Scholarly Works, Hospitality and Tourism Management

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https://hdl.handle.net/10919/24339

Research articles, presentations, and other scholarship

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Now showing 1 - 20 of 182

Setting the Course: CEO Beliefs as the North Star in the Hotel-OTA Relationship
Campayo-Sanchez, Fernando; Sharma, Abhinav; Mas-Ruiz, Francisco J.; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Elsevier, 2025-02-01)
The upper echelons theory posits that a CEO's cognitive and perceptual processes, as well as their values and experiences, influence their decision-making and, consequently, their strategic choices. In the complex love-hate relationship between hotels and online travel agencies, the topic of rate parity agreements is controversial and heated, wherein a CEO's values, beliefs, and convictions potentially playing a critical role in guiding actions. This study tests this hypothesis by investigating how CEO political ideologies affect changes in hotel market value resulting from the dismissal of the U.S. rate parity lawsuit. The results reveal that the reduction in hotel companies’ market value due to the lawsuit's dismissal is accentuated by CEO liberalism. Conservative CEOs seem to prioritize shareholder interests, aligning with investor expectations for value preservation amid online travel agencies’ consolidation of market power. This study holds theoretical and managerial implications for the upper echelons theory, corporate governance, and market competition studies.
Unveiling customer choice with salience theory: The link between room price and breakfast demand
Anguera-Torrell, Oriol; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Elsevier, 2025-01-01)
Salience theory posits that decision-makers pay more attention to the most outstanding—salient—attributes of available options, ultimately impacting decision-makers’ choices. This study proposes extending this theory to the decision of adding an extra component to a product, with special significance for the hospitality industry. Hotels tend to charge a fixed amount to add breakfast to a reservation. Drawing on the salience theory, we show that this constant surcharge makes the demand for breakfast-included rooms dependent on the room's price. The empirical application conducted on a sample of over 22,000 reservations supports the predictions that the probability of selling breakfast-included rooms rises (1) after a room price increase and (2) less so if consumers do not anticipate the price hike. Beyond the critical theoretical extension, this paper brings relevant managerial implications for dynamic pricing strategies for breakfast, which, in turn, may become a game changer for hotel revenue management strategies.
Developing culinary tourism to support local tourism development and preserving food heritage in Indonesia
Hajarrahmah, Dini; Daniels-Llanos, Melani (Springer Singapore, 2017-10-13)
Meals are always part of the traveling experience. Indonesia’s tourism is blooming and developing the culinary tourism market. As the visitor encounters food every day, can a visitor experience the local culture and place through savoring the local dishes? This paper will study the opportunities in Indonesia in developing the culinary tourism as managed by local people. The discussion in this paper will put a focus on the potency of culinary tourism to support local economies and industries and ways to preserve them.
Approaches to Indonesia Cultural Tourism Policy: Stakeholders’ Perspectives on The Cultural Tourism Governances in Bayan
Syah, Ahmad Mujafar; Hajarrahmah, Dini (Doctoral Program in Tourism, 2019-09-30)
In support to the initiative of Indonesia government on the priority destinations project (ten new Bali) where Mandalika in Lombok Island is being endorsed as one of “New Bali” targeted development destination, the research is aimed to analyze the effective roles of national and regional government on the development of cultural tourism destination in Bayan Village, North Lombok administrative region, as it is one of the alternative tourist attractions in Lombok Island. For the purpose of objectivity, this research has limited the source and scope of the observation only from related stakeholders and Lombok local tourism government thus the research employed an in-depth interview through designated stakeholders clusters. The research examined and summarized the finding from the stakeholders’ perspectives that have either direct or indirect concerns toward Bayan Village’s development from which; a proposed recommendation on a tourism policy framework for the cultural destination was concluded. Based on our finding, the situation where the development initiated both by national and regional tourism government in Lombok did not show a fair distribution to all promising destinations especially Bayan Village in North Lombok as one of the cultural tourism assets in North Lombok.
