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Despite Airbnb's popularity as a sharing economy platform, few studies have simultaneously examined its customers’ attitudes toward its website and satisfaction with their Airbnb stay. Adopting the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT), this study attempts to examine Airbnb customers’ psychological behavior toward the entire Airbnb experience. Researchers conduct a self-administered online survey and obtain 212 valid responses. The results indicate that personal innovativeness is a significant antecedent of perceived ease of use, usefulness, and trust. Customers’ attitudes toward the Airbnb website are determined by perceived usefulness and trust, and their satisfaction with the Airbnb stay is affected by amenities and host-guest relationship, leading to loyal customers and repeat business. The findings extend extant literature in sharing economy and provide practical implications for Airbnb website developers and Airbnb hosts to increase customers’ intentions to choose Airbnb again as an accommodation option. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The education-related topics that have been favored by hospitality and tourism scholars in recent years are presented in this opinion paper. We categorized them into six groups: leadership and human capital development, teaching methods with the emphasis on active and experiential learning, online education, diversity education, internationalization, and industry experience. In addition, we shared our thoughts on additional research topics, reflecting the emerging trends in the hospitality and tourism industry as well as hospitality and tourism academia. Specifically, those thoughts include the development of undergraduate students' cultural competency, issues on hospitality and tourism PhD programs, full-fledged online curricula, and relationships with alumni and advisory board. It is our hope that this article provides some insights regarding the current status of hospitality and tourism education, and stirs up interest in education-related research within hospitality and tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to identify employees’ perceptions of using mobile devices and their perceived job performance when they use the mobile devices for their work at a hotel. Adopting the concept of self-efficacy from Bandura’s social cognitive theory as a theoretical background, this study expands its conceptual framework by including two exogenous variables: job relevance and self-efficacy, facilitating condition as a moderator, and three endogenous variables: perceived job performance, job satisfaction and employee retention to scrutinize employees’ psychological acceptance of the mobile device in the workplace. Findings of this study indicate that employees feel confident to use a mobile device at the hotel, think the mobile device is a relevant tool for performing their work better and ascertain the use of the mobile device improves their job performance, leading to increasing job satisfaction as well as retention with the current organization longer. Interestingly, no significant differences are found in employees’ perceptions and psychological behavior of using mobile devices in the hotel by their job position and department. Discussions and suggestions for future research are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite strong evidence from the social ecological model suggesting the influences of the residential built environment on individuals' behaviors, the effects of travelers' residential tourism clusters on their tourism experience at smart tourism destinations have not been investigated. Thus, this study aims to understand the effects of travelers' residential tourism clusters on their memorable tourism experience at a smart tourism destination. To achieve the purpose, this study investigated (1) how various tourism products influence travelers' memorable experiences and future behavioral intentions, and (2) the moderating effect of travelers' residential tourism clusters in the proposed relationships. Findings showed the positive effects of tourism resources and smart tourism technologies' interactivity and personalization on memorable tourism experience, and the group difference between travelers from more-tourism clustered and less-tourism clustered areas. These findings can help tourism scholars and practitioners understand the effects of both destination-related attributes and traveler-related attributes on travelers' memorable experience at smart tourism destinations. • The impacts of various tourism products on memorable experience were examined. • We identified how travelers' residential tourism clusters affected traveler behavior. • We investigated various smart tourism destination attributes on memorable experience. • We found how travelers' residential tourism clusters affected memorable experience. • The effect of memorable experience was stronger for travelers from more-clustered areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Providing a distinctive brand experience is critical to differentiate each hotel brand from others, due to the intangible characteristics of the hotel industry. Rooted in congruity theory, this study investigated how three congruities (i.e., self-image congruity, online–offline brand image congruity, and value congruity) influenced customers’ online brand experiences and their brand trust. Results from this study indicated both self-image congruity and online–offline brand image congruity significantly influenced both customers’ online brand experiences and their trust toward the hotel's brand. Extending brand experience literature and congruity theory, this study suggested hotels should develop a strategy that could capture these three congruity effects in online and offline channels because these effects should be key determinants for customers’ online brand experiences and their responses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

