Users’ perceptions of two types of hotel reservation Web sites

Building on the technology acceptance model (TAM), this study examined users’ perceptions of reservation Web sites: hotel-owned and third-party. As an experimental study, this study tested whether a modified variant of the TAM could be used to evaluate users’ perceptions of two different channels for hotel online reservations. Perceived usefulness was a key predictor of users’ attitudes toward using hotel-owned Web sites, while perceived ease of use was a key predictor of users’ attitudes toward using third-party Web sites. Both perceived playfulness and attitudes were two key predictors of users’ intentions to use hotel reservation Web sites. However, no significant differences in users’ perceptions were found between the two types of Web sites. Overall, users had more favorable attitudes and higher intentions to revisit third-party Web sites than hotel-owned Web sites.     

The Impact of a Mega Event on Visitors’ Attitude Toward Hosting Destination: Using Trust Transfer Theory

Despite the popularity of festivals and events, event managers and the hosting countries are not certain whether a successful event leads to favorable attitudes toward the hosting country. This study based on trust transfer theory considers the impact of attitude toward a mega event on attitude toward the hosting country. The study also examines two dimensions of perceived value related to the Shanghai Expo and their influences on attitude toward the event. The study finds that both emotional and functional dimensions of value offered by the Expo are important for evaluation of the event, although functional value is considered more important than emotional value. Supporting trust transfer theory, the study shows that attitude toward a mega event influences attitude toward the hosting country. The study also finds that both attitude toward a mega event and attitude toward the hosting country have a positive impact on visitors’ intentions to revisit China.     

Factors affecting the knowledge sharing attitude of hotel service personnel

The accumulation and sharing of knowledge is an important managerial approach to attracting customers and increasing customer satisfaction. However, knowledge sharing is not an automatic behavior. The primary purpose of this study is to understand the organizational and personal factors motivating employees to share knowledge. Personnel in international tourist hotels in Taipei who provide front-line services for travelers were surveyed. This study shows that internal marketing and organizational culture influence knowledge-sharing attitudes and perceived behavioral control. In addition, perceived behavioral control influences the relations among internal marketing, organizational culture, and knowledge-sharing attitudes. This research suggests that to develop knowledge-sharing attitudes among personnel that benefit customer service, it is important for managers to model supportive attitudes, give actual support in forms such as bonuses and resources, and develop a culture that encourages personnel to attempt innovation.     

A deeper look at national culture and leadership in the hospitality industry

Increased internationalization and demographic shifts have made multicultural management a prime concern for hospitality leaders. Past research suggests that cultural similarity between managers and subordinates impacts employees’ appraisal of their leaders and work-related attitudes. Extending this line of research, the purpose of this paper is to examine more closely how employees evaluate leaders with varying national cultures and identify any subsequent employee responses. First, the results of an open-ended questionnaire on cultural influences, perceived leadership and work-related outcomes administered to 112 hospitality managers and staff members in a highly multicultural environment are discussed. Next, perspectives drawn from in-depth interviews with 12 hospitality stakeholders help to synthesize the findings. The results suggest that this is a highly complex issue, which can have a significant impact on employee reactions their leaders and the service received by guests. Implications for hospitality leaders are discussed.     

The impact of product placement on TV-induced tourism: Korean TV dramas and Taiwanese viewers

This study examines of the ways in which Korean TV dramas affect Taiwanese consumers’ attitudes toward the locations where the dramas are filmed (onscreen locations). Previous studies have incorporated balance theory into product–character association models and have demonstrated that consumers tend to align their attitudes toward products with the valence of a character’s attitudes toward the products. Unlike previous studies, this article attempts to investigate the product–character association model in a cross-cultural setting where the ‘products’ considered are the onscreen locations. To account for the effect of similarity between Taiwanese culture and Korean culture, the concept of perceived cultural proximity is introduced into the balance-theory-based model. The results show that consumers’ parasocial relationships with a character and consumers’ attitudes toward the character are related to their attitudes toward the location. However, this relationship is significant only for those viewers with high perceived cultural proximity between Taiwan and Korea.     

