于保护传统文化,塑造城市特色。进而论述了旅游节庆和传统文化保护、社区建设的相互关系,挖掘出节庆活动开发的一些成功因素。即必须摒弃“政府主导、企业参与”、“旅游搭台、经贸唱戏”等陈腐思路,只有通过政府主导、企业营销、民众参与,进行有独创性的策划,节庆活动才能真正得到市民和市场的认同,城市也才能挖掘出自身的个性,树立自身的城市形象。     

Audience Members’ Motivation,Satisfaction, and Intention to Re-visit an Ethnic Minority Cultural Festival

This study investigates the relationships among audience members' motivation, satisfaction, and re-visit intentions at an ethnic minority cultural festival. As an empirical study, an on-site survey was conducted at the 2009 Fe?ta–Croatian Food and Wine Festival in Adelaide, South Australia. The results of the study identified eight main motivational dimensions for ethnic minority cultural festival attendance: “community support,” “escape,” “knowledge/education,” “food, wine, and entertainment,” “novelty,” “family togetherness,” “marketing,” and “socialization.” The findings of this study also confirm the implication that festival audience members' motivation is an immediate antecedent of overall satisfaction and likelihood of future attendance, and that the level of a festival audience members' overall satisfaction has a direct impact on the likelihood of future attendance. These findings offer important implications for public or private festival and event organizations, state governments, and local communities that have an interest in creating and staging ethnic minority cultural festivals.     

The effects of festival impacts on support intentions based on residents’ ratings of festival performance and satisfaction: a new integrative approach

Festivals can provide an effective vehicle for sustainable tourism. It is therefore necessary to examine the impacts of festival tourism as well as their consequences in order to manage their relevance to the local community. The lack of a multiple mediation approach, however, has hampered research on the psycho-social process through which festival impacts (perceived benefits, costs, and affective impact) influence resident support. We propose a new integrative approach in which resident-rated festival performance and satisfaction are putative mediators that transmit the effects of the three festival impacts to support for future festivals. The theoretical foundations of this integrative approach or model are jointly built on social exchange theory, the affective theory of social exchange, and the theory of reasoned action. The integrative model was successfully validated using eight sample festivals within China, which included 353 observations with 10,000 bootstraps. The empirical findings reveal that 14 out of the 17 hypotheses received empirical support in this study, and it thereby contributes significantly to new understanding in the literature.     

Customer’s Perception of Familiness in Travel Experiences

Festival-goers (“festinos”) put time and effort into deciding to attend a festival, and the way they decide what to see and the length of time they take to decide vary greatly. To attract those who buy tickets for shows—sales of which are crucial for the survival of festivals—and to know when to start promoting the event, festival organizers and marketers need to know how far in advance the visitors make their decision to attend and what influences their decision. This study categorized 438 visitors to the Innibos National Arts Festival, South Africa, using a survey of their decision-making time. Four groups were identified, and labeled “spontaneous,” “limited,” “extended,” and “routine” decision-makers. These market segments can be taken into consideration in the festival's marketing campaign so as to attract visitors to a variety of events and help ensure the long-term sustainability of the festival.     

What Facilitates a Festival Tourist? Investigating Tourists’ Experiences at a Local Community Festival

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of festival attributes and tourism facilitators on tourist satisfaction. The results of this study show that festival attributes has a positive and significant effect on tourists' satisfaction. Data analysis also revealed a positive and a significant effect of intrapersonal facilitators and structural facilitators on tourists' satisfaction. However, interpersonal facilitators do not allow a significant impact on tourists' satisfaction in the festival context. One of the most important findings is that festival commercialization is the strongest predictor of tourists' satisfaction. Structural facilitators are regarded as of primary importance in determining the satisfaction of festival tourists. Future research is needed to investigate other important antecedents of tourists' satisfaction across other festivals or locations, and to identify the complex nature of festival tourists' satisfaction. Finally, a longitudinal approach will better elucidate the relationships between measurement variables and their antecedents.     

Gender diversity in the hospitality industry: An empirical study in Turkey

This paper, an investigation of gender diversity in the Turkish hospitality industry, focuses on two primary objectives: (a) exploring the potential relationships between gender and several demographic factors, and (b) examining the possible existence of a gender effect regarding employees’ perceptions of recruitment and earning potential decisions. Results, based on 682 surveys, show that, in the male-dominated Turkish hospitality industry, there is a significant gender effect for two of four demographic variables and with respect to recruiting efforts and earning potential. These findings could have some important managerial implications for addressing gender diversity in the (Turkish) hospitality industry.     

The moderating effect of place attachment on the relationship between festival quality and behavioral intentions

The main purpose of the study is to examine an impact of festival quality on behavioral intentions and investigate the role of place attachment (PA) as a moderator between festival quality and behavioral intentions. Data were collected from the visitors of the 2013 Seoul Lantern Festival in South Korea. Results show that festival quality has a significant direct impact on behavioral intentions to revisit, spread word of mouth (WOM), and engage in pro-environmental behavior. The study also reveals that PA moderates the effect of festival quality on behavioral intentions, suggesting the differential impact of festival quality based on the level of PA. The study suggests that festival organizers may want to focus on program and esthetics to promote visitors’ return and positive WOM. Festival organizers may also want to customize quality management strategies based on visitors’ level of PA.     

Residents’ support for festivals: integration of emotional solidarity

This study develops a conceptual model by integrating social exchange theory (SET), emotional solidarity theory, and community attachment. Empirically, the study tests the adequacy of the model in predicting residents’ perceptions of and their support for festival development in Macao. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling are used for data analysis. Results indicate that residents’ perceived positive festival impacts are influenced by emotional solidarity and community attachment; and their support for festival development can be influenced by their emotional solidarity, community attachment, and perceived festival impacts, both positive and negative. However, the relationship between emotional solidarity and perceived negative impacts is found to be not significant. While the results extend support for SET, as well as theory of emotional solidarity, the findings also show that community attachment is one important determinant of residents’ perceptions of and their support for festival development. The findings also shed light on practical implications for festival planers and organizers.     

INVESTIGATING DIFFERENCES IN ANTECEDENTS TO VALUE BETWEEN FIRST‐TIME AND REPEAT FESTIVAL‐GOERS

This study aimed to capture the underlying quality dimensions (value antecedents) that distinguish between first‐timers and repeaters and that cultivate festival loyalty. Structural relationships were analyzed across the quality dimensions, value, and loyalty for first‐time and repeat visitors. Structural equation modeling revealed that program and convenient facilities alone were antecedents to value for repeaters, whereas food and souvenir, as well as program and convenient facilities, were value antecedents for first‐timers. Specifically, repeat visitors showed stronger relationships on program value and convenient facility value than did first‐time visitors. On the other hand, first‐time visitors associated more strongly with relationships on food value and souvenir value than did repeat visitors. This distinction resulted in a stronger value‐loyalty relationship for repeat visitors than for first‐time visitors. These findings contribute to the understanding of festival‐attendee behavior and thus, provide researchers and practitioners with insights into how to design a festival in such a way that promotes repeat visitors.     

Event Management Associations and the Provision of Services

ABSTRACT

Event management associations provide newcomers and existing practitioners with the necessary skills to ensure the continued growth and success of event management professionals. This paper reviews the literature on professional associations and specifically explores the services that event management associations offer to members, then concludes that event management associations have a strong record in offering a variety of professional services to members as part of their operational framework. The services offered by these associations have been ascertained by examining the significant themes that emerge from an analysis of their services. The key services that were identified were in the educational, communication, business, community, advocacy, and buying power categories.