Business, Events and Hospitality

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THE IMPACT OF EMOTIONS ON CONSUMER DECISION-MAKING: A CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR ANALYSIS OF HEDONIC CONSUMPTION AS RELATED TO THE HARLEY-DAVIDSON BRAND
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2019) Ahlers, Tario J.
Consumer behaviour has varied aspects that allow for a more detailed understanding of why certain products are purchased. In this light the American firm of Harley-Davidson is utilised as an appropriate case study with a focus on men aged 40 to 60 from the area of Edinburgh. Harley-Davidson appears to be an under-studied phenomenon. Whilst some examples are present in which Harley-Davidson has an important role, these examples either focus on marketing from the perspective of the company or from the social environment the consumer enters after the purchase has been completed. This research considers factors that motivated consumers carry out the act of purchasing a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. A thorough literature review of current research establishes an academic understanding of the environment that consumers may enter and attempts to identify possible motivations for the consumer to act in this way. Various important motivating factors are established by the literature which contribute to the hedonic purchase intentions of middle-aged male consumers who may go through a midlife-crisis situation in which they attempt to distract from their aging character and counter it through a more lavish lifestyle. Other aspects considered are the manner in which money is handled under various circumstances. The primary research was conducted as a qualitative case study. This involved semi-structured interviews with volunteering participants at the local Harley-Davidson dealership in Edinburgh. In order to illustrate other ways in which money is spent and risks perceived, the research uses an additional cluster of non-motorcyclists from the same area, gender, and age group. Through the openness of the participants, aspects that had not previously been considered, such as participants’ description of depression and the positive impact of reduction of alcohol consumption. It has been established through the thematic data analysis that Harley-Davidson consumers do not struggle with a mid-life crisis but rather follow a progression under which a Harley-Davidson is the most comfortable option for them before retiring from motorcycling. Based on the thematic analysis it was discovered that the majority of Harley-Davidson owners have previously owned other brands and moved to Harley within the age limits set for this research. Keywords: Consumer behaviour, Hedonic Consumption, Harley-Davidson, Edinburgh, Progression of Consumption
USER CHARGES, MARKETISATION OF UNIVERSITY EDUCATION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR ACCESS IN DEVELOPED AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: CASE STUDIES OF NIGERIA AND SCOTLAND (1980-2017)
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2018) Osuntubo, Oladipo Oriyomi
Global models of higher education and the degree to which they are influenced by marketisation vary widely. Despite the perception of marketisation reforms in university education being global, literature and focus are heavily dominated by developed countries and the studies that are comparative tend to compare two or more developed or developing countries. Given the perceived global nature of marketisation reforms and its drivers, a gap exists to examine marketisation in the context of a developed and developing country. Consequently, this study and my contribution to the field of public administration is an examination of the marketisation of university education in a developed and developing country context with emphasis on the use of charges and the implications this has for access by evaluating developments in Nigeria and Scotland. Both countries were selected because, despite perceived global nature of marketisation reforms and the expectation that developed countries would exhibit more features of marketisation, they appear to have adopted different approaches to managing HE, particularly on the use of charges for home students. Considerations including the lack of comparable statistical data resulted in the adoption of a qualitative approach for primary data collection with semi-structured interviews conducted with 35 academics and administrators. Research found that while marketisation reforms are partly driven by developed countries and IFIs dominated by them and while some features of marketisation are evident, charges which is a significant feature of market-type reforms is not used in Scotland due to equity of access considerations. Research founds that many developed countries that have charging policies provide services on a quasi-market basis where the government is still directly or indirectly responsible for funding university education due to equity considerations. Developing countries like Nigeria on the other hand, partly due to pressures from external partners have embraced a pure market approach to service delivery which has seen the responsibility for funding university education shifted away from the state and onto students and their families, resulting in access being dependent on the ability to pay upfront, disenfranchising many due to lack of state support, credit or exemption systems. Secondary findings on wider features of marketisation indicated the presence of many features of marketisation in university education in Nigeria and Scotland and revealed a point of intersectionality between the HE systems in developed and developing countries due to marketisation reforms. Many students from developing countries now study with HE institutions based in developed countries and pay a premium in the process because some of the supposed benefits of marketisation are not evident in their home countries. Implications for developing countries include a suggestion to focus more on what external partners do and less on what they say. While marketisation in the context of quasi-markets delivers some of the benefits which justify marketisation in Scotland; in Nigeria, marketisation delivers few benefits and has significant negative implications for access due to continued undersupply, increasing costs and the state abdicating its role in society. The study shows that equity of access and some of the other benefits of markets in HE can only be guaranteed by state intervention through regulation and funding, highlighting policy transfer challenges. The study highlights the limitation of markets in service provision in certain contexts and significance of the state.
