Book Review

World Heritage Sites (WHSs) are motivated by such diverse reasons as heritage celebration, alarm calls, tourism branding and marketing and place making. Irrespective of the primary motivation for their creation, WHSs are often used to develop tourism based on cultural and natural resources of international significance. Heritage conservation may or may not be in agreement with what local populations perceive as desirable development paths. We conducted a survey among the island community of Vega in Norway that received WHS status in 2004 motivated by conservation alarm, tourism marketing and place making. We examined the local population's views of the key aspects of future development and how this related to WHS status. The islanders placed high value on social and community conditions as well as heritage linked to cultural and natural resources. While a majority supported tourism based on sustainable use of heritage they also felt that WH listing should not limit development opportunities. There were differences between younger people and adults. WHS may be an effective agent of sustainable tourism development if the main goals and strategies of the WHS are clearly understood and prioritized in the local community, leave room and perhaps link to other development opportunities.     

Répercussions psychologiques associées au plafonnement de carrière subjectif

The purpose of the present study is to analyse the relations between the subjective career plateau—in other words, plateauing as perceived by the principal—and two psychological phenomena: the sense of competence and the sense of anxiety. The data which were gathered by survey from 244 Quebec managers confirm the two research hypotheses. The more the person considers that he/she has reached a career plateau, the more the feeling of competence is weak and the more the feeling of anxiety increases. The results also illustrate the effect of respondents' salary on the two phenomena. The discussion focuses on the subjectivity of the career plateau and on its psychological repercussions. The conclusion suggests more study of the dynamic and subjective dimensions of plateauing, and more specifically, longitudinal research. Résumé La présente étude analyse la relation entre le plateau subjectif de carrière, c'est-à-dire le plateau tel que perçu par le sujet et deux phénomènes psychologiques: le sentiment de compétence et l'anxiété. Les données recueillies par questionnaires auprès de 244 gestionnaires québécois confirment les deux hypothèses de la recherche. Plus les sujets s'estiment plafonnés dans leur carrière, plus leur sentiment de compétence est faible et plus leur degré d'anxiété est élevé. Les résultats démontrent également le rǒle du salaire sur les deux phénomènes étudiés. La discussion traite de la subjectivité du plateau de carrière et des répercussions psychologiques qu'il peut entraǐner. La conclusion suggère d'étudier plus à fond le caractère dynamique et subjectif du plafonnement, en particulier à l'aide de recherches longitudinales.     

The travel behaviour intentions of young people in the context of climate change

This article examines the factors influencing the future travel behaviour intentions of young people (aged 11–18), with specific attention given to how climate change considerations affect these. Overall it is found that the participants’ travel behaviour intentions are dominated by a desire to drive and that their values relating to identity, self-image, and social recognition (at the expense of their environmental values), as well as their affective attitudes towards transport modes, are key influences on this. Although they are aware of climate change, the participants’ understanding of the link between transport and climate change was weak. At the same time, they illustrated an apathy towards climate change – in part due to the timing and intangibility of its associated impacts and their lack of self-efficacy with respect to tackling this issue. However, despite claiming that their current environmentally friendly travel behaviours (such as walking or cycling to school) are not influenced by the issue of climate change, a number are accepting of the idea of enforced travel behaviour change – away from use of the car, towards more ‘environmentally friendly’ modes. This acceptance was in part due to their belief that such action would remove the influence of the ‘social dilemma’, where their own efforts to tackle climate change may be rendered worthless by the inaction of others.     

Hospitality marketing research: Recent trends and future directions

This article reviews the hospitality marketing research published in four top hospitality journals from 2008 to 2010 for the purposes of identifying significant trends and gaps in the literature. A total of 274 articles are reviewed and classified based on research topic, industry focus, and analysis technique as well as on a number of other methodological criteria. Significant topical and methodological trends are discussed. Important topical trends are synthesized and specific directions for future research are proposed. We conclude with the presentation and discussion of an organizational framework for future hospitality marketing research.     

Impact of website characteristics on relationship quality: a comparison of banks financial cooperatives

This study seeks to investigate differences exhibited by bank customers and members of financial cooperatives respecting website characteristics (website design, convenience, information quality, ease of use and security/confidentiality) and their impact on online relationship quality (composed of trust, commitment and satisfaction). An online survey was conducted with 476 banking sector customers (banks and financial cooperatives), followed by a confirmatory factors analysis and multigroup analysis using EQS 6.2 software. Results evidence a significant difference in terms of website design and security/confidentiality. The impact of these variables on relationship quality proves significantly higher in the case of banks. This study submits that web strategies used by banks and financial cooperatives to develop online relationship quality may vary based on the type of organization.     

The examination of the relationship between experiential value and price fairness in consumers’ dining experience

Consumers enjoy sharing meaningful consumption experiences with others. The purpose of this study is to better understand this behavior by identifying the specific aspects of experiential value that motivate word of mouth behavior. To these ends, this study tests a model that proposes relationships among four types of experiential value (aesthetics, escapism, service excellence, and efficiency), satisfaction, price fairness, and word of mouth. The results indicate that, among the four types of experiential value, service excellence and efficiency are the most important determinants of post-consumption word of mouth. Accordingly, this research contributes a better understanding of experiential value and its effects on motivating favorable post consumption word of mouth promotion. Managerial implications providing a holistic perspective of consumer cognition, emotion, and motivation are provided.     

Can Non-point Phosphorus Emissions from Agriculture be Regulated Efficiently Using Input-Output Taxes?

In many parts of Europe and North America, phosphorus loss from cultivated fields is threatening natural ecosystems. Though there are similarities to other non-point agricultural emissions like nitrogen that have been studied extensively, phosphorus is often characterized by the presence of large stocking capacities for phosphorus in farm soils and long time-lags between applications and emission. This makes it important to understand the dynamics of the phosphorus emission problem when designing regulatory systems. Using a model that reflects these dynamics, we evaluate alternative regulatory systems. Depending on the proportions of different types of farms in the agricultural sector, we find that an input-output tax system can be the core element of a close to efficient regulatory policy.