Search results

This paper aims to investigate the internal factors of resources and capabilities of five born globals (BGs) from Estonia. It explores quantitatively the internal factors between a medium BG and four small BGs.

The study used a survey questionnaire in collecting information from the CEOs of BGs. The questionnaire consisted of 105 questions relevant to export sales related to differences in internal factors.

The firms’ size and industrial sector play a role in export sales due to differences in internal factors. Small BGs expect financially based rewards, non-financial rewards, the job satisfaction of sales representatives with the export manager, and with work in general, and the representatives’ job satisfaction is higher in the small BGs than in the medium BG. The sales representatives’ job performance, their work performance, sales presentations, technical knowledge, adaptiveness, teamwork, planning, support, the organisational capabilities for business identification, relationship-building and innovation are all higher in medium BGs than in small BGs. Eleven sub-constructs of the model were shown to be important for small BGs.

The current study is focused on BGs from Estonia, i.e. small BGs and medium BGs. The study contributes to the internal factors of resources and capabilities of BGs as well as to the literature review on BGs. It also provides a logical conceptual model, indicating that the export manager’s job satisfaction is the central construct influenced by antecedent factors and is related directly to the export sales performance of the BG.

This study aims to investigate the antecedents of the internationalisation strategy i.e., effectuation, causation and bricolage on the international performance of the firm.

In total, the study uses 138 peer-reviewed articles on effectuation, causation, effectual/causal decision-making logics and related issues such as the impact of antecedent factors of international strategy (i.e. effectuation, causation and bricolage) on the international performance of the firm.

Even though the theory of effectuation was formulated in 2001, to a large extent it has still not moved away from the realm of small entrepreneurial firms. The development of effectuation logic has accelerated in recent years, but the bulk of the research still focusses on small entrepreneurial firms rather than on the application of the theory in larger, non-entrepreneurial firms. Furthermore, effectuation theory would benefit from being developed into the realm of psychology and sociology.

This study offers a conceptual model on how effectuation, causation and bricolage influence internationalisation strategy, which, in turn, impacts the international performance of the firm. Furthermore, the study discusses the effectual logic for larger firms. The exponential growth of studies on effectuation during recent years, i.e. 2017 to the first quarter of 2020, shows that researchers have responded to calls by leading authors stating that effectuation theory is a field with great potential for further theoretical developments. This study presents a literature review of the critical issue of the engagement of internationalisation strategies with effectuation, causation, bricolage and the international performance of the firm compared to the earlier literature review for the period 2001–2016 by Matalamäki (2017) and Karami et al. (2019) on effectuation and internationalisation.

This study aims to develop a new internationalisation model to describe the exporting and non-exporting behaviours of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and then applying it to a sample of UK SMEs. The conceptual model consists of four forces leading to a successful business.

The sample is a stratified one taken from KOMPASS directory and focussing on the Greater Manchester area. In total, 250 firms were chosen to be the population of this survey. In total, 110 surveys were received by email i.e. 24 non-exporters and 86 exporters that were fully completed.

The four forces of the model include the non-exporting activity, the activity before and after the first export order, differences and similarities between non-exporters and exporters and the regular exporting activity. This model’s findings demonstrate important empirical determinants related to four forces, which, in turn, shape the successful exporting activity.

The empirical evidence from the study suggests that the major differences between non-exporters and exporters, which include the differences in management perceptions towards exporting, and the differences and similarities of firm and management characteristics, explain only to some degree what constitutes successful exporting behaviour. The model is considered useful for smaller businesses located in the UK. The study highlights the importance of firms before and after the first export order, which provides insights for managers of firms about going through with the first export order rather than withdrawing from this effort. The study reveals the motivations for exporting, the timing, the modes through which firms export, firms’ management characteristics and attitudinal differences between exporters and non-exporters, which are essential for practitioners.

The purpose of this study is to test Kim et al.’s (2012) seven-dimension memorable tourism experience (MTE) scale in a new context and with a new sample. In addition, the study aims to test for causes or relationships between satisfaction, MTE dimensions, co-creative tourism experiences and memorability, as well as the mediating effect of memorability on tourists’ behavioural intention.