A Preliminary Study of Regional Creative Vision: Insights From Creative Enterprises’ Founders in Indonesia
Pratama, Andika Pratama; Maryunani, Salfitrie Roos; Badriyah, Mila Jamilah Khatun; Hajarrahmah, Dini (Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, 2024-01-09)
A creative enterprise (i.e. enterprise in the creative industries) can be understood as an enterprise that relies principally on the creativity of individuals engaged in it. Thus, creativity can be said to define the entire pursuit of creative enterprises. This paper highlights the motivational aspect of creativity in the notion of creative vision based on insights from creative enterprises’ founders in three different regions in Indonesia (Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Bali), encompassing three creative sectors (cuisine, craft, and fashion). Based on in-depth interviews (face-to-face, onsite) with the founders, using convenience sampling, three forms of creative vision have been discovered (collective self-actualization, collective altruism, and co-creation), with each form predominantly signifying each region sampled. Through a collaborative effort of sense-making in the research team, the current preliminary study contributes to discourses about the nature of creativity or what it entails; it is derived not from the conscious understanding of what creativity is or means by experts and the likes, but from the actual vision of practitioners of creativity from the field where creativity is the soul. The findings emphasize how creativity can be defined: what does it mean to be creative?.
How Do Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Bali Survive the Pandemic? A Qualitative Study in Buleleng, Tabanan, Gianyar, and Denpasar
Widiastini, Ni Made Ary; Arsa, I Ketut Sida; Syah, Ahmad Mujafar; Hajarrahmah, Dini (Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Pos-Graduacao em Direito - CONPEDI, 2023-03-07)
Purpose: This study aims to explore the survival strategies carried out by local micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) actors to maintain their business, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic which lasted for more than two years. In Bali, the problems that arise with MSMEs are not only the layoff rate and loss of a number of consumers but also the emergence of competitors from new business actors who come from tourism workers affected by layoffs. Theoretical framework: Small and Medium Enterprises (Qosasi et.al: 2019) that are able to capture potential markets in the future are those who utilize Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in their business. Amadasun, D.O.E., Mutezo, A.T. (2022) show that the factors used to measure market-based strategies such as market orientation, the intensity of competition, and technology dynamics affect the competitive growth of SMEs. However, studies on the survival of SMEs in Bali are still important, given their role as the government's safety valve, namely the economic solution in times of crisis. Design/methodology/approach: The research was conducted using a qualitative approach through in-depth interviews with MSME actors at four locations in Bali, namely Buleleng, Tabanan, Gianyar, and Denpasar. From forty-two MSME owners, we found out four major implications of MSMEs’ survival strategies amid the pandemic and in response to major layoffs and skyrocketing competitions which are: revisiting the implications of business agility, understanding the options for market penetration, gaining support from the government, and leveraging product development ideas. Findings: People's lifestyles lead business actors to think creatively, as part of the creative industry. Creativity and innovation are mandatory in the creative industry. People's lifestyles that are increasingly developing along with the capitalist movement which always seduces the public with the various product trends it creates have become opportunities for business actors, including SMEs. The existence of the community's need for clothing, food, and ritual products as major needs, has led SMEs business actors to penetrate products and markets. Produce the products to fulfill domestic needs. Products that were initially consumed by tourists were developed into local products, in order to meet the needs of people who want a product with a western image. In practice, not only are products diversified, but the way of marketing is also shifting from offline to online. Platforms in the form of YouTube Facebook Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp are the choices for business actors, both in urban and rural areas spread across Bali. Research, Practical & Social implications: This research would hope to clearly navigate MSME actors toward the most applicable survival strategies in their respective region and enable an interchange of ideas of other tactical plans through a comparative business differentiation supplemented by this informed research.
Effect of popular culture on tourism firms' market value: A destination brand equity perspective
Kim, Yelim; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Elsevier, 2025-04-01)
Popular culture provides numerous benefits to destinations, enhancing their image, reputation, and sales. While previous research on its impact on tourism has predominantly focused on individuals’ perception and behavior toward a destination, little attention has focused on its potential spillover effect on the tourism and hospitality firms. This spillover can create destination brand-related intangible assets that positively influence firm value. Based on the customer-based brand equity theoretical framework, this study reveals that popular culture significantly affects the firm value of the tourism and hospitality industries, with notable effects observed two days after the event. Individual companies operating under the umbrella brand of a destination gain advantages from the improved brand knowledge associated with that overarching brand. The findings also highlight that the unique characteristics and nuances of popular cultural content, such as its genre, popularity scope, and celebrity effect, play a crucial role in shaping the magnitude of its impact.
