Visitor interactions with hotel employees: the role of nationality

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Girish Prayag ◽  
Chris Ryan
Keyword(s):  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hotel Employees ◽  
Tourism Product ◽  
Textual Data ◽  
Construct Theory ◽  
Staff Interactions ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThis paper aims to report the results of a study into visitor evaluations of interactions with hotel employees in Mauritius. Given that the island's core tourism product is based on luxury resorts, tourist‐hotel employee interactions possess a potential for determining satisfactory or unsatisfactory holiday evaluations on the part of visitors.Design/methodology/approachA sample of 103 visitors is interviewed using a semi‐structured guide comprising open‐ended questions. This approach reflects the lived experiences of guests and helps to better assess the role played by nationality when reporting visitor‐staff interactions. Data are analyzed using both thematic analysis and textual analysis software.FindingsNationality, ethnicity and languages spoken are found to be factors that determine differences in requirements from hotel staff on the part of tourists. Nationality is the strongest discriminator of these requirements.Research limitations/implicationsAs with many examples of qualitative research, the findings are time and place specific. Yet nonetheless, the concepts of personal construct theory permit some generalization.Practical implicationsResort complex staff and management need to note the differences required by guests of different national groupings, and to appreciate that less than warm responses by some clients are not indicative of dissatisfaction.Originality/valueThe paper distinguishes between guests not only on the basis of nationality and ethnicity, but also languages spoken. No similar study relating to resort complexes in Mauritius has been identified. The study also uses two modes of textual data analysis to support the interpretation offered.

scholarly journals Identity play and the stories we live by

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (5) ◽  
pp. 683-695
Author(s):  
Babak Ghaempanah ◽  
Svetlana N. Khapova
Keyword(s):  
Identity Construction ◽  
Narrative Identity ◽  
Self Concept ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Personal Constructs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Dialogical Self ◽  
Construct Theory

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to advance our understanding of identity play process by including the stories we live by in depth. Over the past decade, identity play literature has placed more emphasis on the role of self-narratives. Yet, the “stories we live by”, including the told or untold stories of past and imagined events of the future, have not been considered in depth in these self-narratives.Design/methodology/approachThis conceptual paper draws on the personal construct theory, narrative identity and constructivist psychotherapy literatures and attempts to include the stories we live by in scholarly conceptualizations and explorations of identity play processes.FindingsDrawing on the personal construct theory, narrative identity and constructivist psychotherapy literatures this paper offers a comprehensive conceptual model of how the stories we live by infuse individual identity construction processes. The model highlights the inter-connectivity among stories we live by, identity play, identity work, sensemaking and social validation. Looking through the lens of the personal construct theory and taking these inter-connectivities into account lead to the observation of temporality in identity construction and the plurivocality of self-narratives.Originality/valueThis paper looks at identity play through the lens of the personal construct theory. However, self-narratives are seen as a medium for manifestation of personal constructs. Thus, this paper also draws on the narrative identity literature and dialogical-self concept, which helps access the multiplicity of the self-narratives to widen our grasp of personal constructs. This paper combines discourse of deconstruction with the dialogical-self concept and provides more means for the explication of identity play.

scholarly journals A personal construct approach to employability: comparing stakeholders’ implicit theories

2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 390-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stella Williams ◽  
Anatoli Karypidou ◽  
Catherine Steele ◽  
Lorna Dodd
Keyword(s):  
Group Process ◽  
Implicit Theories ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Differential Analysis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Emotional Management ◽  
Construct Theory ◽  
Grid Technique ◽  
The Uk

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to adopt the perspective of personal construct theory to conceptualise employability. The study explores differences in the implicit employability theories of those involved in developing employability (educators) and those selecting and recruiting higher education (HE) students and graduates (employers).Design/methodology/approachA repertory grid technique (RGT) was employed to uncover the implicit theories of 22 employers and 14 educators across the UK.FindingsA total of 717 constructs were elicited. A differential analysis of data gathered demonstrated several areas of consensus among employers and educators (including emotional management, confidence, professionalism), as well as divergence in representations of commitment, proactivity, interpersonal competencies and vision to the conceptualisation of employability.Practical implicationsFindings from this analysis indicate a need to integrate group process assessments within undergraduate programmes and recruitment procedures.Originality/valueThis study represents a personal construct approach to employability, utilising the unique value of RGT to further inform our understanding of employability within an HE context. This study contributes to an understanding of employability as a continually re-constructed concept. This study provides insights to its nature via two information rich cases that have extensive knowledge on the topic.

