Yüksel Öztürk

Tourism Growth, National Development and Regional Inequality in Turkey

The introduction of international tourism as an economic growth strategy in Turkey is relatively recent, and Turkey has experienced rapid tourism growth in terms of volume and value. Despite the significant progress in these respects, tourism has contributed little to development. Instead, it has increased the rate of economic growth at the expense of equality among regions and classes. This paper examines the impacts of intensive coastal tourism growth on the development of rural regions in particular and national development in general. It concludes that spatial concentrations of mass tourism investment induced by tourism incentive policies in relatively developed coastal regions have increased disparities among regions and classes.

The effects of employee empowerment on employee job satisfaction: A study on hotels in Turkey

Purpose – The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of employee empowerment on job satisfaction. To serve this purpose, empowerment is taken into consideration as two dimensions – i.e. behavioral and psychological – and the effect of employee empowerment on the level of job satisfaction was examined by taking these two dimensions into consideration as a whole and separately.Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was employed in order to collect data on job satisfaction as well as behavioral and psychological empowerment. The data collected were analyzed through correlation and regression analyses. The study covered 1,854 participants employed at five‐star hotels in Turkey.Findings – The findings suggest that the most positive aspects related to job satisfaction are relations with the colleagues and physical conditions, while the most negative aspect is the wage issue, i.e. unfair payment. Furthermore, correlation and regression analyses indicate that psychological and behavioral e...

Tourism Education in Turkey and Implications for Human Resources

ABSTRACT This study presents a critical review of the tourism education system and its structure in Turkey. After reviewing the actual and potential problems of tourism education, and their causes, the study then considers the implications for the management of human resources in the Turkish tourism industry. The study underlines the importance of tourism education in delivering the quality of service that is necessary for Turkey to compete with other destinations in the Mediterranean region where similar touristic attractions are provided. The study suggests that without appropriate human resource management strategies, the desired economic and social benefits of tourism will not be realized. The study concludes with policy recommendations for improving the quality of human resource management in tourism in Turkey.

A Study on the Travel Patterns of Physically Disabled People

The main objective of this paper is to highlight the travel patterns and experiences of people with a physical disability. To understand better the travel needs of people with a physical disability, it is useful to examine how travel patterns differ across demographic variables. The method chosen for the empirical data collection was a self-completed web-based questionnaire, which was answered by a total of 596 physically disabled people. The data obtained were evaluated using frequency, percentage, arithmetic average, t-test, chi-square and factor analysis. The research findings reveal that people with physical disability in different demographics groups differ in their travel patterns.

Travel motivations of Iranian tourists to Turkey and their satisfaction level with all-inclusive package tours:

This study aims to investigate Iranian tourists’ travel motivations to Turkey and their satisfaction level with all-inclusive package tours to this country. Based on an in-depth literature review, a questionnaire was developed and data were collected from 383 Iranian tourists who stayed in resort hotels in Antalya, Turkey. The research findings reveal that entertainment, being a family friendly destination, weather, cultural resources and quality of resort hotels were the main motivational factors among Iranian tourists for visiting Turkey. Main reasons for the participants for selecting all-inclusive package tours include predetermined schedules, service quality, set price and elimination of extra spending. The research findings show a high level of satisfaction with all-inclusive package tours. However, there were differences among respondents based on gender and age. The study concludes with offering specific theoretical and practical implications. Suggestions for future research are also provided.

Lider-Üye Etkileşiminin Örgütsel Sessizlik Üzerindeki Etkisi: Konaklama İşletmelerinde Bir Araştirma - The Impact of Leader-Member Exchange on Organizational Silence: A Case Study on Hotel Managements

Competition has been increasing in the markets which are getting globalised. By getting various inputs from the outer surroundings and again by presenting outputs to outer surroundings organisations gets vastly affected by the changing inner and outer surroundings. In order for the organisations to survive in the competetive environment, they need to adapt to development and innovation and also increase the efficiency to the top level. In the modern organisations,managers who are constantly in the search,by reducing the hierarchy, as Asnakutlu (2002, p. 5) stated, have been increasing the communication between the managers and the employees and have been providing a part in the decision taking process for the employees.

Attitudes of mayors toward tourism in rural areas: The case of the Turkish rural municipalities

It is essential that attitudes of stakeholders towards tourism be examined in today’s extreme competition among the destinations. It is further essential to carefully analyze the stakeholders of destinations, which are going to be developed in rural areas and which plan to have a share in tourism gains. The objective of this study is to present the relationship between the attitudes of mayors towards tourism and tourism activities of rural municipalities during the participation of the stakeholders in rural areas which are selected as areas for alternative tourism development. To this end, two-phase research process is followed where, in the first phase, secondary sources are thoroughly examined and where, in the second phase, the relationship between the attitudes of mayors towards tourism and the activities of municipalities in rural areas is analyzed by the means of questionnaires conducted to the mayors. In the end of the research process, an intermediate relationship is identified between the attitudes of mayors towards tourism and the activities of municipalities towards tourism. In the context of research findings, certain suggestions are accordingly presented which might improve the mayors on tourism patterns and which might increase the level of participation of rural area municipalities in tourism.

The relationship between corporate and regional reputation management and purchasing behaviour: an application on tourists in Ankara region.

Nowadays, as a global phenomenon, the presence of communication between service-producing sectors and areas has become a significant subject in tourism. Reputation made up of an important part in the formation of the communication. It is also an essential factor in ensuring value for customers and their purchasing decisions. The businesses and regions with strong reputation reinforce this effect further in terms of better services. In the first part of the research, the conceptual framework related to the corporate reputation and purchasing behaviour has been given, and then the findings gained from data analysis concerning to the questionnaire, applied to tourists in Ankara, have been determined. Thus, it has been tried to put forward the effect of the reputation on purchasing behaviour. The main problem encountered in this study is to determine the impact of reputation on tourists who buy holiday packages. Within the scope of the study, suggestions have been made relating to the works that should be applied by both businesses and regional managers. The service quality is the most important factor in creating reputation of the businesses and destinations. The most influential dimension of reputation that affects purchasing behaviour of tourists was service.