Understanding reputational disaster during economic crises: Evaluating aviation sector response differentials
Akyildirim, Erdinc; Corbet, Shaen; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Oxley, Les (Elsevier, 2025-02-01)
This research investigates the impact of reputational events on the financial performance of airlines, with a particular focus on differential behaviour regarding the types of events—environmental, social, and governance (ESG), and the economic cycle, whether recessionary or expansionary. Based on a sample of 6288 events, our findings reveal a distinct pattern of depressed returns and increased variance in the aftermath of high severity and novel reputational events—more pronounced during periods of domestic economic crisis. Interestingly, our results show that reputational damage tied to environmental issues does not carry the same weight as those in social and governance categories. Further, contagion effects are identified within the industry, with significant spillovers observed during periods of stability and crisis. This research holds important implications for corporate reputation management, ESG investing, and regulatory policy, underlining the need for transparent communication and stringent oversight across the aviation industry.
A motivation-based study to explain accommodation choice of senior tourists: Hotel or Airbnb
Nicolau, Juan Luis; Rodríguez-Sánchez, Carla; Ruiz-Moreno, Felipe (Elsevier, 2024-10-01)
Senior tourists, traditionally known for using offline methods and staying in hotels, are increasingly using new technologies and opting for alternative accommodation forms. Based on the push and pull theory of motivation, the generational cohort and lifespan development theories, this study fills a gap in the literature and examines senior tourists’ choice between Airbnb and hotels. A random parameter binomial logit applied to data from six European countries finds that the same motivation can act differently in this decision choice process. Rather than assuming that a motivation has an exclusive effect on each accommodation type, we propose the notion of a “differential fulfillment paradigm” to reflect the idea that two accommodation types can relate to the same motivation with different approaches. While both hotels and Airbnb can fulfill a common motivation, they do so through distinct features or attributes, offering consumers diverse avenues to achieve their desired outcome.
The Effect of Endorsers' Sports Results on Their Sponsors' Performance: The Shark Fin Effect
Nicolau, Juan Luis; Santa Maria, Maria Jesus (FIT Publishing, 2024-08)
While previous studies have focused on the value of the endorsement contracts at the moment they are signed, the performance during the contract has drawn limited attention, and the few studies focusing on this period have produced inconclusive results. To fill this gap, we hypothesize that the tournament type and the athlete’s level of sports elitism can influence this “sport results-business performance” relationship. The inclusion of the tournament type fills a gap in the literature as most studies have examined the potential effects of endorsement strategies without observing the different levels of tournaments within a particular sport. Guided by brand equity theory and equity theory, we argue that while a greater prize won corresponds to higher stock returns, there is a certain point of “sports elitism” on part of the athlete, after which a greater prize leads to lower stock returns. Empirical results from tennis tournaments support these arguments.
Optimizing control variable selection with algorithms: Parsimony and precision in regression analysis
Campayo-Sanchez, Fernando; Nicolau, Juan Luis (SAGE Publications, 2024-09-24)
This research note explores the pivotal role of control variables in any tourism and hospitality research that utilizes regression models in statistical analyses. While theory-driven independent variables offer insight into expected effects, the inclusion of control variables is crucial for mitigating potential confounding factors. In an attempt to strike a balance between model complexity and parsimony, researchers face the challenge of selecting the optimal control variables. To address this issue, the study tests three alternative methods: genetic algorithms, lasso models, and the branch and bound algorithm. Despite their underutilization in tourism research, these methods offer efficient means of selecting control variables, enhancing model precision and interpretation without unnecessarily convoluting the model with irrelevant factors.
