Resilient leadership in hospitality and tourism enterprises: Conceptualization and scale development

Purpose: This study aims to conceptualize the dimensions of resilient leadership and develop the resilient leadership scale (RLS) through three studies. Design/methodology/approach: In Study 1, based on interviews with 77 leaders and 8 junior employees, a seven-factor resilient leadership model was constructed. In Study 2, exploratory factor analysis (n = 237) was conducted to refine the initial items. In Study 3, confirmatory factor analysis (n = 610) was performed to validate the dimensional structure identified in Study 2, and different types of validity of the RLS were assessed. Findings: The validated RLS composed of seven dimensions: contingency planning, improvisation, adaptive instructing, contingency control, emergency care, adjustment recovery and mutual growth. The scale showed desirable measurement qualities in terms of reliability and validity. Resilient leadership and its dimensions significantly impact employee turnover intentions and employee resilience. Research limitations/implications: This research contributes to the literature on the resilience of hospitality and tourism enterprises and enriches the research scope and theoretical framework of resilient leadership. Originality/value: This research revealed the resilient leadership responses to crisis in hospitality and tourism enterprises with practical implications for tourism enterprise leaders to deal with major crisis

Concept and Evidence of Tourist Risk Gaze

Gaze describes the experiential way that tourists perceive destinations during trips. Destination-related risks are inevitable in tourism; however, little attention has been given to the tourist gaze based on travel risk. Our research addresses this disparity by proposing and exploring the concept of tourist risk gaze. In Study 1, findings suggest that this type of gaze involves three interrelated aspects: risk information gaze, risky attraction gaze, and risky behavior gaze. In Study 2, we invited 50 Chinese university students to participate in an eye-tracking experiment to test tourist risk gaze. Participants displayed distinct visual attention patterns towards these three aspects when tourists encountered them during trips. This research offers a new lens through which to consider the tourist gaze and risk perception. It also introduces a novel eye-tracking method to analyze travel risk and the tourist gaze

Fostering resident pro-environmental behavior: the roles of destination image and Confucian culture

Residents are important participants and stakeholders in destination development. Identifying factors that assist in predicting resident pro-environmental behavior (PEB) may contribute to enhanced sustainability. Based on a traditional Chinese culture, this research constructed a model of resident PEB by introducing pro-environmental destination image (PEDI) and Confucianism as the independent and moderating variables, respectively. The structural equation modeling for 402 residents indicated the model had a satisfactory level of predictive power for PEB. The results showed that: (1) PEDI positively affected residents’ environmental identity, pro-environmental attitudes, and PEB; (2) environmental identity and pro-environmental attitudes completely mediated the impact of PEDI on residents’ PEB; and (3) Confucian culture had a positive U-shaped moderating effect in the relationships among these four variables. Overall, these findings advance the understanding of the formation of PEB in Confucian culture and provide theoretical and practical implications for fostering residents’ PEB

Developing a scale to measure tourist perceived safety

Safety for tourists at places visited is essential to their enjoyment and experiences, as well as a determinant of destination success. Yet, little attention has been paid to the conceptualization and scale development for tourist perceived safety at destinations (TPSD). The primary purpose of this research was to identify the dimensions of TPSD and develop a scale for measuring it based on safety system theory. A three-stage study in a mixed-method design was conducted to develop and validate TPSD. Stage 1 identified the dimensions and initial items of TPSD through extensive literature reviewing and content analysis of travel blogs. In stage 2 (n = 300), an explanatory factor analysis was conducted to refine and validate the preliminary items. Stage 3 (n = 1,830) provided empirical support for a 20-item, five-dimension (human, facility and equipment, natural environment, social environment, management) TPSD scale through confirmatory factor analysis

Incentives and motivations of Chinese destination management organization officers

Purpose - This research aims to divide expectations into three time-scales based on expectancy theory, namely, short-term, medium-term and long-term expectations. Based on that, this research identify the incentive-motivation structures of tourism officers by time-scales, and the effect of incentives on job engagement, performance, and satisfaction is investigated. Design/methodology/approach - A survey was conducted in 31 provinces of China, and a total of 650 responses were used for further analysis after removing invalid surveys. The statistical analysis techniques used were confirmatory factor analysis, correlation analysis, and structural equation modeling. Findings - The results showed that: (1) realistic motivations, career prospects, and ‘macro-vision’ were the motivational factors in the short-, medium-, and long-term respectively; (2) incentives positively predicted tourism officers’ job engagement, performance, and satisfaction; and (3) job engagement and performance partially mediated the influence of incentives on job satisfaction. Research limitations/implications - The main limitation was that the questionnaires were collected with the same measurement system within a certain period of time (cross-sectional design). Moreover, the respondents were from 31 provinces in China, and there may be diverse conclusions based on the investigation of different regions due to the varied and complex geographical and social condition as well as the regional economic development levels and administrative systems. Practical implications – Destination government departments must recognize tourism officer needs and motivations in the short-, medium-, and long-terms, and develop tailored incentive programs. Moreover, government departments should emphasize the key role of tourism officers’ job engagement. Originality/value – Based on expectancy theory across different time-scales, this research identified the incentive-motivation structure and its effect of Chinese destination management organizations officers, and potentially provides a theoretical basis for the optimization of this administrative incentive system

