Christopher S. Dutt

• PhD
• Associate Professor and Programme Leader at ARIU with the University of Derby

Blockchain is one of the latest network-based technologies, which will have significant impact on most industries including tourism. Even though blockchain technology is at the infancy stage of development, tools such as cryptocurrencies, smart contracts, and Decentralised Applications have begun to influence tourism transactions. This paper makes...

Mystery shopping are a method of quality management that is utilized often in a variety of businesses. A holistic definition of a mystery shopper is, however, unclear. Literature relating to mystery shoppers was reviewed and analyzed through content analysis, to develop criteria which can be used to define a mystery shopper. The various traits iden...

The interconnected nature of tourism suggests it can offer alternative solutions and perspectives to a variety of situations which have hitherto been unexplored. This research reviews the extant literature pertinent to community tourism to explore potential gaps present, with a particular focus on the suggested impact upon expatriates. A number of...

Few studies exist which have explored the impact of Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) on their host. Of these that have explored the impact on the host, only limited generalizable findings have been offered. The field of VFR has already been found to be misunderstood and under-represented in many areas. The influence on expatriate-hosts' learnin...

The study was designed to explore how Expo 2020, as one of the first mega-events to be hosted in the Middle East, was undertaking steps to avoid many of the negatives of such events, termed mega-event syndrome (MES). A qualitative approach was adopted, where 5 elite face-to-face interviews were conducted with senior officials within Expo 2020 who c...

The study of residents’ perceptions and attitudes towards tourism has received considerable interest over the years. While much agreement has been found, there are also several areas of disagreement and noteworthy gaps that affect our understanding of residents’ attitudes toward tourism. This discussion reviews some of the existing findings of past...

With an increasingly digital world, the rate of technological adoption and rejection is only likely to increase. As educators, we are duty-bound to ensure that our students are exposed to technologies to help support their education and prepare them for the new world and industry they will face. This Lecturer's Lounge intends to offer an opportunit...

Virtual reality (VR) is a topic of growing interest. While many researchers have identified factors that influence satisfaction with VR, additional important factors remain uninvestigated. In our research model, system quality, presence, and authenticity influence two mediating variables of enjoyment and usefulness of information. Enjoyment (a hedo...

The tourism industry will be shaped by the growth and development of the metaverse in the coming decades. Virtual reality (VR) will enable the creation of virtual worlds, avatars, digital twins, and new social networks. These technologies can be utilized in tourism to enable travelers to preview real-world experiences, to enhance experiences while...

Purpose This paper examines why individuals start their hospitality careers by becoming temporary lifeguards while aspiring to later promotion. It reports data from young people working in one major upmarket hotel chain that operates in the Gulf but has a global reach. This study aims to address issues regarding this often-overlooked career path fo...

Given the scope of tourism and hospitality, this economic sector has a significant role to play in the global effort to become more sustainable. As more initiatives are discussed and implemented to promote sustainability, such as the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and the regular emissions cuts promised in various COP summits, the...

Sharing and exchanging knowledge among workers in organizations has received considerable attention in the literature, whereas knowledge seeking attitudes and behavior are less reported. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study of knowledge seeking by hotel employees in Dubai, UAE. Distinctive characteristics of hotel workforces in Dub...

Whilst numerous studies have explored residents' perceptions of tourism, there are three significant gaps with Social Exchange Theory (SET). First, the appropriateness and generalisability; second, the heterogeneity of host population perceptions; third, perceptions in non-Western empirical contexts. A mixed methods study was conducted , using 36 f...

The use of transnational education (TNE) is becoming increasingly popular around the world. Such forms of education offer international students with degrees from different countries while remaining in their home country. Frequently, universities offer degrees through branch campuses or strategic partnerships to support such international students....

Virtual Reality (VR) is becoming an increasingly important technology in a host of industries, including tourism. VR can provide virtual experiences before, during, or in lieu of real-world visits to tourism sites. Hence, providing authentic experiences is essential to satisfy guests with the site and technology. This study analyzes survey data usi...

The article explored factors influencing the adjustment of expatriates working in hotels in Dubai. Given the high number of expatriates in Dubai and the importance in ensuring their suitable adjustment-so as to avoid an emotionally and economically damaging failed expatriate assignment-research is needed to understand what elements affect their adj...

Due to China’s rapid economic growth in recent times, many worldwide destinations have begun to pay attention to the highly valued tourism source market for future exploration. However, there is a lack of research on Chinese tourists’ preferences and the factors affecting their choices of travel which should be reviewed. As a result, a quantita...

The OECD, UNWTO, and numerous countries national data-gathering organizations report that tourism, as an industry, underperforms in productivity compared to other industries. While not disagreeing with the comparison from having used standard productivity measurement tools, this paper challenges the rhetoric and implication that productivity growth...

This paper explores knowledge sharing practices among hotel workers in Dubai. Results from a survey administered to 853 employees in five hotels suggested that there was little desire or initiative by employees to share knowledge, in contrast with most literature. Workers may use more knowledge seeking behavior. Support for this assertion stems fro...