Corporate Governance and Corporate Performance: Evidence from Jordanian Family and Non-Family Firms
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2018) Saidat, Zaid Mhmoud
Corporate governance and corporate performance are two concepts that have been extensively examined in finance and management literature. However, most studies have been conducted in developed countries, particularly the UK and the US, while there is relatively little work carried out on the Middle East, specifically Jordan. Many Jordanian companies are characterised by concentrated ownership (generally family firms), which forms a considerable part of its economy (ROSC Jordan, 2004). Few researchers have examined family firms’ performance from a corporate governance perspective. This study investigates the influence of corporate governance on the performance of Jordanian family and non-family firms from 2009 to 2015, employing agency theory and resource-dependency theory to investigate the relationship between corporate governance and performance of family and non-family firms. Agency theory is concerned with problem of agency between principals and agents as well as principals and principals, which undermines value maximisation. Due to complexity within the corporate governance and performance phenomena, agency theory is supplemented with predictions from resource dependence theory, since this theory asserts that the resources provided by the shareholders and the directors are likely to improve performance. It has been suggested that the board of directors and ownership structure are effective corporate governance mechanisms to improve firm performance. Multivariate pooled-OLS regression analyses were the main tool of analysis. Secondary data obtained from published firm annual reports, firm financial reports and the Thomson One database was analysed to test the effect that board of directors and ownership structure have on corporate performance and the performance of family firms. To ensure confidence in these estimates, this thesis uses two-stage least squares (2SLS) to address the issues of endogeneity. The focus of the investigation was firms listed on the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE). The dataset is a panel of all firms on the ASE from 2009 to 2015, excluding financial firms with a sample of 103 firms, including 56 family-firms (about 55%) and 47 non-family firms. Major findings include (i) board mechanisms; board size, independent directors and family CEO negatively influence family firm performance while CEO duality tends to have a positive effect on performance, (ii) female board member, ownership concentration and local institutional investors have no effect on corporate performance, (iii) in non-family firms, there are positive relationships between governance mechanisms (independent directors and local institutional investors) and corporate performance. However, board size and concentrated ownership have no effect on performance, (iv) female board member has a negative effect, and (v) the proportion of foreign shareholders has a positive effect on the performance of family and non-family firms. Overall, there is a difference between the impact of corporate governance mechanisms on family and non-family firms’ performance. In terms of practical implications, this study illustrates (i) The importance of corporate governance in the broader sense, especially in emerging economies such as Jordan, where ownership is concentrated in Jordanian companies; (ii) signs policymakers and regulatory bodies can use to monitor companies that are more likely to confiscate investors and/or introduce governance problems; (iii) a potentially productive method for professional investors to select companies with superior governance structures and performance to improve returns on their investments, particularly in the long term.
Critical drivers of entrepreneurship: a study of the Nigerian community owned and managed independent retail businesses in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany.
(2018) Ijeghede, Courage
Purpose: This study explores the motivations of an entrepreneur’s business entry decision within the context of the Nigerian community owned and managed independent retail businesses in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany, a minority ethnic group with independent retail micro-businesses. Approach: A research methodology that is most appropriate to the qualitative research aim and highlights the research respondents’ ideas with some details is advised. The research sought access to respondents’ ideas using a qualitative methodological approach, including 20 in-depth interviews. Result: This research found evidence of pull, push and mixed motives as the critical drivers of entrepreneurship. The findings indicate that immigrant enclaves, their economic and social embeddedness into the mainstream group, family business background, informal and formal economic activities, and cultural influences are the core drivers of entrepreneurship. Moreover, the perceived discrimination faced in the host country, interestingly generated intergroup solidarity and strengthened the influence of the group network. Implication: The core conclusion for policy makers from these limited research findings is that a variety of critical drivers of entrepreneurial motivations as identified in this study, seems to be driven by: ‘push’ factors, ‘pull’ factors and ‘mixed’ factors. This limited study offers a framework, which can assist to understand the factors driving these entrepreneurs business entry decision. Currently official liaison with this community is minimal, there are clear opportunities for policy makers to better engage the community, to manage the potential expectations of minority migrant entrepreneurs and channel much needed support to them through formal and informal networks. Limitation: The invisibility of the Nigerian Community in Germany is a key limitation on these research findings. Furthermore, this is a small exploratory study, limited to NRW, Germany and the findings cannot be generalised. However, it can be the basis for future repeated qualitative studies and for a large quantitative study.
