Tourism competitiveness index of the Asia-Pacific region through consistency analysis

The world’s economy shifts to a more competitive environment as globalization expands and countries have to adjust by making decisions to improve their competitiveness in all sectors. The Travel and Tourism Report, a useful tool facilitating policy-making and business decisions, allows entities to envision their ranking in the face of the travel and tourism through the creation of a competitiveness index. Focusing on Asia and the Pacific, this paper intends to investigate internal consistency of the constructs based on data analysis techniques such as correlation and reliability, essentials to broader acceptance of the index. The results indicate that high linear association between index and pillars leads ultimately to good level of consistency and highlight the lack of relationship between overall consistency and inter-class consistency. It is suggested to pay close attention to unidimensionality of constructs and inter-relation between variables while building an indicator system as it increases its reliability.     

I Would Have Felt Better If Only … Or,How to Enhance Customer Satisfaction Following Service Problems

Abstract

This paper presents a discussion of the use of Fairness Theory in better understanding consumer responses to service failures. By adopting an exploratory approach through the use of focus groups, preliminary evidence emerged to illustrate the ways in which customers view service failures. In particular, the results showed that consumers could often think of a range of ways that the service failure might have been managed. Importantly, consumers' emotional responses (such as the degree of anger felt) varied depending upon how easy it would have been to resolve the service failure in a way other than what was experienced.     

Perspectives on Leisure of LDS Women Who Are Stay-at-Home Mothers

The purpose of this study was to explore the meanings of leisure for women who belonged to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, lived in Utah, and were stay-at-home mothers. Particular attention was given to the religious, cultural, and role-determined forces that shaped their lives and leisure. A phenomenological approach was used. Thirteen women were identified through a criteria-based snowball sampling technique. Emerging theory indicated that cultural beliefs and values can contribute to feelings of entitlement to leisure because of the support for leisure and life roles given by one's faith, family, and community.     

Exploring Residents' Perceptions of the Social Impacts of Tourism on the Sunshine Coast,Australia

ABSTRACT

This study identified residents' perceptions of major social impacts from tourism and their social concerns. A survey of households on the Sunshine Coast region covering the hinterland residential, hinterland high tourist activity, coastal residential and coastal high tourist activity areas of the three shires (Caloundra City Council, Maroochy Shire and Noosa Shire) was carried out to assess residents' perceptions of social impacts. Altogether 732 responses were received. Based on the perceptions of the respondents, the survey results suggest that if rates of resident perceptions are aligned with actual impact, tourism has the highest impact on traffic congestion. Residents perceived that the opportunity to meet people from other regions of the world provides a valuable experience for respondents to better understand their culture and society. The study also found a number of significant correlations between residents' concerns and tourism impact variables. It revealed that the principal area of concern was the lack of capacity of roads and transportation followed by perceived negative impacts on the surrounding environment and crime related incidents.     

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF MULTI‐CULTURAL VIEWS ON THE DISNEY‐MCDONALD'S ALLIANCE

This article examines the effects of co‐branding on the brand equity of partner brands and the resultant co‐brand (brand alliance), taking the Disney‐McDonald's alliance as a real life example. The issue is examined from the perspectives of different geographies and cultures by surveying Western, Asia‐Pacific, and Chinese consumers. Findings indicate that co‐branding is not always a win‐win strategy for all partners regardless of how powerful each brand is separately. Results also show that respondents' attitudes toward individual brands also affect their attitudes toward the co‐brand; however, these attitudes vary from one market to another.     

Recommend or not? The influence of emotions on passengers’ intention of airline recommendation during COVID-19

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the airline industry has undoubtedly suffered serious losses. Investigation of passenger's intention to recommend an airline is urgently needed for airline companies to formulate specific retention strategies and revitalize the industry. Therefore, this study mainly sought to identify the latent factors that determine airline passenger's recommendation intention during the COVID-19 period, and investigate how the emotions expressed in passenger reviews affect their intention to recommend an airline. From the period between January 2020 and October 2021, 6798 online reviews were collected and analyzed. The results indicate that four out of eight emotional dimensions, including joy, trust, anger, and disgust, significantly influence passengers' intention to recommend. This study not only extended the applications of the expectancy-disconfirmation theory and Plutchik's emotional theory but also provided instructive suggestions for airline businesses that need to formulate marketing strategies, especially during the COVID-19 period.     

