A study of hospitality : from human imperative to professional practice

The purpose of this research is to contribute to the evolving discourse among hospitality scholars and practitioners regarding the development of a philosophical foundation for the emerging paradigm of hospitality studies. This research takes a contra position from that depicted in mainstream hospitality literature, combining as it does, my own thoughts and observations over a long period of time, my experience and knowledge of hospitality business practices, as well as concepts, models and debate from the academic literature. The contribution of this thesis is achieved by encompassing two competing, perhaps collaborative discourses: the discourse of commercial hospitality and the discourse of hospitableness. I see these two discourses as constituting a dichotomy. To embrace the dichotomy, the research begins by looking at some of the enduring legacies of early hospitable social practices and the contributions these legacies have made. From hospitable pronouncements on ancient clay tablets, reminders of one’s hospitable duties in early texts and training models from early guilds by master craftsmen, I argue that we catch a glimpse of the beliefs and values that have contributed to the flavour of what we have come to call the hospitality industry. From here, I next examine the contemporary hospitality industry context. Within this context, the research focuses on the education and training environment of the prospective employee and the subsequent contribution of this to the successful and efficient delivery of service to guests. However, I demonstrate how this managerial focus is concerned with service and operational efficiency, overlooking the more human focus of the employee’s individual contribution to guest satisfaction. I conclude that employees as people have been overlooked, and it would be beneficial to society and the hospitality industry for their humanity to be accounted for in their employee roles. The research explores Steven Shapin’s (1994) theory that it is through trust that relationships are established, maintained and developed, so making social order possible. I then use his framework for analysing relationships in the hospitality industry. I establish that these harmonious interactions of employees and management, and more specifically between employees and guest strangers, are trust dependent. Having established the possibility of a harmonious relationship with a guest stranger, I then explore Hannah Arendt’s (1958) conception of humans as actioning beings, having the capacity to reveal themselves as unique and distinct, as a way of explaining the employee’s spirit of generosity in creating an hospitable environment for guest satisfaction. Discussion of the theoretical constructs of trust and actioning beings is grounded in a philosophical exploration of the spirit of generosity during the service encounter. The research concludes that the service encounter is a multi‐layered space, where mundane and dynamic levels of employee interactions with guests coexist to accommodate service and hospitableness. Moreover, the foregoing exploration reveals a set of tensions at the heart of the industry. The tensions exist because front line employees are actioning beings, part of what it means to be human. I conclude the research by communicating the implications of the findings in a letter to the industry