Performance measurement of community education services: A case study of public service delivery in Forth Ward, Edinburgh
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2017) Fejszes, Violetta Rozsa
Performance measurement within public services is a key feature of the literature but at ward level it has been an under-studied concept. This thesis presents research within a ward with deprived and affluent areas, focusing on community education service provision and the part performance measurement plays in it. The literature shows the importance of community education services in deprived areas to empower residents. They have the potential to impact positively on the lives of individuals and communities. Performance measurement is meant to ensure the delivery of value for money, quality services but it can instead be a barrier. In subjective areas like community education, measurement is difficult. The primary research was conducted in a qualitative case study. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews with ward stakeholders. The key findings identify constraints surrounding performance measurement in subjective services. While there was increased emphasis on measuring performance the value of such procedures was questioned. Performance measurement practices did not necessarily lead to improved service outcomes. The findings uncovered many specifics concerning both the process and the context. As community education was credited with reducing public service dependence by supporting self-reliance, dedication to such services was seen as necessary. Changes were needed, in performance measurement and more broadly, as there was a risk that the sector would not be able to operate soon. Despite the various representative bodies, effective local input, which was needed, had yet to be achieved. The findings draw out real issues with potentially serious implications. They highlight how the public service provision might be improved at the most micro level of democracy, the ward, where citizens experience first-hand public services. The research could therefore be of value to policy-makers and those responsible for service provision.
Developing an effectiveness evaluation framework for destination management systems
(Queen Margaret University, 2010) Horan, Patrick
The ever-increasing use of the Web as a channel of distribution within the tourism industry naturally leads to a situation where its effectiveness needs to be examined and justified. While there is a growing realisation of the need to assess the effectiveness of a Destination Management Systems (DMS) based websites, research into this area in the tourism domain has been quite limited and narrow in focus. This situation is further compounded by the fact that currently there is little in the way of appropriate models and techniques in place to manage a DMS based websites effectively and that there is a general lack of consensus when it comes to defining and understanding its standards and concepts. This thesis describes a methodology for the development and evaluation of a comprehensive set of weighted dimensions and criteria for measuring the effectiveness of DMS based websites. Ultimately, from a DMS perspective, website effectiveness depends on how well a website performs with respect to the related business goals. The scope of the research was limited to assessing the impact of DMS effectiveness on the accommodation sector. This research began by employing a Delphi study to generate, validate and prioritise a comprehensive set of dimensions and criteria for measuring the effectiveness of a DMS. The Delphi study successfully identified a total of 12 dimensions and 105 criteria required to assess DMS based websites effectiveness. These components were incorporated into a comprehensive evaluation framework applied specifically to evaluate the effectiveness of a DMS based websites using a diverse range of approaches and perspectives. The evaluation phase of the research took place over an eight month period and concentrated on testing this framework using VisitScotland.com as a test bed. The outcomes from the evaluation phase successfully demonstrated that the framework provides DMS management with a comprehensive method to measure and manage the effectiveness of their Web presence by not only identifying areas of the website and website strategy that needed attention but also by providing advice and suggestions on how to improve these areas.
The role of major events in the creation of social legacy: a case study of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2017) Sharp, Briony
The importance of major event legacy has become increasingly vital for host cities and their organising partners. Much of the earlier studies in this area focused on tangible legacies such as economic and infrastructural. Contemporary research has seen a shift towards potential intangible legacies including social legacies and how events engage with their communities. The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games is used a case study in order to establish pathways towards the creation of social legacies. This study aims to advance the current literature on the notion of social legacy by conceptualising legacy planning and implementation through the experiences of local policy makers, organisers and coordinators; local community members living within the regeneration area; and, a wider demographic of volunteers involved in Games related programmes. A mixed method approach was employed for this research consisting of interviews, focus groups and an online survey. The data collected was analysed in line with emerging themes. The main themes in this thesis focus upon social impacts relating to individuals, communities, and image, status and sense of place. First, the social impacts for individuals emerging from volunteering, personal development, and an increase in social capital are examined to determine potential routes to create social legacies. Second, an analysis of potential social legacy routes relating to communities examines social impacts of community engagement, post-industrial event-led urban regeneration, the development of social capital, and issues relating to social impacts in communities. Next, social impacts concerning image, status, and sense of place are presented in relation to the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games to highlight social legacy creation routes through changes in reputation, civic pride, and sense of identity. Before concluding, stakeholder perspectives are analysed with regard to the creation of a social legacy from hosting the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games with consideration to partnership legacies, knowledge exchange, and future implications.