This study uses a cross-sectional survey design using a questionnaire to collect data. Three trained interviewers questioned international travellers in the boarding area in Olbia-Costa Smeralda Airport while they were waiting to board their flights home. The interviewers also distributed and administered the questionnaires. The questionnaire was in English. Data collection was carried out from August to October 2017.

In terms of the theoretical implications of this study, its findings result in a different MTE construct than that of Kim et al.’s (2012) study. Although they discuss seven important experiential tourism factors that are likely to affect the memorability of a person’s experience, what emerges from the present research is that satisfaction, novelty, refreshment, involvement and knowledge significantly influence the memorability of a tourist’s experience.

This study has some limitations. First, it is highly site-specific and based on a convenience sample, rendering the findings non-generalizable to either the destination under investigation or any other tourism destination. Further studies should be conducted in other Mediterranean cities to generalise the significance of these findings. Although English can be considered the primary international language, the fact that the survey has been written only in English could have excluded non-English speakers from participating in the study. In addition, the study has not considered national domestic tourists. In the future, translating the survey into different languages and interviewing domestic tourists visiting the island might be useful.

Tourism service providers could gather feedback forms from tourists to measure and improve their satisfaction. Additionally, the multiplicity of actors involved in the tourism sector should coordinate and cooperate with one another to create tourism experiences that result in high overall visitor satisfaction. Tourism service providers could also offer new and diverse encounters, for example, the chance to attend local festivals to arouse curiosity, as studies suggest that such novel activities make the experiences particularly memorable. Public officials should also focus on site rejuvenation to appeal to novelty seekers who have visited previously.

Overall, the study highlights the discrepancies in the effects of satisfaction, MTE dimensions and co-creative tourism experience on the memorability of a trip experience in relation to previous studies. The results of the analysis refute the assumption that the seven MTE dimensions are representative across a variety of destination-specific tourist experiences. Besides the identified five dimensions, opening up the discussion on other factors that might influence the memorability of tourists’ experiences presents an updated agenda.

本研究的目的是在新的环境中用新的样本测试Kim等人（2012年）的七维MTE量表。此外, 该研究旨在测试满意度、MTE 维度、共同创意的旅游体验和纪念品之间的原因或关系, 以及纪念品对游客行为意图的中介作用。

本研究采用横截面调查设计, 使用问卷收集数据。三名经过培训的采访者在奥尔比亚-科斯塔斯梅拉达机场的登机区询问等待登机回家国际旅客。面试官还负责分发和管理英文问卷。数据收集工作于2017年8月至10月进行。

就本研究的理论意义而言, 其发现得出了与Kim等人（2012年）研究不同的MTE结构。虽然他们讨论了七个重要的体验旅游因素, 可能影响一个人的体验的纪念性, 从目前的研究得到的是, 满意度, 新奇, 精力恢复, 参与和知识显著影响游客体验的纪念性。

这项研究有一些局限性。首先, 它高度基于特定的地点, 并且基于便利样本, 使得调查结果无法与此次调研的目的地或其他旅游目的地通用。未来应在其他地中海城市进行进一步的研究, 以概括这些发现的重要性。虽然英语被认为是主要的国际通用语言, 但仅以英文编写的调查问卷可能使非英语使用者无法参与研究。此外, 该研究没有考虑国内游客。未来研究可以将调查翻译成不同的语言并采访访问该岛的国内游客。

旅游服务提供者可以从游客那里收集反馈表, 以衡量和提高他们的满意度。此外, 旅游活动的多方参与者应相互协调和合作, 创造旅游体验, 使游客的总体满意度达到较高水平。研究表明, 新颖的活动可以使旅游经历特别令人难忘, 因此, 旅游服务提供者也可以提供新的和多样化的接触, 例如, 有机会参加当地节日以唤起好奇心。政府官员还应关注网站活力, 以吸引访问网站的新奇探索者。

总体而言, 该研究强调了满意度、MTE 维度和共同创意旅游体验对旅行体验的影响与之前研究相比的差异。分析结果驳斥了七个 MTE 维度在各种特定目的地的旅游体验中具有代表性的假设。除了讨论发现的五个维度外, 此研究对可能影响游客体验的可纪念性的其他因素展开了讨论, 推动并更新了现有的研究议程。

El propósito de este estudio es probar la escala MTE de Kim et al. (2012) y sus siete dimensiones, en un nuevo contexto y con una nueva muestra. Además, el objetivo del estudio es evaluar las causas o las relaciones entre, satisfacción, dimensiones MTE, experiencias co-creativas de turismo y la memorabilidad, así como el efecto mediador de la memorabilidad, en la intención de comportamiento de los turistas.

