Find the hidden crab; research on destructive behaviors at the managerial levels of the accommodation business

Nurcan Çetä°ner (), AyÅŸe ATAR Yilmaz (), Ece KONAKLIOÄžLU () and Melahat Öneren ()
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Nurcan Çetä°ner: KaramanoÄŸlu Mehmetbey University,Office Services and Secretary Department, Karaman, Türkiye
Ayşe ATAR Yilmaz: Ph.D., Assist. Prof. Samsun Ondokuz Mayıs University, Faculty of Tourism Samsun, Türkiye
Ece KONAKLIOĞLU: Ph.D., Professor, Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University Faculty of Tourism Ankara, Türkiye
Melahat Öneren: Ph.D., Associate Professor, Retired Associate Professor

Tourism and Hospitality Management, 2023, vol. 29, issue 4, 531-544

Abstract: Purpose - The human-oriented service approach, which is one of the structural features of the tourism sector, causes destructive behaviors of employees to have more negative effects on work efficiency and effectiveness, so it is of great importance to identify and prevent these behaviors. The main objective of this study is to determine the expression of Crab Barrel Syndrome (CBS) among lower, middle and upper managers of employees in the tourism sector. For this purpose, a scale was developed to measure the behaviors of employees with CBS who tend to engage in unethical behaviors in tourism. In addition to our main objective, the differences in the demographic characteristics of CBS employees will also be identified. Design/Methodology - Data were collected using a random sample. A questionnaire was sent to 310 tourism employees. Findings - Analysis of the data revealed that the CBS level (CBSL) of the participants was low, with the CBSL of lower management being the highest and the CBSL of individual employees being the highest. CBSL differed significantly by employee hierarchical levels. In addition, CBSL was not found to differ significantly by gender, educational status, or institution, but CBSL decreased with increasing employee age and hours worked in the sector. Originality of the research - his study provides a solid foundation for a better understanding of CBS and the relationships between workers. It is crucial to identify the negative employee behaviors in advance and take necessary precautions, especially in service sectors such as tourism where employee behaviors have a great impact on service quality./

Keywords: crab mentality; crab basket syndrome; crab-bucket effect; crabs in a bucket; pull sb down; tourism; organizational behavior; scale development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L83 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:tho:journl:v:29:y:2023:n:4:p:531-544

DOI: 10.20867/thm.29.4.5

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