An Exploratory Study of Convention Specific Social Media Usage by Attendees: Motivations and Effect of Generations on Choice of Convention Information Source and Intention to Use Mobile Application

While social media and mobile devices have grown as important tools of communication and marketing in the meeting industry, limited research has explored convention attendees’ perception of convention specific social networking media and what the motivations are for attendees’ adoption of using convention specific social media. This study aims to identify convention attendees’ motivations of using convention specific social media and demands of convention specific mobile applications. This study also investigated how attendees’ generation affects their selection of convention information sources and attitude toward mobile applications. Based on the identified key motivations of using convention specific social media, convention organizers need to build social media that provide up-to-dated convention information as well as a functionality of building community among attendees. The findings also show that generation affects the choice of convention information source and intention of mobile applications usage. This study identified the most demanded convention mobile applications including, exhibitor directory search, convention floor plan, and convention itinerary planner. This study can be used as a basis for more extensive examinations of the use of social media in conventions and for empirical testing of convention attendees’ attitudes toward convention social media and mobile applications.     

Customers’ cognitive,emotional, and actionable response to the servicescape: A test of the moderating effect of the restaurant type

This article explores the psychological processes by which the servicescape influences perceived service quality, pleasure-feeling, situational factor, and revisit intention. Drawing on Bitner's framework of environmental perception, the following questions are hypothesized: (1) Will the servicescape have a significant effect on customers’ perceived service quality and pleasure-feeling? (2) Do customers’ perceived service quality and pleasure-feeling positively influence revisit intention? (3) Does the situational factor, namely, the theme restaurant type have a moderation role among perceived service quality, pleasure-feeling, and revisit intention? The results emphasize that theme restaurant managers should seek an understanding of customers’ perception process in relation to emotion and cognition.     

Exploring tourists' perceptions of tourism impacts

Unlike how tourism is viewed by residents, little is known about how tourists feel about tourism in the destination. Nevertheless, studies have shown that tourists' emotional bonds with the destination positively affect their perceptions of and reactions to tourism in the destination. Such emotional bonds often vary based on tourists' previous experience in the destination. Thus, this study explored how tourists' emotional solidarity with residents influences their perceptions of tourism and how first-timers and repeat tourists differ in their views. To this end, 404 responses from South Korean sport tourists were analyzed. Though differences were not evident between first-timers and repeat tourists in their emotional solidarity or attitudes toward tourism, a positive relationship was confirmed between emotional solidarity and perceptions of tourism. The findings suggest that attitudes toward tourism is no longer a construct exclusive to residents and destination managers should also consider tourists' views.     

Conference mobile application: Participant acceptance and the correlation with overall event satisfaction utilizing the technology acceptance model (TAM)

Abstract

Although many studies have been conducted focusing on technology trends and acceptance, there is a lack of research investigating the factors that influence conference attendees’ attitudes toward a mobile event app based on the technology acceptance model (TAM) framework. The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants that influence conference attendees’ attitude toward using a conference mobile event app. The results found that perceived usefulness was the greatest predictor of the app users’ attitude toward the mobile event app, attitude is a significant predictor of overall conference satisfaction, and perceived ease of use was the only significant variable found to vary between age groups. The study’s findings have implications for stakeholders in the MICE industry and the open-ended survey responses offer insights into what conference attendees deem as valuable app functionality and how attendees’ age group may affect technology preferences.     

Managers’ psychological diversity climate and fairness: The utility and importance of diversity management in the hospitality industry

ABSTRACT

Despite corporate investments in diversity management programs, there is a dearth in the literature that examines managers' attitudes toward diversity management practices. This is a glaring gap in the literature because the success of diversity management programs is highly depend on managers. A survey was distributed to hotel managers from properties in the southern United States. The results showed that psychological diversity climate predicted the perceived utility and importance of diversity management, and these relationships were mediated by the fairness of diversity management. These results suggest that psychological diversity climate has an impact on attitudes toward diversity management practices.     