If you want to learn about real behaviour, measure real behaviour
Viglia, Giampaolo; Dolnicar, Sara; Acuti, Diletta; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Routledge, 2024-08-19)
We argue that research aiming to understand or change human behavior must measure real behavior, not just behavioral intentions, to draw valid conclusions. The work highlights the well-established gap between people’s intentions and behavior across various tourism and hospitality contexts. Methodologically, we encourage authors not to rely on behavioral intentions and instead measure real behavior. We provide an overview of methods available to capture real behavior either automatically or manually in tourism contexts. The article also introduces a special issue in the Journal of Sustainable Tourism that showcases the measurement of real environmentally significant tourist behavior using diverse methods, such as biometric techniques, big data analytics, field observations, and experiments. We conclude by discussing five issues that prevent studies form drawing causal conclusions about behavior, namely, (i) reliance on behavioral intentions; (ii) a sample that does not reflect the population of interest; (iii) errors in measuring latent psychological constructs; (iv) consumer hypocrisy and social desirability bias; and (v) situational factors and habits. By advocating for a transition towards measuring real behavior, the article and the special issue aim to increase the validity and impact of research seeking to understand human behavior and drive effective behavior change for addressing global challenges.
Navigating market waves: How CEO political ideology shapes the currents of innovation-induced tourism value
Campayo-Sanchez, Fernando; Mas-Ruiz, Francisco J.; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Elsevier, 2024-08)
The upper echelons theory postulates that the cognitive frameworks of top executives shape organizational decisions and behaviors. Based on this theory, this study contributes to the literature by analyzing the effects of the chief executive officer’s (CEO) political ideology and political climate on variations in the market value of tourism firms resulting from their innovation activities. An empirical application was conducted on major U.S. hotel companies that have traded on the stock market for the last 25 years (1998–2022) and made innovationrelated announcements. This application shows that, although the implementation of innovative activities positively affects a firm’s market value, both the CEO’s political ideology and the political climate influence the degree of change in the said market value. This study has fundamental theoretical implications for upper echelons theory by improving the understanding of how cognitive diversity derived from political ideology influences decision-making and its outcomes.
The road to success: Tourism social entrepreneurs' quest for regenerative tourism
Hajarrahmah, Dini; McGehee, Nancy G.; Soulard, Joelle (Elsevier, 2024-09-01)
This study investigates tourism social enterprises' challenges, strategies, and opportunities for regenerative tourism. Social movement theory was used to analyze fifty-seven social entrepreneur interviews. Three stages were identified: Inspiration – factors driving the creation and innovation of these enterprises; Sustaining – obstacles and strategies for long-term success; Exploring and participating in regenerative tourism – obstacles and strategies for engagement. The Systems Thinking and Feedback Loop created by regenerative tourism was illuminated by the study participants. Theoretical implications include the first use of social movement theory, systems thinking, and feedback loop together as a framework named the Regenerative Tourism Social Movement Theory Model. Practical recommendations include strategies for selecting like-minded business partners and ways to educate tourists (both overt and covert) about the benefits of a regenerative mindset.
Racial discrimination in online booking: how profile pictures affect host behaviors and platform actions
Li, Chunhong; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Liu, Xianwei (Informa UK Limited, 2024-08-13)
Research has shown that racial discrimination is detrimental to the ethnic minorities in accommodation and hospitality sectors. However, whether racial discrimination happens during the stage of online booking before check-in remains unclear. Leveraging a natural experiment of the anti-discrimination policy implemented on Airbnb and face recognition techniques to identify the racial information of hosts and guests, this study reveals that racism from hosts against ethnic guests indeed exists during the stage of online booking. The results indicate that the monthly proportion of ethnic guests increases 5% after the launch of anti-discrimination policy. We also find that discrimination exists between ethnic hosts and ethnic guests, which was not documented in previous studies. Moreover, the anti-discrimination policy in relieving racism plays a bigger role among hosts with severe racial discrimination. These findings are critical for online booking platforms to set anti-discrimination policies.
