Research Archives - Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management

Hospitality Professor Joins Researchers to Examine Attitudes Toward Genetically Modified Crops in New Study

Chaplin School professor Dr. Miranda Kitterlin, in collaboration with a global team of researchers, has recently published a study analyzing the predictors that influence agricultural experts’ attitudes toward the development of and policies related to genetically modified (GM) crops. Major findings in the study, entitled Attitudes of Agricultural Experts Toward Genetically Modified Crops: A Case Study in Southwest Iran, indicated that agricultural experts were aware of the environmental benefits and possible risks associated with GM crops. The majority of participants agreed that GM crops could improve food security and accelerate rural development, and were proponents of labeling practices for GM crops. Finally, there was a positive correlation between the perception of benefits and attitudes towards GM crops. With the growing popularity of GM crop production around the world, it is vital to have an understanding of the attitudes of all parties involved, as this trend will certainly impact food service operations, a sector that makes up a significant portion of the hospitality and tourism industry. The study was published in the June 2015 issue of the Science and Engineering Ethics multidisciplinary journal. Learn More

Chaplin Professor Receives Award for Co-Authored Paper

During the Korea America Hospitality and Tourism Educators Association annual conference held in Las Vegas, Nevada, Dr. Eunju Suh and co-author Matt Alhaery received the Best-Paper, Founding President Award for their collaborative research “Improving Customer Retention in the Gaming Industry with the Application of Decision Tree Classifiers." The paper focuses on preventing the loss of gaming patrons to other casinos. The study explored various data-mining methods to develop predictive models for churn prediction and explains how to identify potential churners and develop effective ways to target them to ensure their continued gaming and visits to the casino. This is the second time within a year that Dr. Suh receives such accolade for her work. She received another best-paper award at the Asia Pacific Tourism Association annual conference in July 2014. For more info about the conference and the award, please visit kahtea.org. Photo: FIU hospitality professor Eunju Suh.

Chaplin Professor and Student Win Best Paper Award at International Business Conference

The International Interdisciplinary Business-Economics Advancement Conference brought together academics from business, social sciences, and tourism/hospitality for workshops, presentations and networking. Dr. Carolin Lusby, a Chaplin School faculty member, presented two papers and also gave attendees a short overview of Belize, its tourism industry, and issues Belize faces in terms of economic and tourism development. Dr. Lusby and graduate student Lindsay Ackerman earned the best paper award for their presentation on consumer perceptions of cruise line sustainability. The paper gauged how important sustainability is to consumers when booking a cruise. Further work will hopefully help cruise lines to become more sustainable in the future, not just economically, but also environmentally and socioculturally.

Professor’s Modified Procedure Streamlines Winemaking

Before harvesting, winemakers give their grape crops "checkups" to ensure that acid levels are just right for picking. Among the tests administered are titratable acidity (TA titration) and yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN), which both give winemakers an idea of how successful fermentation will be. Both tests require time and two separate samples for analysis. Dr. Barry Gump, Harvey R. Chaplin Eminent Scholar’s Chair and professor of Beverage Management, has recently developed a modified procedure that combines both tests into one that uses a single sample of grape or juice. With implementation of Dr. Gump's new method, winemakers will experience significant savings in operational time because analysis happens only once. To learn more about Dr. Gump's research into the "Combined Titrametric Analysis of TA and YAN", visit the VitisResearch.com website.

Chaplin Faculty Leads Research for National Industry Survey

It all started in the Summer 2012 when Miranda Kitterlin, Ph.D., assistant professor at the Chaplin School, joined Professors Michael Moran and Percival Darby in Tampa, Florida as presenting guests at the National Association of Concessionaires (NAC) annual meeting. In an effort to better understand the industry and its members, NAC partnered with Dr. Kitterlin and initiated the Concessions Industry Data Survey. "Working with an academic research partner like [FIU Chaplin School] brings an outside big-picture perspective, added credibility and helped us deliver better information to the industry and other interested parties,” highlighted director of communications for NAC and author of the study, Chris Dammann. “We have already started talks about how to take the initiative to the next level and we look forward to continuing the long standing relationship between NAC and FIU,” added Dammann. “This project was a great opportunity to interact with the industry and stay current with the trends,” remarked Kitterlin. To read survey findings and next steps, visit the NAC website.

Chaplin School Professor Wins Best Paper Award at Global Conference in Vietnam

Eunju Suh, Ph.D., hospitality management professor, recently attended the 20th Asia Pacific Tourism Association (APTA) Conference in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where she presented a study entitled "Predicting Cross-Gaming Propensity Using CHAID Analysis" (Eunju Suh and Matt Alhaery). Using a data set of 14,120 casino customers, this study aimed to predict a player’s propensity to play different types of casino games. The Exhaustive Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detector (E-CHAID) method was employed to predict table game players’ slot play propensity and vice versa. The findings of this study will help marketers identify customers that are most likely to cross-play and maximize gaming revenues from more efficient and effective marketing actions. After a rigorous evaluation process of more than 100 papers presented during the conference, the selection committee conferred Dr. Suh with the Best Paper Award. Why was this topic important to you? With the expansion of the casino industry in the global casino market, marketers are looking for opportunities to generate more revenues and improve their player acquisition and retention methods. Hence, customer data to identify, segment and target potential and existing customers have become more important than ever. Analyzing gaming (casino play) data would enable marketers to better understand customer behavior and predict specific behaviors. While casino marketers would agree on the importance of customer data collection and data driven-marketing, in gaming literature, there has been relatively little effort focused on prediction and classification of customer behavior using the actual recorded gaming data of existing casino patrons. What innovative approaches did you employ in this study? Considering the lack of research on the topic of cross-gaming, this study provides a better understanding of players’ cross-gaming behavior while making a meaningful contribution to the pool [...]

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