Hospitality Administration and Management Commons^™

The Return On Investment For Undergraduate Degrees In Hospitality And Tourism Management, Asli D. Tasci, Abraham Pizam, Robertico Croes, Po-Ju Chen

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Increasing concerns regarding the value of higher education in the USA have motivated several organizations to calculate the return on investment (ROI) for college education by employing diverse methodologies. This study evaluates these methodologies by using data from a survey of alumni of Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida. The results reveal that the highly publicized low ROI for college education might be inaccurate, confusing and misleading for several reasons, among which is the assumption of zero income while studying, causing debt to be the total of a student’s expenses. Data reveal that Rosen College …

Creation Of A Professionalism Scale For Hospitality Students: An Exploratory Study, Tammie Kaufman, Peter Ricci

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The hospitality industry is dependent on a professional staff to exceed guests’ expectations. Existing research has focused primarily on the various attributes necessary for success in the hospitality industry. The primary focus of this research was professionalism and hospitality students’ self-perception of their professional attributes. Data collected from a focus group of hospitality human resource managers were used to develop a professionalism scale. The scale produced five factors that explained 53.6% of the variance in the responses. Students were more likely to agree in their preparedness for the interview process, but less in agreement of their preparedness for workplace issues. …

Intercultural Interactions Outside The Classroom: Narratives On A U.S. Campus, Xinran Lehto, Liping A. Cai, Xiaoxiao Fu, Yi Chen

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This study provides a picture of the interactional experiences between domestic and international undergraduate students outside the classroom on a US campus. Based on 9 focus group sessions, 8 distinctive themes emerged as a result. The study revealed some similarities but many differences between domestic and international students, illuminating the lack of and barriers to intercultural learning. The findings highlight the challenges and opportunities currently faced on US campuses, thereby making a timely contribution to efforts at developing students’ readiness to be successful in a global and multicultural environment.

Occupational Self-Perceptions Of Hotel Employees: An Exploratory Study, Arie Reichel, Galia Fuchs, Abraham Pizam, Yaniv Poria

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This study aimed to reveal the occupational self-perceptions of rank-and-file employees in the Israeli hotel industry. Due to the exploratory nature of the study a qualitative research approach was adopted. The findings are based on 40 semistructured interviews with current and former Israeli hotel employees. The results revealed that almost all participants had disconcerting negative perceptions of rank-and-file occupations in the Israeli hotel industry. The themes emerged as relevant to the understanding of employees' occupational self-perception were classified into four groups: working conditions, occupational profile, job characteristics and requirements, and moderating factors linked with the reputation of the hotel and …

Stars, Diamonds, And Other Shiny Things: The Use Of Expert And Consumer Feedback In The Hotel Industry, Edwin Torres, Howard Adler, Carl Behnke

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Over the past few years, researchers have studied the topic of online consumer feedback. Most of these studies focus on consumer decision making, and managing a hotel's image.Consequently, more research could explore consumer-generated feedback from the viewpoint of hotel operations and service quality improvement. The present research explored the ways in which hotel General Managers use feedback from consumers (namely online), experts, and internal sources to improve service quality. A combination of a quantitative survey and qualitative interviews were utilized. The study targeted General Managers of upscale hotels.Quantitative data was analyzed using multiple and simple regression analysis, correlations, and ANOVA. …

Interpersonal Trust, Organizational Culture And Turnover Intention In Hotels: A Cross Level Perspective, Ahmet Ozturk, Murat Hancer, Yao-Chin Wang

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The aim of the present study was to understand the influence of interpersonal trust and organizational culture on employees’ turnover intention. The data of the study were collected from 252 hotel employees in Turkey. Study results showed that both affective trust and cognitive trust were negatively related to hotel employees’ turnover intention. Furthermore, clan organizational culture, adhocracy organizational culture, and market organizational culture were also negatively related to turnover intention of hotel employees. However, the results indicate that hierarchy organizational culture does not have a significant impact on hotel employees’ turnover intention. The findings provide valuable theoretical and practical implications …

Attributes Influencing Meeting Planners' Destination Selection: A Case Of Orlando, Florida, Adi Hayat, Kimberly Severt, Deborah Breiter, Khaldoon Nusair, Fevzi Okumus

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The current study used Orlando, Florida as a case study, and investigated whether there are differences between the three meeting planner types (association, corporate, third party) in regard to destination selection attributes. The study further identified attributes that affect future bookings to Orlando. Data were collected from a nationwide survey of meeting planners with a usable sample of 2,388 completed phone surveys and 118 completed online questionnaires. One significant difference was found between the three meeting planner types. This research was performed in the midst of the recent recession and explored the impact the recession has had on planning meetings. …

Are There Gender Differences In What Drives Customer Delight?, Edwin Torres, Xiaoxiao Fu, Xinran Lehto

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Purpose– This paper aims to understand how male and female hotel guests become delighted customers. It aims to present the similarities and differences along with respective implications for theory and application.