The relationship among environmental performance, economic results and Social media presence A study of voluntary eco-certified hotels in Florida
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2016) Chmura, Nicole J.
This study sought to investigate whether there was a relationship among environmental performance, economic results and social media presence that contributed to the competitive advantage of Florida Green Lodging Program eco-certified hotels. While eco-certifications were not specifically cultivated for marketing on social media websites, the two-dimensional logos were developed as a meaningful marketing tool that can also be used in an online environment to convey a firm's commitment to environmental standards. Therefore, gaining an understanding of what connects the added marketing benefit of an eco-certification and the utility usage of an environmentally conscious hotel holds the possibility to garner positive economic results for firms that commit to specific eco-certification standards. Built on a literature foundation of sustainable tourism, social media and theories that unite both subject matters, the study adopted a mixed-methods, sequential explanatory research design with an emphasis on the quantitative findings. The investigation was organized in two phases. The initial phase analyzed data from the FGLP to determine if relationships existed. The second phase provided supportive qualitative data to better comprehend the statistical findings discovered in the first phase. The study utilized both primary data collected from web-based surveys and dialogue paired with secondary data garnered from government forms and social media websites. The pragmatic underpinning of the study permitted the collection, analysis and interpretation of the statistical results combined with supportive qualitative findings structured by six hypotheses that addressed the study's aim and objectives. The findings revealed 15 statistically significant relationships. Only four relationships contributed a positive economic result and 11 provided negative economic consequences to the eco-certified hotel. The statistical results were paired with qualitative concerns about the program's commitment to marketing and communication efforts. In addition, the study revealed a management factor may be limiting the relationship among environmental performance, economic results and social media presence, which could be addressed if a more holistic and cross-functional management approach was implemented at an eco-certified property. This work contributes to the growing research between sustainability and marketing, and the use of social media within the hospitality industry, which extended the theoretical foundation of the resource-based theory for future research. The study made an original contribution of knowledge with its use of the resource-based theory to determine the statistical relationships of the physical and fiscal operations of eco-certified hotels in relation to their social media presence. It also extended the definition of marketing 'resources' to include seven social media web sites. Future research could continue the investigation among environmental performance, economic results and social media presence to include larger samples, different regions, non-certified hotels and even a contextual review of social media participation. Such findings hold the potential to understand if complementary relationships exist and if hotels could employ the findings to increase its return on investment in both environmental and marketing initiatives.
An investigation of resort business sustainability: a comparative study of Scottish and Swiss ski resorts
(Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, 2016) Zorina, Daria
As the tourism industry faces economic, social, political and other challenges, there is a need to develop adaptation strategies to reinforce business sustainability of organisations. Ski resort destinations have been chosen to determine and analyse factors as actual and potential barriers to maintain a sustainable business practice. The academic debate revealed a number of gaps, critical issues for the ski industry to be addressed. Concurrently, a lack of an empirical data requires research in order to develop a set of sustainability determinants for generic ski resort use. In line with that, the mixed methodological approach aims to investigate comprehensively factors of business sustainability and sustainability determinants and incorporates two research methods: the qualitative and the quantitative research techniques. The qualitative methodological stance allows arranging a qualitative research and, therefore, conducting interviews among the chosen Scottish and Swiss ski resorts for the purpose of a comparative analysis. The quantitative methodological stance assists to use a series of the Delphi Survey rounds and permits to engage the experts from the industry, selected carefully based on the objective criteria. The findings became a basis for novel concept “internal business sustainability” in relation to ski resorts. The collected data allowed providing recommendations for government, ski resorts generally, ski resorts in Switzerland, ski resorts in Scotland, VisitScotland and Graubünden Tourism. The Delphi study contributed significantly to the field of knowledge and a new framework was developed for a future selection of a model of sustainability indicators for generic ski resort use. The developed framework consists of a set of sustainability determinants in the form of the adaptation strategies with regard to the changing environment, changing in government policies about sustainability, changing in economic climate, changing in socio-cultural environment and changing in technology. All of the elements of the new framework were examined, evaluated and filtered during three consecutive rounds of the Delphi and reached consensus, which show their validity.