Purpose Airlines play a significant role in the international tourism system, yet research on airlines, notably air crew, is scant. Given the frequency with which air crew travel to destinations, understanding of their memories and experiences can have significant insights for destination marketing and management. Destination marketers could look a...

Cultural Distance – sometimes described as cultural friction (Hemmasi & Downes, 2013) – refers to the degree of difference, or similarity, that exists between two different cultures (Ahn & McKercher, 2015). When individuals from a similar cultures interact, for example Far East Asian, they would be said to have a low cultural distance. When those f...

The theory of mindfulness describes how individuals can be encouraged to be more aware of their environment, think more deeply about a situation or event, gain a clearer understanding, and leave a venue having a more enjoyable and satisfying experience (Dutt & Ninov, 2015). Having been applied in numerous settings, including heritage sites and muse...

Expatriation is the process through which individuals undertake work outside their own country for an extended period of time (Isakovic & Whitman, 2013). Other terms which are frequently used include migration and mobility, although these do refer to slightly different processes with their varying definitions debated – especially in terms of migran...

Purpose A continuous issue which plagues all service businesses is the process of handling complaints. Whilst the topic has been relatively well explored, extant literature has failed to fully explore how staff demographics influence the methods in which they manage complaints. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was adopted with se...

The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant business disruptions around the world, with travel and tourism being particularly impacted. In response, governments and businesses implemented drastic responses to reduce the impact of the virus and mitigate the corresponding loss in business. Through nine semi-structured interviews with senior hotel manage...

Numerous arguments exist in favour of flipping a class, where main theoretical learning takes place outside the classroom and class time is dedicated to practice and application. Efforts to understand the success of and students' support for such efforts is gaining ground and hold greater significance following the effects of COVID-19. A tourism ma...

Book review of Cynarski, W. J. (2020). Tourism of Martial Arts: Social-cultural perspective. Rzeszow: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Rzeszowkiego Accessible at: https://ejtr.vumk.eu/index.php/about/article/view/2147

Events tourism has been growing rapidly and has become one of the most common ways of attracting tourists to developing destinations. Hosting mega-events has become a means to achieve rapid development in a destination. Host-city residents are the first to feel the impact of hosting such events and are considered as key stakeholders. Results from a...

The growth of technology has resulted in the use of state-of-the-art systems such as artificial intelligence (AI) and robot-based applications and services in the hotel industry. Recently, there has been some discussion on the adoption of such technologies and their impact on hotels’ operational costs as well as the quality of service to customers....

The recruitment of managers are a key component to ensuring a satisfying customer experience. However, little is known about the recruitment methods followed in Dubai, one of the largest and fastest growing tourism destinations in the Middle East. Eleven interviews were conducted with restaurant managers in Dubai to understand the factors that infl...

As destinations develop, trade offs need to be made between the perceived benefits and costs related to tourism. The divide between perceived costs and benefits is clearly apparent in terms of socio-cultural impacts, where tourism can bring great benefits but also jeopardise the essence of a destination's culture. This is evident in Middle Eastern...

As the interest in cultural tourism continues to grow, there is increasing need to carefully assess the resilience and stability of cultural attractions. Through an analysis of secondary sources, two matrices were proposed to carefully assess the stability of cultural sites based upon their robustness and demand, and authenticity and commodificatio...

As the world becomes increasingly more connected and globalised, the impact of cultural perceptions on different daily aspects must be considered. Notably, subordinate's perceptions of leadership traits due to their cultural background is lacking empirical research. A quantitative survey of 160 participants from hotels in Dubai offered some insight...

Historically, the hospitality industry is considered to be a laggard in the update of digital technologies compared to its other service sector peers such as airlines, travel, telecom and banking. This paper highlights the emerging opportunity for the hotel industry provided by trending technology platforms to address this weakness. The concept of...

Mindfulness is the ability of an individual to actively process information surrounding them with the aim of using that information to draw distinctive or novel conclusions. By facilitating mindfulness, businesses can benefit from having a stronger competitive advantage, increased loyalty, and provide a more meaningful experience to their customers...

Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) has become an increasingly popular research area with more consideration being given to this lucrative market. However, much of the literature reports that VFR is still underestimated and underreported. At the same time, the number of expatriates has been increasing, further stimulating VFR travel. This study co...

Mindfulness is a relatively new theoretical area that has received little research focus. This is surprising, considering the wealth of benefits to individuals and businesses who adopt a mindful philosophy. The aim of this study was to reduce this gap in knowledge by attempting to understand how mindfulness affects tourists’ experiences while holid...

The design of an online questionnaire to research the impact of hosting VFR travellers on expatriate-hosts.

The topic of Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) has received relatively little consideration in extant literature. While the focus on VFR is increasing a number of gaps, consequently, still exist. Additionally, the role of expatriates in tourism also appears to be an under-researched topic. This study particularly focused on the impact of VFR tou...