Este estudio emplea un diseño de encuesta transversal y utiliza un cuestionario para recopilar los datos. Tres entrevistadores interrogaron a viajeros internacionales en el área de embarque en el aeropuerto Olbia-Costa Smeralda, mientras esperaban en el embarque de sus vuelos de retorno. Los entrevistadores también distribuyeron y administraron los cuestionarios. El cuestionario estaba en inglés. La recolección de datos se realizó de agosto a octubre de 2017.

En términos de implicaciones teóricas del estudio, los resultados desprenden una construcción MTE diferente a la del estudio de Kim et al. (2012). Si bien, discuten los siete factores del turismo experiencial, que probablemente afecten a lo memorable de la experiencia de una persona. Lo que surge de la presente investigación es que, la satisfacción, la novedad, el refrigerio, la participación y el conocimiento influyen significativamente en en todo lo memorable de la experiencia de un turista.

Este estudio tiene algunas limitaciones. Primero, es altamente específico del sitio y se basa en una muestra de conveniencia, lo que hace que los hallazgos no sean generalizables, ni para el destino, bajo investigación, ni para ningún otro destino turístico. Se deben realizar más estudios en otras ciudades mediterráneas para poder generalizar la importancia de estos resultados. Aunque el inglés puede considerarse el principal idioma internacional, el hecho de que la encuesta se haya escrito solo en inglés podría haber excluido a los que no hablan inglés a la hora de participar en el estudio. Además, no se ha considerado a los turistas nacionales. En el futuro, podría ser útil traducir la encuesta a diferentes idiomas y entrevistar a los turistas nacionales que visitan la isla.

Los proveedores de servicios turísticos podrían recopilar formularios de comentarios de los turistas para medir y mejorar su satisfacción. Además, la multiplicidad de actores involucrados en el sector turístico debe coordinarse y cooperar entre sí para crear experiencias turísticas que resulten para una alta satisfacción de los visitantes. Los proveedores de servicios turísticos también podrían ofrecer nuevos y diversos encuentros; por ejemplo, la oportunidad de asistir a festivales locales para despertar curiosidad, ya que los estudios sugieren que actividades novedosas hacen que las experiencias sean particularmente memorables. Los funcionarios públicos también deberían centrarse en el rejuvenecimiento del sitio para atraer a los buscadores de novedades que hayan visitado anteriormente.

En general, el estudio destaca las discrepancias entre los efectos de la satisfacción, las dimensiones de MTE y la experiencia turística co-creativa en la memorabilidad de una experiencia de viaje en relación con estudios anteriores. Los resultados del análisis refutan la suposición de que las siete dimensiones MTE son representativas en una variedad de experiencias turísticas específicas del destino. Además de las cinco dimensiones identificadas, abrir la discusión sobre otros factores que podrían influir en la memorabilidad de las experiencias de los turistas presenta una agenda actualizada.

This study aims to examine internationalisation pathways of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) based on a sample from Manchester, UK, and it provides an exercise theory testing of the Uppsala model with data from SMEs from Manchester. It investigates the existence of new internationalisation pathways and the parallel use of four dimensions, namely, export intensity, export destination, time dimension and number of export markets.

The suggested model of international pathways is developed based on a survey of 110 firms located in the Greater Manchester area. The study of the population was based on a stratified sample of firms included in the KOMPASS directory in the Greater Manchester area. t-Test analysis was performed on combinations of the six pathways.

The results reveal that SMEs follow a pattern of internationalisation pathways consisting of non-exporters, traditional small exporters, traditional medium exporters, accelerated medium exporters, born globals and declining exporters. The paper concludes that the Uppsala model does not apply in this study.

