The Moments of Truth: A Qualitative Exploration of Service Interactions Between Employees with Disabilities in the Food Service Industry, and Their Customers
Date
Authors
Doan, Tin
Mooney, Shelagh
Kim, Peter B
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Abstract
This research, using in-depth qualitative interviews, aimed to disentangle the meanings of service interactions perceived by both employees with disabilities (EWDs), and their customers, based on their own experiences. The interviews were conducted with a total of twenty participants including ten EWDs and ten customers from foodservice organizations (e.g., restaurants and cafés) in Vietnam. The findings of the thematic analysis revealed that EWDs perceived service interactions with customers as opportunities to provide services characterized by ‘total attentiveness’, 'impressing customers’, and ‘social connection’, while their customers perceived the interactions as both opportunities for ‘genuine hospitality’, and ‘contributions to social change’. The implications of the findings are important for hospitality researchers and practitioners alike.Description
Keywords
3508 Tourism, 35 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services, 3504 Commercial Services, 3506 Marketing, 1504 Commercial Services, 1505 Marketing, 1506 Tourism, Sport, Leisure & Tourism, 3504 Commercial services, 3508 Tourism
Source
International Journal of Hospitality Management, ISSN: 0278-4319 (Print), Elsevier BV, 115, 103602-103602. doi: 10.1016/j.ijhm.2023.103602
Publisher's version
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© 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons CC-BY license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. You are not required to obtain permission to reuse this article.