Design/methodology/approach– During a period of three months, tourists were interviewed at an upscale Florida hotel. A total of 208 semi-structured interviews were conducted. The script for the interviews was based on an interview protocol used by Crotts et al. Adapted from a previous customer delight study (Torres and Kline), a codebook was developed to determine the salient themes that emerged during the interview process. Interviews were coded independently by …

Annual Impact Of Paid Internship Programs At A Hospitality Management Program – A Case Of The Largest Hospitality Management Program In North America., Robertico R. Croes, Tadayuki Hara

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Hospitality management programs across the nation increasingly favor internship programs in their academic curriculum. Internships play an important role in the reputation of academic program by widening the network with the industry and recruiting prospective students. However, little consideration has been given to the economic impact prompted by internship programs. This study focuses on the economic impact of paid internship over a regional economy. Paid-internship programs prompt economic transactions incurred as a consequence of payment of wages to the internship students in exchange for their labor inputs in the industries’ delivery of goods or services. In 2012, a total of …

The Role Of Tourism In Poverty Reduction: An Empirical Assessment, Robertico Croes

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This paper assesses how tourism affects absolute poverty beyond its effects on growth in two developing countries. In particular, the author explores whether tourism spending leads to a decline in the proportion of people below the poverty line. An error correction model is applied to estimate the relationship between poverty and tourism spending. The results reveal that tourism does matter for the poor, but that it does not appear to have systematic effects, and that tourism development matters most for the poor at the lower levels of economic development. The findings from the two developing country case studies show differing …

The Role Of Freedom In Assessing The Relationship Between Tourism Competitiveness And Quality Of Life: The Case Of Central America, Marketa Kubickova

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation study is to investigate the relationship among tourism competitiveness, quality of life, and freedom. The main premise is that the degree of freedom shapes the relationship between tourism development and quality of life. The study hypothesized that the greater the degree of freedom is, the greater impact tourism development will have on quality of life of residents of a destination. The theoretical framework of this study is based on combining Sen's capability approach with the tourism competitiveness theory. Tourism competitiveness aims at enhancing the quality of life, while Sen's capability approach provides the ingredients for …

Website Interactivity As A Branding Tool For Hotel Websites, Albert Barred Davila

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation explored the relationships among Website interactivity, brand knowledge, consumer-based brand equity and behavioral intentions in the context of hotel Websites. Based on an in-depth literature review, a theory-driven model was proposed and ten hypotheses were developed. The dissertation employed an empirical study based on a survey design, and collected data via a marketing company. Respondents who booked a hotel room online using hotel branded Websites in the last 12 months were approached to complete the online questionnaire. Four hundred ninety six (496) respondents completed the online questionnaire by answering to questions related to their last hotel booking experience. …

Managerial Process Of Discount Decision-Making In The Lodging Industry: The Role Of Human Agency, Seung Hyun Lee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Management faces a paradox in managing discrepancies between actual demand and expected demand in daily operations, thereby requiring constant adjustments in pricing under the supervision of management in the short term. The purpose of this study is to determine how discount choices are created and to understand information processing related to the pricing and discounting decision-making process as well as narrating the events, stages, and cycles of choices made by hotel managers. This study also determines the role of human judgment based on contextual factors in the decision-making process. This mixed methods research design consists of three steps: observation, classification, …

Customer Evaluation Of Managers' Responses To Online Complaints, Eric Olson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Managers have begun to respond to customers' online reviews of services on online review websites. However, it is not known how viewers evaluate company-initiated service recovery in the form of manager responses to online reviews. This research has three objectives: (1) to explore how managers are currently responding to electronic word of mouth; (2) to investigate whether a manager's response to electronic negative word of mouth (eNWOM) positively influences viewers' behavioral intentions; (3) to examine which elements in a manager's responses increases viewers' evaluations of trust and behavioral intentions towards the company. Three studies were conducted, one for each objective. …

Antecedents And Consequences Of Customer Experience In Beverage Establishments, Milos Bujisic

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It is estimated that there are approximately 42,000 beverage establishments in the U.S. whose annual revenue surpasses $20 billion (First Research, 2014). To facilitate discussion of beverage establishments, it is essential to recognize beverage establishments as businesses whose majority of sales come from alcoholic drinks (Moss, 2010a). In this research, beverage establishments are divided into beverage-only bars, bar/entertainment combinations, and food and beverage combinations. Even though they are a well-established industry, beverage establishments have received little academic attention (Moss, 2010b). For example, previous studies have given little attention to the development of the model that examines the relationships between quality …