There is evidence of a new pathway, i.e. accelerated medium exporters and the CEOs of Manchester SMEs, and governmental authorities in the UK should consider targeting this group or developing appropriate export promotion programmes.

This paper aims to shed light on how small- and medium-sized enterprises can use export promotion programmes (EPPs) to improve their performance. The proposed conceptual model focuses on the need that the mechanism of awareness and use of EPPs should play a more active strategic role in shaping the firm’s export performance.

A meta-analysis of the pertinent literature reveals 16 studies on EPPs.

This study reveals that there are 16 relationships which are important based on the meta-analytic correlations. The analysis of these relationships shows that EPPs, export performance, strategy, knowledge, commitment, capabilities, competitive advantage and experience are the mostly used constructs.

This investigation supports the view that the moderating effects of the improvement of trust relationship between partners, i.e. importers to exporter and public policymakers to exporter, and the mechanism of awareness and use of EPPs accelerate the firm’s export performance. EPPs explain 31.3 per cent of the variance in export performance indicating their catalytic role in the exports’ growth.

This paper aims to propose a new model of memorable Airbnb experiences that was tested by examining the effects of the novelty of the experience, experience co-creation, hospitableness and facility service quality on memorable Airbnb experiences. This study also examined the impact of such experiences on hedonic well-being.

Using an online survey questionnaire on Amazon Mechanical Turk, we gathered data from 214 international tourists who stayed in an Airbnb rental property during the three months preceding the time of data collection (November 2020–January 2021).

This study confirmed that novelty of the experience, experience co-creation, hospitableness and facility service quality are key variables in the formation of tourists’ memorable Airbnb experiences and that the latter further influences tourists’ hedonic well-being.

Airbnb guests should not be viewed as passive agents but as active producers of their own consumption experiences. Airbnb hosts should, thus, be highly involved when their guests want to co-create their experiences by actively interacting with them. For example, hosts should make recommendations for dining and sightseeing.

This study contributed to the existing literature on memorable tourism experiences and Airbnb by furthering the understanding of the antecedents of memorable Airbnb experiences and of the mediating effect of memorable Airbnb experience on hedonic well-being.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the symbolic representations of non-users compared to the life experiences of users related to a luxury brand. In particular, the study examines whether product design mediates the relationship between antecedent factors of country-of-origin effect and product experience, and it also investigates the moderating effects of reference groups (non-users vs users) on the relationship between antecedent factors of country-of-origin effect and product design related to a luxury brand, namely, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class or E-Series.

A sample of convenience of 272 persons classified as non-users and users is investigated. An online questionnaire was used and 28 statements are included in the analysis based on a seven-point Likert scale.

The study reveals that the country-of-origin effect for the model of non-users and users has a very good fit with current data and is statistically significant. It also reveals that all relationships are significant except for price consciousness to product design and for brand familiarity to price consciousness. There is also partial mediation of product design between antecedent factors and product experience. Furthermore, the moderating effect of reference groups appears to play an important role, as it impacts the relationship between antecedent factors of the country-of-origin effect and product design/product experience.

This study indicates that the non-users’ group based on the hypothetical purchases of a luxury brand with a strong country image has a different country-of-origin effect to the users’ group of the same luxury brand. Moreover, the study concludes that there are statistically significant differences between the non-users’ group versus users’ group of a luxury brand (Mercedes-Benz), and these differences are concerned with the constructs of brand familiarity, brand commitment, product design and product experience. Finally, the study reveals that “price consciousness” is not relevant for luxury brands. Managerial implications, limitations of the study and future research directions are discussed.

This study proposed and tested a new conceptual model of memorable volunteer tourism experiences (MVTEs) by examining the effects of novelty, meaningfulness, experience co-creation and experience intensification on MVTEs. It also examined the relationships among MVTEs, psychological resilience (PR) and behavioural intention (BI), including that between novelty and BI.

The study modelled the proposed relationships by analysing data from an online survey using Amazon Mechanical Turk. In total, 241 responses were used in the data analysis.

This study extended the MVTE construct and included four key antecedents that influence tourists' MVTEs. The study also documented the predictive capability of MVTEs for PR and BI.

Volunteer tourism organisations should offer new and diverse activities for volunteer tourists, such as nature conservation, wildlife protection and construction.