Celebrity chef adoption and implementation of social media,particularly pinterest: A diffusion of innovations approach

Pinterest research is beginning to emerge, in part due to the importance of visually stimulating photos within hospitality and tourism. Photos are popular with many chefs for marketing, with some actively using Pinterest and other social media. Some of the world’s top celebrity chefs are a growing phenomenon as influential leaders of their personal brand as well as other goods, services, and causes. This research reports on a pilot study of how celebrity chefs have adopted and implemented social media, especially Pinterest, using the Diffusion of Innovations as a theoretical framework. The study found that of the top 48 chefs, all adopted Facebook, closely followed by 47 adopting Twitter; just 17 adopted Pinterest. The chefs’ social media and Pinterest implementation varied widely. This study sheds insights about social media, particularly Pinterest, extends innovation diffusion research, and serves as a base for future research of both celebrity chefs and social media.     

The Effect of Healthy Food Knowledge on Perceived Healthy Foods’ Value,Degree of Satisfaction,and Behavioral Intention: The Moderating Effect of Gender

ABSTRACT

This study seeks to determine how knowledge about healthy food impacts its perceived value, satisfaction, and behavioral intention among college students to access healthy foods, and to investigate the moderating effect of gender on the formulated relationships. The results show that knowledge about healthy food positively influences perceived value and behavioral intentions, and perceived value is a significant predictor of satisfaction and behavioral intentions toward healthy foods. In addition, knowledge about healthy food does not significantly influence on satisfaction in this study. The results regarding the moderating effects of gender show that gender only moderates the relationship between satisfaction and behavioral intentions toward healthy foods. These results offer useful information for foodservice companies and educational institutions; more specifically, for gaining a better understanding of college students’ behaviors and perceptions toward healthy foods and developing marketing strategies accordingly.     

Exploring the online buying behavior of specialty food shoppers

Food producers are experiencing a fast-growing need to use the Internet to enhance competitive advantage. Past researchers have urged the need to understand market segmentation mechanisms as applied to different consumer behavior models to better understand the online buying behavior of consumers. This study integrates the Theory of Planned Behavior and food-related lifestyle to explore consumer's characteristics of online specialty food buying behavior, and the differences in the online buying process among consumers with different FRL. 569 undergraduate students who purchased specialty food online were surveyed. Findings indicated that consumers have positive attitudes toward purchasing specialty food online; more are inclined to heed the suggestions of others, perceive higher levels of control when using a website, and experienced a higher intention to purchase online. The study then classified consumers into ‘traditionalists’ or ‘adventurous and healthy-conscious’ groups based on their FRL via a two-step cluster analysis. These two groups of consumers had significant differences in terms of (a) attitudes toward online specialty food buying, (b) subjective norms, (c) perceived control, (d) behavioral intention, (e) demographics and (f) online specialty food-buying behavior. This investigation explored whether there is a correlation between consumer FRL and online specialty food-buying behavior. Findings reveal relevant ways for managers to enhance their website marketing strategies.     

Attitudes and perceptions toward affirmative action programs: An application of institutional theory

Due to the continuing controversy surrounding the use of affirmative action programs in organizational hiring and promotion practices, we conducted a study to model individuals’ attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions toward affirmative action (AA) programs considering social influences and an institutional theory framework. To conduct the study we surveyed 413 managers and supervisors from three large hotel companies in the pacific western and southeastern United States. Results indicate that institutional and social forces positively influenced participants’ general perceptions of AA in the workplace. Influences from social interaction exhibited a negative relationship upon attitudes toward the experience and practice of AA, specifically related to AA hires and organizational issues stemming from AA rather than the legislation itself.     

What makes Airbnb likeable? Exploring the nexus between service attractiveness,country image,perceived authenticity and experience from a social exchange theory perspective within an emerging economy context

As a result of the growth of the notions of collaborative consumption and sharing economy in the tourism industry, this paper applies social exchange theory to investigate how the Airbnb platform influences the Airbnb experience and authenticity, which might lead consumers to like Airbnb and influence their behavioural patterns. By recruiting 466 tourists who had stayed in Airbnb accommodation in Istanbul, Turkey via travel-related Telegram, Twitter, travel blogs, and Facebook groups, this study revealed the importance of the platform and its features in enhancing service attractiveness, perceived authenticity and experience. Furthermore, the results revealed that visitors’ experiences have an influence on Airbnb likability, where Airbnb likability influences their intention to re-visit and to recommend. Significant implications for tourism planning, management and researchers are highlighted.     