Personal Constructs in School Psychology

1987 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Reynolds ◽  
Henry L. Janzen
Keyword(s):  
School Psychology ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Personal Constructs ◽  
Positive Aspect ◽  
Construct Theory ◽  
Grid Technique

George Kelly's personal construct theory and Rep Grid technique was followed to analyse perceptions of some aspects of the role of psychologist in the schools. Differences in role subsystems for ‘trainees’ and ‘experts’ were examined in the light of personal construct corollaries. Subjects were 23 ‘trainees’ and 15 ‘experts’. Investigation of the results indicated tentative support for the existence of a specific subsystem for the role of psychologist in the schools. Subjects who had previous work experience were able to make more extreme and consistent characterizations than their inexperienced counterparts. More agreement was evident for both groups when role descriptions contained a positive aspect.

Goal-Setting Protocol in Adherence to Exercise by Italian Adults

2002 ◽  
Vol 94 (2) ◽  
pp. 453-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
James J. Annesi
Keyword(s):  
Goal Setting ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Exercise Maintenance ◽  
Construct Theory ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Practical Implications

A goal-setting protocol, based on research in goal setting and performance and personal construct theory, was tested for its effect on adherence to a new exercise program. The Goal-setting group ( n = 50) had significantly less dropout (30%) than the control group ( n = 50) (74%). The Goal-setting group also had significantly better attendance ( p<.0001). Suggestions for increasing confidence in findings through further research and practical implications of using the protocol to improve exercise maintenance across settings were discussed.

Aesthetic Development in Music: An Experiment in the Use of Personal Construct Theory

1990 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 173-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liz Gilbert
Keyword(s):  
Peer Groups ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Aesthetic Response ◽  
Aesthetic Development ◽  
Teacher Researcher ◽  
Construct Theory ◽  
The Aesthetic

This paper examines Kelly's Personal Construct Theory (PCT) as a means of researching the development of the aesthetic response to the perception of music. It takes the techniques of association and construct elicitation derived from PCT as a means of investigating pupil responses, and attempts to shed some light both on the way pupils perceive their peer groups' compositions and on the role of the teacher/researcher in the assessment process.

scholarly journals Does “mentoring” offer effective support to autistic adults? A mixed-methods pilot study

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 229-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Martin ◽  
Damian Elgin Maclean Milton ◽  
Tara Sims ◽  
Gemma Dawkins ◽  
Simon Baron-Cohen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Study ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Autistic People ◽  
Construct Theory

Purpose The Research Autism Cygnet Mentoring project was a two-year pilot study, completed in 2016, which aimed to develop, trial and evaluate a mentoring scheme designed with input from autistic people, their families and supporters. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The mentoring scheme involved 12 matched pairs (mentor/mentee) meeting once per week for one hour, over a six-month period. All mentors attended a training day, led by the principles of personal construct theory and an emancipatory research ethos. The project and training involved significant involvement of autistic people in both its design and delivery. Findings Participants on the autism spectrum found their mentoring experience very helpful in enabling them to progress towards self-identified goals, and mentees felt empowered by the person-centred ethos and the methods employed on the project. However, a number of aspects of the mentoring project have been identified that require further investigation, including: caution over offering mentoring without formal structures, boundary setting, supervision, flexibility and the matching of mentees with mentors. Originality/value The project has highlighted the potential benefits of time-limited goal-orientated mentoring and the negligible evidence base underpinning current mentoring practice with adults on the autism spectrum. In order for the project to realise its emancipatory aim, there is a need for a large-scale quantitative study and a health-economics analysis to provide the necessary evidence base for mentoring to be recommended as a cost-effective intervention with clear benefits for individual wellbeing.

Experiences Conducting Cross-Cultural Research

2011 ◽  
pp. 85-102
Author(s):  
M. Gordon Hunter
Keyword(s):  
Information Systems ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Personal Construct ◽  
Chief Information Officers ◽  
Personal Construct Theory ◽  
Cultural Research ◽  
Cross Cultural Research ◽  
Construct Theory ◽  
Systems Analysts

When conducting cross-cultural investigations, it is incumbent upon the information systems researcher to be prepared to reflect upon the differences between the frameworks of the researcher and the research participants. Three cross-cultural projects are discussed in this article. The first project, investigating systems analysts, employs the Repertory Grid from personal construct theory (Kelly, 1955, 1963). The second and third projects both employ narrative inquiry (Bruner, 1990). The second project investigates the use of information systems by small business and relies upon multiple regional researchers. The third project, which is currently on-going, investigates the emerging role of chief information officers and is a single researcher venture. These projects have contributed to the information systems field of study and are presented here to provide researchers with ideas for further qualitative cross-cultural investigations.

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