Scholarly Works, Hospitality and Tourism Management

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Research articles, presentations, and other scholarship

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The review sentiment garden: Blossoming loss aversion and diminishing sensitivity across time and crisis
Sharma, Abhinav; Shin, Seunghun; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Park, Sangwon (Elsevier, 2025-08)
Adopting an approach grounded in prospect theory, this article tests the principles of loss aversion and diminishing marginal sensitivity in hotel review sentiment. While prospect theory has been extensively tested in other areas, its application to review sentiment is novel, thereby extending our understanding of how hotel guests perceive and evaluate their service experiences. Simultaneously, this study examines whether the predictions of prospect theory hold to the same extent in post-Covid-19 reviews as they do in pre-Covid-19 reviews. The analysis is conducted on a sample of 416,756 reviews from 375 hotels in 14 European cities posted between 2000 and 2022. The findings show that a significant level of loss aversion and diminishing sensitivity characterizes reviews from both the pre-pandemic as well as post-pandemic periods. However, the effect of loss aversion becomes even more accentuated after Covid-19, with a gradual return to pre-pandemic levels.
Hotel Agglomeration, Short-term Leases, and Market-entry Strategies: A Game Theory Approach
Bianco, Simone; Zach, Florian J.; Singal, Manisha (Sage, 2025-03)
Hotel agglomeration has been recognized as a driving force behind the success of tourist destinations. However, little research has delved into the effect of short-term leases on the dynamics of agglomeration. Utilizing a game theory approach, this study fills this gap in the literature by investigating the influence of short-term leases on agglomeration in the hospitality sector. Employing random-effect and logit models, our research reveals significant changes in the capacity of hotels to harness the benefits of agglomeration in the presence of short-term leases. With these altered market dynamics, newly established hotels gain a competitive advantage by undercutting short-term leases in terms of price class. However, inertia or misinterpretation leads mid-price and upscale hotels to choose a different strategy. This study advances our understanding of demand-driven agglomeration and offers valuable insights into the optimal market-entry strategies for new hotels.
From booking to rating activities: A holistic analysis of online review behavior in a destination
Nicolau, Juan Luis; Bigné, Enrique; Bulchand-Gidumal, Jacques; William, Edu (Elsevier, 2025-06-01)
The objective of this study is to analyze the online review behavior of users in the context of a range of activities undertaken at a destination while considering the determinant factors at three stages, namely, reservation (booking time and price), consumption (experience), and post-consumption (online behavior). Drawing on expectancy–value theory and cognitive dissonance theory, the main contribution of this paper to the tourism literature lies in its argument that the timing of the characteristics that describe the above activities may have different effects on the final response of users, be it their qualitative decision of posting or their quantitative decision of rating. By taking advantage of a unique database containing information at different stages from booking to rating, results show that the prices, which are observed at the booking time, can affect the posting and rating decisions of users, while the moment of the activity, which is observed at the consumption stage, only affects their posting decision.
Hunted hunter: the role of competitive comparison in product survival
Campayo-Sanchez, Fernando; Mas-Ruiz, Francisco; Nicolau, Juan Luis (Springer, 2025-03-07)
This study proposes that competitive comparisons disseminated by rivals influence the market lifespan of a product. This paper bridges the following two fundamental aspects of strategy: product survival and competition analysis. Utilizing a framework that examines rivalry from two perspectives—organizations and products—we build on the awareness–motivation–capability theoretical approach to explore in detail the impact of competition on the commercial longevity of firms’ products. Our first hypothesis posits that when a rival competitively compares its product with the product of the focal firm, the latter firm is more likely to counterattack by carrying out competitive actions. The second one assumes that the survival of a focal firm’s product increases when another company compares the product of the focal firm with any of the products that are part of its portfolio. We employ a longitudinal database capturing dyadic competitive comparisons between automakers’ vehicles in the Spanish car market from 2008 and 2017. This market context is important because Spain was the eighth largest automobile producer worldwide (and the fifth one in Europe) and ranked twelfth in the worldwide ranking of countries (and the fifth one in Europe) with the most units registered in 2017. Consistent with our hypotheses, our analysis reveals the following: (i) competitive comparisons by a rival with a focal firm’s product led to increased subsequent actions by the focal firm, specifically in terms of pricing and advertising investments; and (ii) a focal company’s product remains in the market longer when it is identified as a comparison target by another organization.