Are we all environmental tourists now? The role of biases in social comparison across and within tourists,and their implications

From a management and research perspective, it is important to get a better understanding of what influences tourists in their decision to choose environmentally friendly travel options, and how these are related to social cognitive processes. This paper reports findings from two separate studies investigating the role of biases in social comparison, with particular reference to tourists' perception of their personal roles as environmentally friendly tourists, and especially tourists’ views of the environmental attitudes of other tourists. Samples of N = 1607 and N = 2076 tourists, respectively, were obtained for two studies in Western Norway. Results indicate that tourists perceive themselves to hold more pro-environmental attitudes than other tourists (i.e. “typical tourist”, “average tourist”, “tourists”). This suggests that there are differences in the perception of the self and others when it comes to social comparisons concerning issues of environmental sustainability. The findings also suggest that tourists hold overly positive views of themselves generally concerning issues of environmental sustainability and that their environmental attitudes reflect perceived desirable standards. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed from a social psychological perspective, and implications for tourism managers and researchers noted.     

#Strongerthanwinston: Tourism and crisis communication through Facebook following tropical cyclones in Fiji

Because the tourism industry can be affected by various natural disasters, the media landscape with increasing social media, brings to tourism new possibilities and challenges in its preparing for, and handling, such disasters. The literature has paid little attention to social media's part in such phenomena. Therefore, this study explores how social media are used by hotels following Tropical Cyclone Winston in Fiji using mixed methods, based on interviews (n = 12) and hotels' real time Facebook posts (n = 1288). While we find that social media were underused in preparing for the disaster and response that followed, it played a crucial role in raising funds and donations during the recovery phase. We apply the social mediated disaster resilience (SMDR) model to allow this study to fill the knowledge gap in organizational disaster resilience literature. We show how social media are integrated in resilience-building and its potential for increasing hotel resilience.     

Online reviews and purchase intention: A cosmopolitanism perspective

In recent years, marketing managers have realized that online reviews are an essential element in customer decision-making. However, there has been little valid measure of online reviews and no systematic analysis of their effect on consumer purchase intention. Drawing on the uses and gratification (U&G) and consumer culture (CCT) theories, this study develops a valid measure of online reviews and analyzes their effect on purchase intention. With a sample of 1112 hotel customers from three countries (Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam), this study validates the positive effect of online reviews on purchase intention through the perceived effectiveness of social media platforms (PESMP) and online trust while confirming the moderating role of cosmopolitanism.     

Toward an understanding of online information processing in e-tourism: does national culture matter?

Tourism is undoubtedly among the industries that better reflect the effects of globalization, technological advances (i.e. the Internet) being one of the most relevant drivers. Given the current market saturation of this sector, a better understanding of how tourists from different cultures process online information and forge their attitudes and behavioral intentions is called for. Nevertheless, national culture may have a major influence on the effectiveness of online tourist marketing activities. This study contributes to the extant body of knowledge via the analysis of the influence of perceived risk on how tourists process the information while browsing a tourist destination website, form their attitudes and behavioral intentions toward the destination. The effect of national culture on such antecedents is examined via a cross-cultural research to compare Spanish and British cultures. A theoretical model is proposed to integrate the effect of perceived risk and variables regarding technology acceptance on tourist responses.     

Role of trust,emotions and event attachment on residents' attitudes toward tourism

This study examines the effects of residents' trust in government and their emotions toward an event on their perceptions of potential impacts and their support. This study also examines the moderating role of event attachment on the strength of relationships between residents' trust in government and their impacts perceptions, emotional responses, and as well as their support based on social exchange theory and cognitive appraisal theory. Findings clearly indicate that residents' support is a function of both cognitive and affective assessment of perceived impacts. Trust in government influences directly residents' support and indirectly through perceived impacts and experienced emotions toward an event. Findings further suggest that level of event attachment moderates the effects of trust on residents’ perceptions of impacts, their emotions, as well as on their support.