Generation Z (Gen Z), the future of America’s workforce, is forecasted to represent more than 30 million persons by 2020. Volunteer rates have been declining since 2002. Most compelling is that overall lowest volunteer rates were found to be within the Gen Z segment, with expectations of continued decline. Thus, this study explored motivations associated with sustainable volunteering by Gen Z based upon past research that documented intent to volunteer is strongly associated with age. In doing so, the Volunteer Functions Inventory was adopted to identify Gen Z motivations for volunteering. This study then employed the theory of planned behavior to test the relationships between Gen Z volunteering motivations, their attitudes and job performance using data obtained from 306 Gen Z volunteer special event participants. Among five motives identified to be important to Gen Z, only four motives (“value”, “career”, “learning” and “self-esteem”) were found to significantly influence their attitudes. The ‘social’ motive was found to have no significant effect on their attitudes towards volunteering. This research framework was supported by validating the significant relationships between volunteer motivations, attitudes and job performance specific to the Gen Z volunteer segment. “Job training appropriateness” was found to be an important moderator for improving the relationships between Gen Z volunteer attitudes and job performance.

The main aim of this research was to shed light on the influence of social media campaigns on consumers’ attitudes toward green tourism, aligning with sustainable consumer behavior. However, the prior literature explored the campaign characteristics and perceived usefulness of attitudes toward green consumption that translate into green consumer behavior. Data were collected from four hundred social media users, and the confirmatory factor was used to measure their reliability and validity. Hypotheses were measured through structural equation modeling. This research suggested that managers should consider campaign characteristics such as informativeness and persuasiveness to develop positive attitudes toward green tourism. Moreover, researchers should focus on social media campaign characteristics and perceived usefulness as antecedents of consumers’ attitudes toward green tourism.

The purpose of this research explores the influence that awareness of green products has on greenwashing, green consumer confusion, and its influence on the green product experience following COVID-19. Consumer behavioral outcomes, including repurchase intentions and word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions, are addressed. A survey was conducted to analyze the proposed hypotheses. Data were obtained from 440 consumers of hotel industry products (overnight guests). Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to observe the collected data’s validity. Structural equational modelling was then used to support hypothesis testing. Findings documented that greenwashing is adversely linked to the consumer’s green product experience, which then leads to negative WOM and lower repurchase intention. Greenwashing leads to negatively affecting the reputation of marketers, as buyers avoid repeat product purchasing. Moreover, dissatisfied buyers spread negative word-of-mouth about those specific products. This study’s contribution identifies consequences of marketers using greenwashing strategies which confuse buyers about products, and negatively affect consumer intention to repurchase hotel products.

Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) has emerged as a critical study area, particularly because of its implications for employee well-being and citizenship behavior. This research aims to unravel the intricate relationships between GHRM practices, employee motivation, sustainability, well-being, and citizenship behavior within the hotel industry. Employing Ability–Motivation–Opportunity (AMO) theory as a foundational framework, a comprehensive model is developed and tested with data collected from four hundred ten hotel employees. Utilizing a cross-sectional methodology and employing the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) technique for hypothesis testing, this study reveals a substantial positive impact of GHRM on employee motivation, sustainability, well-being, and citizenship behavior. The findings of this research carry significant practical implications for the hotel industry, urging investment in GHRM practices. The investment can enhance employees’ understanding of the hotel’s green management initiatives, fostering motivation and encouraging proactive involvement in environmental protection and resource conservation. This study emphasizes the need for the hotel industry within the hospitality sector to prioritize the adoption of green HRM, highlighting its potential to elevate employee engagement and contribute to the sustainability of environmentally conscious practices. Furthermore, this paper recommends that the hotel industry reinforce sustainable practices among its workforce through training initiatives and environmental awareness seminars.

As demand for temple food has significantly grown, this study’s objective was to conduct a market segmentation analysis of temple food consumer motives in order to develop effective marketing strategies. The study identified six motives specific to Korean temple food consumption representing “health-oriented,” “ethical vegetarianism,” “meditative mindfulness,” “educational experience,” “taste,” and “environment protection.” Motives were then used to generate four distinct temple food groups named Highly Motivated, Vegetarian, Environment-Oriented and Minimally Motivated. This study provided useful information for the application of Korean temple food marketing strategies for destinations featuring this growing trend in culinary tourism.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants worldwide, including China, have been forced to protect public health by following food safety standards and adapting to the necessary social distancing practices. Accordingly, restaurant diners who are concerned about food safety and unsure of whether it is truly safe to dine out, put more importance on the entire stages of service consumption. Restaurants must make their best efforts to minimize service failures in their service provision process and outcomes. Given that customers from different cultures are reported to evaluate service quality differently, this study was designed to investigate what actions Chinese customers who encounter service failures would take under the influence of Guanxi. Guanxi represents Chinese attitudes towards long-term individual and business relationships and ultimately involves moral obligations and mutual favors. Analyzing our structural equation model using 439 responses obtained from Chinese diners, this study determined that Chinese consumers would react differently in the service process failures and outcome failures in terms of negative word-of-mouth, direct complaints, switching intention, and revisit intention. More importantly, this study confirmed the significant moderating effects of Guanxi within the proposed relationships. Based on the study’s findings, useful implications are provided for academics and practitioners regarding sustained restaurant businesses.