Generative AI vs. humans in online hotel review management: A Task-Technology Fit perspective
Zhang, Huihui; Xiang, Zheng; Zach, Florian J. (Elsevier, 2025-10)
Despite Generative AI's ability to produce human-like content, its effectiveness as references for human responses, particularly in online review management, remains unclear. To address this question, this study explores if human responses resembling AI patterns are associated with enhanced customer perceptions. To provide deeper insights, we examined how this relationship shifts under varying technological and task conditions, guided by the Task-Technology Fit theory. In the empirical analysis, we automated responses to 32,129 online reviews using GPT, calculated the similarity between existing managerial responses and AI-generated content, and tested the relationship between human-AI similarity and the perceived helpfulness of review-response pairs. The findings reveal benefits of resembling AI with high model temperatures, particularly for positive reviews, while identifying negative outcomes under lower temperatures. This study enriches our understanding of an emerging technology that could have a huge impact on the industry and provides insights for practitioners to refine AI adoption strategies.
Transformative Outcomes of Workcation: Satisfaction, Place Attachment, and Behavioral Intentions
Shin, Hakseung; Sharma, Abhinav; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Lee, Jinhee (Sage, 2025-02-19)
Integrating work with vacation—a workcation—may yield favorable psychological and behavioral outcomes for individuals. This research examines the key psychological dimensions of workcation experiences, namely, workcation satisfaction, place attachment, and transformation, by exploring their impact on re-workcation and revisit intentions. Two analyses offer complementary findings. Study 1 qualitatively identified the key psychological and behavioral outcomes of workcations including place attachment, transformation, re-workcation intentions, and revisit intentions. Building on these insights, Study 2 quantitatively analyzed the relationships among these outcome variables and found that individuals with strong emotional ties to a workcation destination are more likely to experience transformative outcomes. This transformation, in turn, fosters sustained interest in both future workcations and revisiting the destination for leisure purposes. These findings underscore the complex interplay between psychological factors and behavioral outcomes, revealing how emotional connections to a place can drive continued engagement with workcation experiences.
Online Allies? Exploring Black Travelers' Perceptions of DMO Social Advocacy Statements
Tucker, Charis N.; McGehee, Nancy G.; Lamoureux, Kristin M. (Sage, 2024-11-25)
Many U.S. destination marketing organizations (DMOs) have utilized social media to express support for the Black community amidst the Black Lives Matter racial justice movement. Current research lacks insight into ways in which Black travelers judge these efforts known as advocacy statements. This study uses a 2 × 2 experimental design to examine how Black travelers evaluate various forms of statements. Additionally, this work explores the mediating role of relational legitimacy between advocacy statements and behavioral intentions and finds it to be significant. Black travelers in this study find statements containing both an image and text to be the most appropriate form of digital social advocacy. Organizations can leverage these findings to create effective advocacy campaigns that go beyond performative acts and reflect substantive policies and strategies.
Supplier Slip-Ups: How Malpractices Can Bite into Restaurant Market Value
Raad, James; Ruiz-Moreno, Felipe; Nicolau, Juan Luis (SAGE Publications, 2024-12-18)
Ethical, environmental, and human rights standards are critical issues in the tourism and hospitality industry. In this context, restaurants must choose third-party members—such as suppliers—that align with their quality and sustainability standards, especially because these third-party members may encounter challenges related to food safety, ethical misconduct, environmental matters, and human rights violations. This study analyzes whether the market holds restaurants accountable for the shortcomings of their suppliers, even when the restaurant has not directly participated in or caused these problems. Based on signaling theory and the associative network memory paradigm, this study finds that supplier issues negatively affect the market value of restaurants, with indirect linkage exerting a greater impact than direct linkage, which informs these theories by underscoring the importance of memory and associations dynamics.
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.

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