As new and emerging technologies continue to transform hospitality and tourism operations and consumer environments, understanding consumers' experience with hospitality and tourism technologies has become an urgent issue. This study aimed to develop a theoretically sound conceptualization of consumers' experience with hospitality and tourism technologies. Employing a sequential exploratory approach and scale development procedures, this study theoretically defined and conceptualized consumers' technology experience as a second-order formative construct consisting of nine dimensions (sensorial, cognitive, pragmatic, emotional, relational, unique, familiar, controllable, and economical experiences). This study also developed a set of scales to measure consumers' experience with hospitality and tourism technologies, and empirically assessed and validated the developed scale. The results demonstrated that the developed scale exhibited robust psychometric properties. The developed scale is applicable to most hospitality and tourism technologies and various sectors of the hospitality and tourism industry. • Conceptualized consumers' experience with hospitality and tourism technologies. • Identified the nine dimensions of consumers' technology experience. • Developed a set scale to measure the second-order construct of technology experience. • Validated the developed scale for consumers' technology experience. • Empirically investigated the consequences of technology experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building on the technology acceptance model (TAM), this study examined users’ perceptions of reservation Web sites: hotel-owned and third-party. As an experimental study, this study tested whether a modified variant of the TAM could be used to evaluate users’ perceptions of two different channels for hotel online reservations. Perceived usefulness was a key predictor of users’ attitudes toward using hotel-owned Web sites, while perceived ease of use was a key predictor of users’ attitudes toward using third-party Web sites. Both perceived playfulness and attitudes were two key predictors of users’ intentions to use hotel reservation Web sites. However, no significant differences in users’ perceptions were found between the two types of Web sites. Overall, users had more favorable attitudes and higher intentions to revisit third-party Web sites than hotel-owned Web sites. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper shows how lodging consumers process brand and price information toward an overall value judgment. The concepts of perceived risk and price fairness are introduced as additional mediating constructs to a traditional value framework. Brand name also is redefined as to separate effects of brand class and brand awareness, and their relationships with perceived value are reexamined. Results of a web experiment generally support the proposed process of value judgment. In addition, brand class and brand awareness appear to influence value perceptions through different pathways. The article includes discussions on managerial implications and suggestions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While an increasing number of lodging companies pay attention to new business opportunities on the Web, little research has addressed how to develop and maintain Web sites that can create such opportunities. Building on emerging literature on Web site quality and e-commerce behavior, this study conceptualizes Web site quality and proposes information satisfaction and purchase-related behavioral intentions as potential consequences of Web site quality in the lodging industry. Conceptual efforts paralleled in four lodging segments (i.e., luxury, upscale, mid-scale, and economy). Data collected through an electronic survey generally indicate that information satisfaction is a powerful determinant of behavioral intentions on the Web and that Web site quality is an important antecedent of information satisfaction. Discussions include implications for the lodging industry and future research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• This is one of the first empirical studies on the impact of the quality factors of virtual reality on behavioral intention in hospitality management. • The quality-driven virtual reality research framework is developed based on the DeLone and McLean's IS success model. • Content quality, system quality, and vividness positively affect customers' attitude and telepresence, leading to behavioral intention. • Research findings help the practitioners better use virtual reality as a promotional destination marketing platform. Although virtual reality (VR) has received growing attention and been adopted as customer engagement and marketing tools in the hospitality and tourism industry, little research has been conducted in quality assessment of VR and its impact on customers' psychological acceptance. Building upon the DeLone and McLean's IS success model, this study identifies the quality factors of VR and examines their impacts on customers' behavioral intention. This study develops a quality-driven VR framework and tests the proposed hypotheses assessing customers' behavioral intentions. For the empirical analysis, this study recruits potential U.S. customers and asks them to browse a VR-based destination website and then to answer the online survey related to VR applications. The collected responses are analyzed by PLS-SEM. Findings suggest that content quality, system quality, and vividness positively influence customers' attitude and telepresence, leading to their positive behavioral intention to visit the destination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate how a firm's corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices affect customers' attitudes, their self-brand connection, and, in turn, brand preference with ridesharing services (e.g., Uber). Adopting a second-order construct of perceived corporate social responsibility (PCSR) reflected from three CSR dimensions—environment, economy, and ethics—this study posited PCSR influences customers' brand attitudes, self-brand connection, and brand preference. A total of 300 valid responses was collected from a convenience sample. Results revealed PCSR showed significant impacts on customers' brand attitudes and self-brand connection. However, no direct impact of PCSR on customers' brand preference was identified, while mediation effects were detected between PCSR and brand preference by brand attitudes and self-brand connection. This study also discussed the managerial and theoretical implications of PCSR practices for a ridesharing service industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designs a technologically-based dietetics distance education program. Identification of students' and preceptors' accessibility to computers at work; Students' experience level with computer software packages; Effects of sociodemographic variables on students' and preceptors' attitudes towards use of computers.