This is the first study to examine the antecedents and outcomes of MVTEs using the stimuli–organism–response theory.

This study aims to examine the relationships among the dimensions of consumption values (functional, social and emotional), co-creation, information overload, satisfaction and continuance intention derived from the use of the Airbnb platform.

A Web-based survey was conducted among Italians, and a valid sample of 259 persons was obtained for data analysis.

The survey results indicated that only functional value and social value are strong predictors of satisfaction in the use of the Airbnb website for accommodation booking. Co-creation and absence of information overload also contribute to satisfaction with using the Airbnb website for accommodation booking, which in turn affects continuance intention.

The findings of this study are highly destination-specific, given that the authors collected the data only from Italian residents. The sample was based on a snowball sampling technique; thus, the study findings could be misrepresented because of sampling selection bias. Moreover, the study was limited to the use of three dimensions of consumption values, co-creation, information overload and satisfaction to predict continuance intention. Furthermore, the present study adopted a Web-based survey questionnaire.

Managerial implications include recommendations for hosts to emphasise their prices when listing accommodations on the Airbnb website and to focus on active interaction with potential guests. Information on the website should also be organised to avoid information overload.

This study allows a deeper understanding of users’ continuance intention with regards to the Airbnb website by exploring the possible determinants.

本研究考察了消费价值（功能、社会和情感方面）、共同创造、信息超载、满意度与Airbnb平台持续参与使用之间的关系。

研究对意大利人进行了网上调查, 得到了259份有效的抽样数据并进行分析。

调查结果显示, 只有功能价值和社会价值才能强烈预测Airbnb网站住宿预订的满意度。共同创造和信息不超载也有助于使用Airbnb网站进行住宿预订的满意度, 这又会影响网站的持续参与使用。

这项研究的结果受地域限制, 因为我们只收集了意大利居民的数据。该样本基于滚雪球采样技术, 因此, 由于抽样选择偏差, 研究结果可能被歪曲。该研究还仅限于使用消费价值、共同创造、信息超载和满意度三个维度来预测持续参与使用。此外, 网上调查问卷的发放也可能会影响问卷的质量。

本研究的管理意义包括建议房东在Airbnb网站上列出住宿时强调价格, 并专注于与潜在客人的积极互动。房东还应组织网站上的信息, 以避免信息超载。

这项研究通过探索可能的决定因素, 更深入地了解用户对Airbnb网站的持续参与使用。

Este estudio examina las relaciones entre las dimensiones de los valores de consumo (funcional, social y emocional), co-creación, sobrecarga de información, satisfacción e intención de continuidad, derivada del uso de la plataforma Airbnb.

Se realizó una encuesta “en línea”, entre italianos, y se obtuvo para el análisis de datos, una muestra válida de 259 personas.

Los resultados de la encuesta indicaron, que solo el valor funcional y el valor social, son fuertes predictores de la satisfacción en el uso del sitio web de Airbnb a la hora de hacer reservas de alojamiento. La creación conjunta y la ausencia de sobrecarga de información, también contribuyen a la satisfacción de usar el sitio web de Airbnb, para reservar alojamiento, lo que a su vez afecta la intención de continuidad.

Los resultados de este estudio son específicos para un destino, dado que la recolección de los los datos solo se efectúo sobre residentes italianos. La muestra final, se obtuvo con una técnica de muestreo de bolas de nieve; por lo tanto, los resultados del estudio podrían tergiversarse debido al sesgo de selección de muestreo. Además, el estudio se limitó al uso de tres dimensiones de valores de consumo, co-creación, sobrecarga de información y satisfacción para predecir la intención de continuidad. Además, el presente estudio adoptó un cuestionario de encuesta basado en la web.

Las implicaciones gerenciales incluyen recomendaciones para que los anfitriones resalten sus precios, al enumerar alojamientos de Airbnb y centrarse en la interacción activa con posibles huéspedes. La información en el sitio web también debe organizarse para evitar la sobrecarga de información.

Este estudio permite una comprensión más profunda sobre la intención de continuidad de los usuarios con respecto al sitio web de Airbnb, al explorar los posibles determinantes que la afectan.