María Dolores Sánchez-Fernández

Institutional context and hotel social responsibility

Purpose – The authors want to study the connection between institutional theory and corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the set of hotels with three, four and five star situated in Galicia (Spain) and in the Northern region of Portugal. The authors aim to see whether there is a contrast of isomorphic behaviour in the institutional context of both regions. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative study in which the authors apply the partial least square (PLS) technique, a methodology based on structural equations models using the software Visual-PLS. The authors intend to study the relationships between the pressures of institutional context and CSR practices, together with the relationship between legitimacy and these practices. The focus of the proposed model is based on the system theory. Findings – The main findings of this research clearly show that hotels are incorporated into an institutional context marked by enforced and regulatory pressures. Research limitations/implications – The propos...

Chapter 5 The Residents’ Attitudes Towards Incoming Tourism in Punta Del Este, Uruguay

Abstract The perception of costs and benefits allows residents to carry out an assessment that determines their attitude towards tourism. This study seeks to determine the effect of the perceived benefits and costs (economic, sociocultural and environmental) on the support to the arrival of more tourists, both directly and mediated by overall attitude towards tourism, in the case of Punta del Este. Punta del Este forms part of the Department of Maldonado and is the main sun and beach tourism destination in the Oriental Republic of Uruguay. The questionnaire contained items with five-point Likert scales and sociodemographic questions. The data used (obtained between March and August 2016) are made up of a sample of 420 residents from Maldonado and Punta del Este. The analysis of the data has been carried out through partial least squares (PLS) regression, specifically SmartPLS. Among the results, it should be noted that benefits and costs perceived have no direct effect on the support to the arrival of more tourists; only economic benefits (positive) and sociocultural costs (negative) have a significant effect on the overall attitude towards tourism; the support to the arrival of more tourists depends exclusively on the overall attitude.

Difficulties for enjoyment of public spaces by residents: Maldonado-Punta del Este conurbation

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine whether the various types of negative impacts have an effect on the general attitude toward tourism and the difficulty for the enjoyment of public spaces. Design/methodology/approach It is a quantitative study that analyzes the causal relationships between variables through structural equation models. This study uses data from a sample of 420 residents from Maldonado and Punta del Este. Findings The result obtained shows that only the cultural loss is significant to explain the residents’ attitudes. On the other hand, the cultural loss, the environmental deterioration and the saturation are significant to explain the difficulties for the enjoyment of public spaces. Research limitations/implications The main limitations are the fact of performing the analysis in a specific destination with peculiarities that may affect the results and the representativeness of the sample used. Practical implications The enjoyment of public spaces is a good indicator of the perception of negative impacts, so managers of urban tourist destinations can use this element as an indicator of quick consultation on residents’ attitudes. Originality/value It is a study that focuses on the negative impacts of tourism and its effect on the public spaces. The importance of public spaces in tourist destinations is under studied.

The Impact of Residents’ Posture on the Degree of Acceptance of Sports Tourism in Comparison to Other Tourist Offers in Punta del Este

This chapter examines the relationship between residents’ posture towards tourism and the degree of acceptance of sports tourism in comparison to sun and beach tourism, maritime tourism (sailing and cruises), and nature tourism in the case of Punta del Este (Uruguay). The study of residents’ posture is important for the management of tourist destinations. Residents create a posture towards tourism through a cost–benefit analysis based on their perception of economic, social, cultural, and environmental impacts of tourism. The analysis of the data was carried out through partial least squares on a sample of 420 residents in Punta del Este. The fieldwork was carried out between March and August 2016. The main results of the analysis are as follows: the strongest causal relationship is between residents’ general posture and sun and beach tourism, followed by the causal relationship between general posture and sports tourism. The main conclusion is that a more tourism-friendly posture does not imply greater support for any type of tourism, as is the case in this study with regard to nature tourism. There is an important relationship between general posture and the acceptance of sports tourism, and this implies that by improving residents’ general posture, the enthusiasm for developing sports tourism also increases.

Nightlife sector from a gender point of view: The case of Ibiza

Abstract Tourism depends largely on the good will of local inhabitants and over the past decades many studies have been conducted concerning the attitudes of residents towards tourism. There is not much academic literature concerning nightlife, and in most cases the nightclubs are an element of a context in which another phenomenon is analyzed. There is a limited amount of literature analyzing the differences between men and women in their role as residents of a tourist destination, and there are also no studies concerning the attitudes of women towards nightlife. This paper intends to provide a first study of the attitudes of women towards the nightclubs, in the case of Ibiza Island. The analysis of the attitudes towards nightlife was carried out by means of an array of items integrated into a broader survey on attitudes of residents towards tourism. A total of 418 valid questionnaires were obtained, 266 of them were completed by women. Although the general view of the sector is negative, women are much more critical about the island’s nightlife. When breaking down the sample of women it can be seen that one part of women has similar opinions to those of men (Moderates), mainly those that depend economically on the sector, but the other part has very contrary opinions (Haters). Women have a more conservative and adverse stance towards risk than men, and they are more contrary to offers that may have a significant negative impact on local society, as would be the case for nightclubs.

The Influence of Institutional Environment on Quality Management in Hotels

The purpose of this investigation is to study the link between Institutional Theory and quality practices in three, four and five star hotels located in Galicia (in northwest Spain). This investigation aims to characterize the institutional environment of these hotels, which will allow the various determinants explaining the implementation of quality management practices to be measured. To achieve these objectives, a research model that links the pressures of the institutional context with quality practices, and the latter with legitimacy, was developed and used. A quantitative study was carried out in which the referred model was applied to a sample of the hotel population using the partial least squares (PLS) technique and Visual-PLS software. The primary results of this investigation show that the hotels are incorporated in an institutional context mainly marked by normative pressure. This pressure tries to determine the norms and values through the accreditation of their behaviour. However, legitimacy and social support are the result of the behaviour of the hotels under study. It is important to note that the originality of this work derives from the set of main contributions based on the theoretical framework, Institutional Theory, objects under study and geographical area (the higher rank hotels in Galicia); the socio-economic context marked by the economic crisis; and the type of hotel entities (private and profit making).