The effects of hotel employee ternary safety behavior on negative safety outcomes:The moderation of job vigor and emotional exhaustion

Purpose- The effect of hotel employee safety behavior has not as yet been investigated. The purpose of this research is to determine the impact of hotel employee ternary safety behavior on negative safety outcomes, as well as the moderation effects of job vigor and emotional exhaustion. Design/methodology/approach- A questionnaire survey of 16 medium- and high-star-rated hotels in southeast China was conducted and 571 responses were received for model estimation. The statistical analysis techniques adopted were confirmatory factor analysis, correlation analysis, hierarchical regression, and structural equation modeling. Findings- The results showed that: (1) safety compliance and participation positively predicted safety adaptation; (2) the three dimensions of safety behavior contributed to reducing negative safety outcomes, and there was a multiple mediation process in their relationship; (3) job vigor positively moderated the influence of safety compliance and adaption on negative safety outcomes, and emotional exhaustion negatively moderated the influence of safety participation on negative safety outcomes. Originality/value- This research provides greater insights into the relationship between safety behavior and outcome performance within the hotel industry and yields theoretical and practical implications for improving employee safety behavior and hotel safety performance

Responding to a major global crisis: The effects of hotel safety leadership on employee safety behavior during COVID-19

Purpose: The main purpose of this research was to examine the effect of hotel safety leadership on employee safety behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the mediation role of belief restoration and the moderation role of perceived risk between safety leadership and behavior were also investigated. Design/methodology/approach: The COVID-19 outbreak served as the background for a questionnaire survey of 23 hotels in China with 1,594 valid responses being received. The statistical analysis techniques used were exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, correlation analysis, structural equation modeling, and hierarchical regression. Findings: The results showed that: (1) hotel safety leadership positively affected employee safety behavior (compliance, participation and adaptation); (2) belief restoration partially mediated the influence of safety leadership on safety behavior; and (3) perceived risk negatively moderated the direct effect as well as the mediation effect of “safety leadership - belief restoration - safety behavior”. Research limitations/implications: The main limitation was that the questionnaires were collected with the same measurement system within a certain period of time (cross-sectional design). And future research should test and expand this conceptual model in different crises, business fields, theoretical orientation, and cultural backgrounds. Practical implications: Hotels should develop management strategies based on safety leadership and motivate and promote employee safety behavior from the four aspects of safety coaching, care, motivation, and control. Originality/value: This investigation expanded the research on the effectiveness of safety leadership and especially with respect to safety in the hospitality industry during a major global crisis. Also, the research conceptual model and variables contained therein are original contributions to the hospitality research literature

Fostering Resident Pro-Environmental Behavior: The Roles of Destination Image and Confucian Culture

Residents are important participants and stakeholders in destination development. Identifying factors that assist in predicting resident pro-environmental behavior (PEB) may contribute to enhanced sustainability. Based on a traditional Chinese culture, this research constructed a model of resident PEB by introducing pro-environmental destination image (PEDI) and Confucianism as the independent and moderating variables, respectively. The structural equation modeling for 402 residents indicated the model had a satisfactory level of predictive power for PEB. The results showed that: (1) PEDI positively affected residents’ environmental identity, pro-environmental attitudes, and PEB; (2) environmental identity and pro-environmental attitudes completely mediated the impact of PEDI on residents’ PEB; and (3) Confucian culture had a positive U-shaped moderating effect in the relationships among these four variables. Overall, these findings advance the understanding of the formation of PEB in Confucian culture and provide theoretical and practical implications for fostering residents’ PEB

Hotel employee perceived crisis shocks: conceptual and scale development

Limited research assesses the impacts of crises on hotels from the individual employee perspective, and hotel employee perceived crisis shocks (HEPCS) lack empirical investigation and scale development. This mixed-method research conceptualized HEPCS and validated a measurement scale for HEPCS through three studies. In Study 1, 99 employees from 24 hotels were interviewed. The results showed that HEPCS was composed of the six dimensions of perceived shock: performance, task, occupation, mental, safety, and family and life. In Study 2, the initial measurement items for HEPCS were generated, and 313 valid responses were collected for exploratory factor analysis. Study 3 had 931 valid respondents whose data were collected for confirmatory factor analysis and validation of the factor structure generated in Study 2. This research provides a new perspective and valid measurement scale for hotel crisis impact research as well as a theoretical basis for the establishment of hotel crisis response strategies