Online Hotel Booking Experience: Flow Theory, Measuring Online Customer Experience And Managerial Implications, Anil Bilgihan, Fevzi Okumus, Khaldoon Nusair

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The past decade has perceived a significant development of various Internet technologies including HTML5, Ajax, landing pages, CSS3, social media and SEO to name a few. New web technologies provide opportunities for e-commerce companies to enhance the shopping experiences of their customers. This article focuses the phenomenon of online experiences from a services marketing aspect by concentrating online hotel booking. Successful lodging management strategies have been associated with the creation of experience, which in turn leads to fruitful performance outcomes such as superior financial performance, enhanced brand image, customer loyalty, positive word of mouth and customer satisfaction. E-commerce researchers and …

Research Note: Biometric Technology Applications And Trends In Hotels, Anil Bilgihan, Ersem Karadag, Cihan Cobanoglu, Fevzi Okumus

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The purpose of this study is to investigate the biometrics technologies adopted by hotels and the perception of hotel managers toward biometric technology applications. A descriptive, cross sectional survey was developed based on extensive review of literature and expert opinions. The population for this survey was property level executive managers in the U.S. hotels. Members of American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) were selected as the target population for this study. The most frequent use of biometric technology is by hotel employees in the form of fingerprint scanning. Cost still seems to be one of the major barriers to adoption …

Examining Key Drivers Of Customer Delight In A Hotel Experience: A Cross-Cultural Perspective, Edwin Torres, Xiaoxiao Fu, Xinran Lehto

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Welcoming all guests is the calling shared by those who work in the hotel industry. Everyday hoteliers strive to provide a service of excellence to all of those who visit. This can be somewhat of a complex endeavor, as hotels receive guests from different nationalities and cultures. Previous research in the area of customer delight has revealed some of the factors that define and drive the customer delight experience. Despite the emerging literature on the subject, the question remains: are guest from different cultures likely to be delighted by different things? In the present study, the researchers conducted extensive semi-structured …

Evaluation Of Tourism Competitiveness And Its Effects On Destination Management: Making A Difference In Costa Rica?, Robertico Croes

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This study investigates whether the focus on inputs as measurement of tourism competitiveness provides a comprehensive understanding of the competitive position of a destination. Specifically the investigation is applied to Costa Rica in the context of the Central American region aiming at evaluating the impact of tourism competitiveness. The study applied descriptive and inductive statistics for an evaluation impact. This study found that the inputs focus is inconsistent with competitiveness as measured on the performance of a destination aiming at enhancing the quality of life. This inconsistency could confound a rational process of decisionmaking at the destination level. Two relevant …

Tourism Specialization And Economic Output In Small Islands, Robertico R. Croes

Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Purpose– This study aims to investigate growth differentials among small islands and the impact of tourism specialization on the growth and the economic performance of small islands.

Design/methodology/approach– The study is based on trade theory and uses data from a panel of small islands for 1995-2007. It applies panel regression and standard time series methods combined with a qualitative approach.

Findings– Small islands experienced stronger basic patterns of growth than many developed countries, especially where economies of scale are not an issue. The findings further suggest that tourism specialization is not harmful to growth, and, in lieu of technological gaps …

One Experience And Multiple Reviews: The Case Of Upscale U.S. Hotels, Edwin Torres, Howard Adler, Xinran Lehto, Carl Behnke, Li Miao

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Purpose– The present study aimed to understand the relationships between the various kinds of feedback received by hospitality operators. Information from guests, experts, and internal sources are often received, valued, and processed in various ways. The researchers sought to further explore the usage of such feedback and implications for theory and practice.

Design/methodology/approach– A survey was sent to hotel general managers of four‐ and five‐diamond properties around the USA using the listing of the American Automobile Association (AAA). A total of 140 responses were received. The researchers utilized correlations and canonical correlation analysis to help understand the relationships among the …

Exploring Pull Factor Influences At Campgrounds By Rv Association Members, Jill Fjelstul

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Recreational vehicles (RVs) are owned and/or rented by travelers of diverse ages, traveling parties, and agendas. RVs, in most cases, will be parked at a campground during use, lending to the question of what factors influence campground selection. The current study explored pull factors specific to RV campground attributes by members of a RV association, identified the general demographics of the respective RV association, and investigated campground travel decisions by members of the RV association. Findings from the current study can assist campground owners/operators in developing effective marketing strategies for attracting RV travelers with customized products, onsite amenities, and/or services. …

The Relevance Of Cultural Tourism As The Next Frontier For Small Island Destinations, Robertico R. Croes, Kelly J. Semrad

Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The purpose of this study is to apply the cultural tourism typology of McKercher and to estimate the economic relevance of cultural tourism to the context of a small island destination tourist market. Small island destinations may be confronted with environmental constraints that restrain the traditional small island tourism development model, which is based on sun, sand, and sea. The cultural tourism typology is used in order to determine whether the typology may be used to segment tourists thereby allowing researchers to determine the economic impact of different cultural tourist segments. This study draws attention to some of the foundational …

Dick's Last Resort Restaurants: A Unconventional Theme "Bad Service" Becomes Unique Experience For Guests, Sunghyeon Kim

HIM 1990-2015

The hospitality industry has focused on increasing customer satisfaction by offering services that are generally described as flawless, courteous, and friendly. Dick's Last Resort restaurants, however, are distinguished by intentionally staged erroneous, obnoxious, and rude services that nevertheless provide a unique experience for customers. This unconventional service theme might work for some customers but not for others. This study focuses on exploring the factors that lead to customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction at Dick's Last Resort restaurants. In addition, customer satisfaction levels are examined according to gender and location. Using the modified critical incident technique, 518 online reviews were analyzed through …

College Students' Attitudes Towards Green Hotel Practices, Elvis Perez

HIM 1990-2015

This research was conducted to discover college students' attitude towards green hotel practices and will be helpful to the hospitality industry to help focus their marketing efforts Based on the survey correlations between variables it appears that the people who use green practices at home are more aware of green practices when staying at a hotels. Implementing green practices into hotels will help the environment and also create a positive brand image and loyalty from guests. The movement of "Green" benefits everyone: the employer, the employees, and the guests.

A Quantitative Study Exploring The Difference Between Gaming Genre Preferences, Anil Bilgihan, Cihan Cobanoglu, Khaldoon Nusair, Fevzi Okumus, Milos Bujisic

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Although gaming technologies have been in use for more than thirty years, there is a lack of academic researchin this area. Specifically, the purpose of this study is to identify the difference between age and gender ingaming genre preferences. A cross sectional online survey was administered with a sample size of 408. It wasfound that there is a statistical difference between age groups and their gaming preferences with the older generation focusing more on strategic gaming offerings while the younger generation tended to side more withaction games. The findings of this study provide insights for game developers.

Meeting The Challenge Of Assurance Of Learning: Perspectives From Four Business Schools, Jane Whitney Gibson, Regina A. Greenwood, Bahaudin G. Mujtaba, Shelley R. Robbins, Julie A. Teahen, Dana V. Tesone

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

"Practice what you preach" is often a phrase used to emphasize the importance of maintaining one’s integrity through performing as one advises others. In the case of succession management, this phrase can be used to emphasize the differences between educators and practitioners. Furthermore, it is the practice of educators to instill in students the understanding that a succession plan is necessary in business practices. However, within the confines of higher education, succession management plans are rare. This brings into question if institutions are aware of the immoral implications that it establishes by teaching a concept itself is unwilling to implement.

The Force Field Of Tourism, Jorge Ridderstaat, Robertico R. Croes, Peter Nijkamp

Rosen Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The literature on tourism development has focused on a one dimensional relationship between tourism development and quality of life. The impact of shock events on the relationship tourism development and quality of life seems ignored. Rather less attention has been paid to the multi-dimensional aspects of the relationship between tourism development and quality of life, and the potential impact of shock events on shaping this relationship. This study proposes a conceptual framework describing a triad of relations between tourism development (TD), quality of life (QoL) and shock events, and advocates that a bilateral relation exists between these three constructs. The …

Consumer Engagement In Travel-Related Social Media, Xu Li

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The term of "consumer engagement" is extensively used in the digital era. It is believed that engaged consumers play an important role in products/services referral and recommendation, new product/service development and experience/value co-creation. Although the notion of consumer engagement sounds compelling, it is not fully developed in theory. Different interpretations coexist, resulting in confusion and misuse of the concept. This study attempts to define consumer engagement and develop a conceptual framework of consumer engagement, addressing antecedents of consumer engagement in online context. Moreover, some situational and social media usage-related factors are incorporated into the framework. A set of propositions are …

A Sustainability "Green" Certification Audit Of Food Service Operations And The Development Of A Restaurant Sustainability Instrument, Hans Hagglund

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates current green restaurant certifications as well as developing a new more user certification. First, a fact finding investigation to find the most established and commonly utilized green restaurant certifications were compared. Second, a new green certification was developed. Third, chosen green restaurant certifications were compared. Lastly, the new green certification analyzed whether restaurants in the central Florida area utilized green practices. Data were collected in face to face sessions with restaurant managers during nonpeak hours of operation. There were numerous surveys utilized in this research study. The statistical methodology utilized in this study was average means and …