The purpose of the study was to classify quality indicators into unique construct groups. Seventy-two quality indicators were investigated as predictors of undergraduate hospitality management program excellence. A multidimensional approach was used on a sample of 277 stakeholders to answer relevant research questions. By cluster analysis of primary quality indicators for undergraduate hospitality management programs, three construct groups were identified: (a) students/alumni, industry support, faculty; (b) facilities, curriculum; and (c) research. Furthermore, results showed these groups to be unique in quality indicator characteristics. Implications for hospitality management program planning and assessment and suggestions for further research are discussed.
Assante, L.M., Huffman, L., & Harp, S.S. ( 2008). Conceptualization of quality indicators for U.S. based four-year hospitality management programs. Journal of Teaching for Travel and Tourism, 7, 51-71.
2.
Brizek, M.G., & Kahn, M.A. ( 2002). Ranking of U.S. hospitality undergraduate programs: 2000-2001 . Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Education, 14, 4-8.
3.
Buergermeister, J. ( 1983). Assessment of the educational skills and competencies needed by beginning hospitality managers. Hospitality Education and Research Journal, 8, 38-53.
4.
Carlson, A., Kinsey, J., & Nadav, C. ( 2002). Consumers’ retail sources of food: A cluster analysis . Family Economics and Nutrition Review, 14, 11-20.
5.
Casado, M.A. ( 1993). Corporate recruiters and alumni: Perceptions of professional courses. FIU Hospitality Review, 11, 79-86.
6.
Chung-Herrera, B.G., Enz, C.A., & Lankau, M.J. ( 2003). Grooming future hospitality leaders: A competencies model . Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 41, 52-63.
7.
Curry, B., Davies, F., Phillips, P., Evans, M., & Moutinho, L. ( 2001). The Kohonen self-organizing map: An application to the study of strategic groups in the UK hotel industry. Expert Systems, 18, 13-31.
8.
Dillman, D.A. ( 1978). Mail and telephone surveys: The total design method. New York: John Wiley.
9.
Gale, L.E., & Pol, G. ( 1975). Competence: A definition and conceptual scheme. Education Technology, 19, 19-25.
10.
Gater, D.S. ( 2001). U.S. News & World Report’s methodology and rankings of colleges and universities. Retrieved February 8, 2005, from http://nersp.osg.ufl.edu/~lombardi/site2002/Gater0702.pdf
11.
Gould, S.L., & Bojanic, D.C. ( 2002). Exploring hospitality program rankings. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Education, 14, 24-32.
12.
Green, S.B., & Salkind, N.J. ( 2003). Using SPSS for Windows and Macintosh: Analyzing and understanding data (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
13.
Hogan, J.J. ( 1989). What industry needs from academe. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 30, 96-99.
14.
Hsu, J.F., & Gregory, S.R. ( 1995). Developing future hotel managers in Taiwan: From an industry viewpoint. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 14, 261-269.
15.
Hu, C., Bai, B., & Jang, S.C. ( 2003). Hospitality and tourism graduate programs: Stop ranking, start classifying!Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research Proceedings, VIII, 202-206.
16.
Jones, T., Izzolo, A., & Christianson, D. (1993). Campus recruitment: A four-year program profile. FIU Hospitality Review, 11, 73-80.
17.
Kay, C., & Russette, J. ( 2000). Hospitality-management competencies. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 41, 52-63.
Lin, F.Y. ( 2003). An analysis of hospitality consumer lifestyles in the United States. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Texas Tech University, Lubbock.
20.
Lorr, M. ( 1983). Cluster analysis for social scientist. Washington, DC: Jossey-Bass.
21.
Mariampolski, A., Spears, M.C., & Vaden, A.G. ( 1980). What the restaurant manager needs to know: The consensus . Cornel Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 21, 77-81.
22.
Miller, E.H. ( 2002). Toward a typology of Hispanic high school dropouts. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Texas Tech University, Lubbock.
Purdue, J., Ninemeier, J., & Woods, R. ( 2000). Competencies required for club managers. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 41, 79-85.
25.
Rapkin, B.D., & Luke, D.A. ( 1993). Cluster analysis in community research: epistemology and practice. American Journal of Community Psychology, 21(2), 247-277.
26.
Rogelberg, S.G., Balzer, W.K., Ployhart, R.E., & Yonker, R.D. ( 1999). Using policy capturing to examine tipping decisions. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 29, 2567-2591.
Tas, R.F. ( 1988). Teaching future managers. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 29, 41-43.
31.
Vaske, J.J., Timmons, N.R., Beaman, J., & Petchenik, J. ( 2004). Chronic wasting disease in Wisconsin: Hunter behavior, perceived risk, and agency trust. Human Dimensions of Wildlife , 9, 193-210.
32.
Vyncke, P. ( 2002). Lifestyle segmentation. European Journal of Communication, 17, 445-464.
33.
Weaver, D.B., & Lawton, L.J. ( 2004). Visitor attitudes toward tourism development and product integration in an Australian urban-rural fringe. Journal of Travel Research, 42, 286-297.