Delivering Quality Service

ABSTRACT

Quality in tourism-related services, like in services in general, are basically about balancing customer perceptions and expectations. Successful service providers are able to meet and, whenever possible, exceed consumers' needs and wants. This way, it is possible to provide memorable experiences to visitors. In delivering services, due to certain specific characteristics of services (e.g., intangibility, simultaneity, variability and perishability), the human element, in particular the ‘face-to-face’ interaction with the customer, plays a fundamental role. The study stresses the contribution of interpersonal variables for the success of service organisations. It discusses how commitment to customer service, and supportive supervisors and co-workers, influence the relationship managers' ability to satisfy customers. The main findings were as follows: (i) commitment to customer service and co-workers' support have direct and positive effects on the ability to satisfy customers; (ii) commitment to customer service is the most important determinant of the ability to satisfy customers, and works as a mediator for the other independent variables; (iii) co-workers' support, having both direct and mediated effects, is a more important predictor than supervisors' support. The available data indicates that there is a need for specific training for supervisors, in order to increase their awareness of the impact of their performance on the service delivered by contact employees. Moreover, it is important that service organisations are capable of providing employees with a holistic view of the service delivery chain. This includes not only relationship managers, but also those who are not in direct contact with external customers. Apart from these training aspects, the results of this study should also be considered in relation to other management issues, namely in human resources management. Organisations should prevent the risk of losing those employees that show more commitment to customer service and more ability to satisfy customers. Employee retention exerts a positive impact on repurchase, which, in turn, influences profitability. In light of these findings, some managerial implications are suggested.     

Doing More with Less: Women's Leisure During Their Partners’ Military Deployment

Women whose partners have been deployed on military missions during wartime typically experience increased stress as they adjust to maintaining work, family, and household roles. The purpose of this study was to explore leisure in the lives of women during their partners’ deployment. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 10 employed mothers whose partners had been deployed for at least a six-month period. Findings indicated that the loss of daily support from partners and concern for partners’ safety contributed to women shifting their focus from individual to family leisure as a means of coping and caring for their children.     

Beggars–tourists' interactions: An unobtrusive typological approach

While the perennial phenomenon of begging exists in many historical cities, where tourists tend to concentrate, the topic has not been examined in depth in the context of tourism. By using Goffman's (1955, 1963, 1971) dynamics of public space interaction and taking as a case the historical center of the city of Heraklion (Crete), this study draws on unobtrusive research methods (written records, non-participant observations and photographing), to shed further light on beggars–tourists' encounters by exploring not only the strategies beggars adopt to ensure almsgiving from tourists, but also to provide a typology of beggars and tourists based on their interactions.     

An Analysis of Hotel Employees' Motivation Using Kovach's Ten Factor Model

Abstract

Human resource professionals in the hospitality industry are faced with many challenges when it comes to attracting and retaining employees. Understanding what motivates employees may help to meet some of those challenges. This research employed Kovach's Ten Factor Model to analyze the motivators of a diverse work force in a large hotel in a major southeastern U.S. city.     

Assessing Destination Image Through Combining Tourist Cognitive Perceptions with Destination Resources

The primary objective of the study is to assess tourist destination image through (1) measuring Xiamen tourists' cognitive image of Kinmen Island, and (2) analyzing main and subordinate resources of Kinmen. The major findings show that Kinmen Island is “a pleasant place for tour” and “a mystic place” for the mainland Chinese tourists. It also implies that tourists' curiosity, not the substantial resources about the destination, could be one of the reasons for their choices. The results of this study suggest tourism industry on the Island cannot merely depend on tourists' curiosity or the mysteriousness of the destination. It is essential to provide a product with integrity for the planning of the tourism industry of Kinmen.