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The purpose of this paper, a critical reflection, is twofold. First, by comprehensively reviewing scale development procedures in hospitality research, a concerning lack of nomological validity testing is demonstrated. Second, the need for nomological validity testing is discussed and both conceptually and empirically reasoned.

This research systematically reviews scale development studies in three leading hospitality journals, including Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management and International Journal of Hospitality Management over ten years (2012–2021) to analyze the completeness of scale development procedures. Specifically, the authors evaluate whether the reviewed studies engage in testing the nomological and predictive validity of the newly developed measures.

The results indicate a concerning gap in the current practices in hospitality research. Specifically, only 33.3% of the examined studies assess nomological validity. These findings collectively underscore the need for improving the comprehensiveness of scale development processes in hospitality research.

The study offers important implications for hospitality researchers. The paper provides an extensive discussion on the importance and benefits of testing for nomological validity in scale development studies, contributing to the completeness and consistency of scale development procedures in the hospitality discipline.

This research critically assesses prevalent, and widely accepted, scale development procedures in hospitality research. This research empirically demonstrates the neglect of nomological validity issues in scale development practices in hospitality research. Scale development is an essential scientific practice used to create a research instrument in a field of study, improving our understanding of a specific phenomenon and contributing to knowledge creation. Considering the significance of scale development in advancing the field of hospitality research, the validation procedures involved in the scale development processes are of utmost importance and should be thoroughly applied.

The study seeks to explore the intricate dynamics among customer relationship management (CRM) practices, guest satisfaction and loyalty in the hospitality context. Additionally, it aims to examine the moderating influence of guest engagement on the relationships between CRM practices and guest satisfaction and loyalty.

An integrated theoretical framework is developed by incorporating CRM practices and guest engagement into the satisfaction-loyalty framework. Two research instruments were adapted from the literature to assess the perspectives of customers and employees in the hotel industry in Kashmir. The customer survey measured guest satisfaction, loyalty, and engagement, while the employee survey focused on CRM practices, including key customer focus and CRM organization. Data was collected using a pen-and-paper survey with convenience sampling across 10 qualifying hotels, each classified as 3-star or above. A total of 270 matched responses from guests and employees were obtained and analyzed using descriptive analysis, structural equation modeling (SEM), and moderation analysis with SPSS and AMOS software. The study utilized a rigorous data matching process to ensure reliability, with guest-employee pairs verified and cross-checked with hotel records.

The results indicate CRM practices play a pivotal role in shaping guest satisfaction and loyalty. Notably, personalization and a targeted customer approach emerged as the most influential factors in enhancing tourist satisfaction. Similarly, prospecting, personalization, and effective knowledge management significantly contributed to visitor loyalty. The establishment of robust relationships is underscored through collaborative active guest engagement. Furthermore, the study highlights the nuanced relationship between satisfaction and loyalty moderated by guest engagement. High levels of guest engagement amplify the positive impact of satisfaction on loyalty, while lower engagement levels attenuate this effect. Moreover, the moderating influence of guest engagement on the relationships between CRM practices and guest satisfaction and CRM practices and guest loyalty was notably strong at elevated guest engagement levels and relatively weaker at lower engagement levels.

While the study findings encourage organizations to prioritize customer relationship development, hospitality entities must emphasize the adoption of CRM philosophy and robust guest engagement measures. Actively involving guests in co-creating services can yield incremental benefits in terms of attracting, retaining, and effectively serving guests.

This study introduces novel dimensions to the existing CRM framework within the hospitality context, specifically exploring the impact of hotel-specific elements (personalization and prospecting) on customer satisfaction and loyalty. Furthermore, it innovatively investigates the moderating role of guest engagement in the satisfaction-loyalty relationship, expanding its scope to include the relationships between CRM practices and guest satisfaction and guest loyalty.

Counter-hedonic entertainment, characterized by evoking negative emotions in consumers, has emerged as one of the most popular and profitable forms of entertainment in Western countries. However, this entertainment type is not as popular in China as in Western countries. This study examines whether the free trial of counter-hedonic entertainment can promote the consumption of such entertainment and explores the moderating effect of contextual factors on this relationship.

This study investigates the promotional effectiveness of the free trial strategy on counter-hedonic entertainment through a quasi-experiment involving the broadcasting of a large-scale free counter-hedonic program. This study has analyzed the counter-hedonic consumption data from 31 major cities in China and employed econometric modeling to test the hypotheses.

Results show that the free trial of counter-hedonic entertainment can promote the sales of entertainment with similar categories. The follow-up moderation analyses show that the positive effect is amplified on days with less sunlight and for consumers with abundant (vs scarce) financial resources, thereby providing evidence to support the underlying drivers of the positive effect – the need for arousal and confidence frame. Meanwhile, the free trial of counter-hedonic entertainment also has a long-term effect after airing.

Based on existing research on consumers’ counter-hedonic consumption motivation, this study confirms the effectiveness and boundary conditions of the free trial strategy in promoting counter-hedonic entertainment consumption for the first time. The results also offer actionable insights for counter-hedonic entertainment marketers and practitioners.

The effects of country-of-origin (COO) cues on product evaluations are well documented. However, research on the relative effects of COO compared to other geographical indicators, such as region-of-origin (ROO), on food purchases is still limited. This study investigates how geographical origin labels influence consumers' perceptions of product value and authenticity of foreign food, as well as subsequent purchase intention (PI) and willingness to pay premium prices (WTPPP). The moderating role of health consciousness on these relationships is also examined due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

This study uses a between-subjects experimental design conducted with 300 middle- and high-income Chinese consumers aged between 25 and 50 years. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modelling.

Whilst under both COO and ROO cues, all five product values positively influenced consumers' WTPPP, only functional, economic and novelty values influenced PI. The ROO cue performed significantly better than the COO cue in eliciting functional, economic and novelty value perceptions, which triggered stronger PI and willingness to pay a premium price. These relationships were mediated by product authenticity (PA) and moderated by consumers' health consciousness (HC).

Because food labels provide salient product information that facilitates consumers' evaluation of products, marketers should assess which product value perceptions they wish to enhance and then choose the appropriate geographical indicators for their labelling strategies.

This study identifies the effects of COO and ROO cues on product values, authenticity, PI and WTPPP. It also provides valuable insights into the role of HC on consumers' purchase decisions, which also aids in understanding the impact of global crises on food purchases.