If the wind blows, adjust your sail: Political ideology, social responsibility, and performance
Campayo-Sanchez, Fernando; Sharma, Abhinav; Mas-Ruiz, Francisco J.; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Elsevier, 2024-09-01)
Drawing on the upper echelons theory and the attention theory, this study investigates the influence of a chief executive officer's political beliefs on the market value generated by corporate social responsibility investments. The empirical analysis on U.S. hotel companies over a 25-year period (1998–2022) reveals that greater misalignment between a chief executive officer's ideology and the national political climate leads to a weaker impact of corporate social responsibility-related activities on the market value. This result is significant because it suggests that chief executive officers' actions are not solely determined by their ideological stance—as the upper echelons theory predicts—but rather by the conflict they experience when the external environment contradicts their ideological beliefs, which is a theoretical extension.
The halo effect: A longitudinal approach
Nicolau, Juan Luis; Mellinas, Juan Pedro; Martin-Fuentes, Eva (Pergamon-Elsevier, 2020-07-01)
The halo effect is a cognitive bias whereby people form an opinion about a characteristic of an attribute of a product based on their predisposition (positive or negative) toward another attribute. No formal testing of this effect is available in the hospitality and tourism literature. Thus, this study fills this gap by analyzing a sample of 21,338 hotels. Results indicate that: i) the halo effect is supported (the “other” attributes explain nearly 50% of the focal attribute “location”); ii) asymmetric effects exist because negative variations have a stronger influence than positive variations (the halo effect actually becomes a crown of thorns); and iii) varying effects exist over the range of the dependent variable.
Testing reference dependence, loss aversion and diminishing sensitivity in Spanish tourism
Nicolau, Juan Luis (Fundación SEPI, 2008-05-01)
Based on Tversky and Kahneman's Prospect Theory, we test the existence of reference dependence, loss aversion and diminishing sensitivity in Spanish tourism. To do this, we incorporate the reference-dependent model into a Multinomial Logit Model with Random Parameters -which controls for heterogeneity- and apply it to a sample of vacation choices made by Spaniards. We find that the difference between reference price and actual price is considered to make decisions, confirming that reference dependence exists; that people react more strongly to price increases than to price decreases relative to their reference price, which represents evidence in favor of the loss aversion phenomenon; and that there is diminishing sensitivity for losses only, showing convexity for these negative values.
Millennials' willingness to pay for green restaurants
Nicolau, Juan Luis; Guix, Mireia; Hernandez-Maskivker, Gilda; Molenkamp, Noemi (Elsevier, 2020-09-01)
The hospitality industry is currently witnessing an increase in the number of restaurant companies with sustainable business models. This research explores the determinant factors of millennials’ willingness to pay (WTP) by looking at the qualitative decision of whether to pay more and the quantitative decision of how much extra to pay. While literature has investigated the factors that lead people to choose green restaurants, no analysis that simultaneously considers the qualitative and quantitative decisions has been conducted for the millennial generation. This study fills this gap by estimating the Heckit model, which (1) allows us to simultaneously model both decisions and detect their determinants—“green consumerism,” “health consciousness,” “income,” and two psychographics (“green restaurant preference” and “predisposition to make an effort in terms of time and distance”)—and (2) permits the control of sample selections bias, which turns out to be a critical issue in this research.
How do hotel managers react to rating fluctuation?
Xu, Yukuan; Zhang, Zili; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Liu, Xianwei (Elsevier, 2020-08-01)
Rating fluctuation is inevitable for hotels listed on hotel booking platforms, which induces potential consumers’ perception of uncertainty and risk. Managerial response is expected to be effective in enhancing the interaction between hotels and consumers. However, how hotel managers react to rating fluctuation remains unclear. In order to fill this gap in the literature, we collect customer reviews and managerial responses from a leading hotel booking platform and build a panel dataset (hotel*month). The empirical results suggest that (1) rating fluctuation induces more managerial responses and requires more response time; (2) upscale hotels are more likely to conduct frequent and timely responses when facing rating fluctuation; and (3) hotels tend to respond more frequent and timely once rating fluctuation is observed by a larger audience. This study concludes by presenting theoretical contributions to the literature and practical implications for operators of hotel booking platforms and hotel managers.

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