Local assessment of needs for consumer information and advice services in Great Britain: the development of a scientific conceptual model of assessment.
(Queen Margaret University, 2010) Wang, Fang
UK consumers are facing a high level of detriment. Much of the detriment can be avoided or reduced by making consumers informed and well equipped with suitable levels of knowledge and skills thus become empowered. As one important element to consumer empowerment, there is a strong case that consumers need suitable consumer information and advice services (CIAS). In an attempt to improve the local CIAS provision in Great Britain, the Consumer Support Network (CSN) initiative was launched in 1999 to join up the existing local CIAS providers. A local CIAS needs assessment was required for each CSN to achieve full establishment status (Brennan and Galloway 2002). It was discovered during the period that there was a lack of a scientific local CIAS needs assessment model available for local agencies to employ. This triggered this research project which is aimed to fill this gap. Due to the fact that Northern Ireland was not included in the CSN initiative, it was decided that this research targeted Great Britain, namely England, Scotland and Wales, although the literature would be drawn from the UK to inform the research. In the UK, the majority of CIAS is publicly funded and provided by public and voluntary sectors. Due to the funding nature of local CIAS provision, the needs for CIAS can be defined as needs for public services in this research. A review of the existing literature provided detailed background on the UK consumer landscape and the consumer empowerment agenda. Two broader categories of issues surrounding the concept of needs for public services and needs assessment were also identified: the theoretical debate on needs for public services and needs assessment and specific practical issues concerning local CIAS needs and needs assessment. The research is focused on the latter, since the purpose of a local CIAS needs assessment is to provide practical guidance to assist local agencies to design and improve their services. This research aims to investigate and develop a scientific conceptual local CIAS needs assessment model. This aim was achieved by identifying the relevant practical issues surrounding local CIAS needs and needs assessment involving two research populations: the CIAS professionals, who are responsible for the delivery of local CIAS, and the general public, who are the recipients of CIAS. Due to the characteristics of these two research populations, a combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods was chosen in this research. The CSN coordinators were chosen to represent the CIAS professionals in the first phase qualitative research. The transcriptions of 18 semi structured in-depth interviews were collected and analysed to generate the initial assessment model. The important part of the initial model, the needs for CIAS and its components, was tested and then modified in the second phase quantitative research based on the analysis of the data collected from 585 on-street questionnaire surveys of the general public in Great Britain which was chosen as the research population in the second phase. A purposive sampling was employed to ensure a good level of representativeness considering the resource constrains to this research. The employment of combined research methods ensures the assessment model is scientific by comparing and contrasting data from both local CIAS professionals and the recipients of local CIAS. The scientific attribute of the assessment model is also assured by employing scientific qualitative and quantitative data collecting and analysing techniques and procedures. The results of the two phases enabled this research to produce a scientific conceptual assessment model. The main product of this thesis, the new local CIAS needs assessment model, is evidence based, tailor-made, and ready to be employed by local CIAS agencies. This model consists of two sections, left and right: the needs assessment process and the practical issues of local CIAS needs. The left section includes the main stages of a local CIAS needs assessment and highlights the key issues associated with each stage. The right section illustrates the key components of CIAS needs and factors influencing CIAS needs: consumer knowledge and shopping patterns and their key components. The two effective means of local consumer segmentation, consumer disadvantage and consumer age, are also identified and illustrated in the section. The scientific CIAS assessment model could assist the professionals to gather evidence on local CIAS needs more effectively and systematically. The evidence could be used to improve the existing CIAS provision and design new CIAS to target any unmet needs identified. The evidence gathered, together with the relevant findings of this research, could also strengthen the case of local CIAS provision and better coordination with national CIAS provision such as Consumer Direct. The model could also benefit the professionals, policy makers and academia by comprehensively illustrating the components of CIAS need, the key relating factors and effective means for local consumer segmentation. The outcomes of the research also shed a light on the gaps in the literature thus identifies the possible areas of future research.

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