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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to test the relationships between a hotel’s design quality and the property’s business performance. Design/methodology/approach Hotel guests’ assessments of the design quality of hotels that they recently visited are tested using the design quality indicator (DQI). Business performance is measured using indexed values for each property’s occupancy, average daily rate (ADR) and revenue per available room (RevPAR). The data are analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and a variation of a hedonic pricing model. Findings Factor analysis reduced the DQI instrument to 19 measurement items. Factors that measure navigability and signage positively impact occupancy index. Factors that measure flexible space usage negatively impact the RevPAR and ADR indices. Factors that reflect aesthetic constructs, including Urban & Social Integration and Character & Form, positively impact the RevPAR and ADR indices. Research limitations/implications The study examines a nationwide sample of guests from two full-service brands of a single multi-brand hotel company. The study provides a parsimonious, validated design measurement instrument and a revised hedonic pricing analysis. Practical implications Hoteliers can use this technique to assist with resource allocation decisions. Aesthetic elements, including the building’s Urban & Social Integration with its surroundings and its Character & Form, lead to higher ADR and RevPAR performance. Managers should ensure a coherent layout and good signage program to drive occupancy. Originality/value This study offers a technique to measure design quality and a new method of performing a hedonic pricing analysis.

Consumers tend to see themselves in a positive light, yet we present evidence that they are pessimistic about whether they will receive a product’s benefits. In 15 studies (N = 6,547; including nine pre-registered), we found that consumers believe that product efficacy is higher for others than it is for themselves. For example, consumers believe that consuming an adult coloring book (to inspire creativity), a sports drink (to satisfy thirst), medicine (to relieve pain), or an online class (to learn something new) will have a greater effect on others than on themselves. We show that this bias holds across many kinds of products and judgment-targets, and inversely correlates with factors such as product familiarity, product usefulness, and relationship closeness with judgment-targets. Moreover, we find this bias stems from consumers’ beliefs they are more unique and less malleable than others, and that it alters the choices people make for others. We conclude by discussing implications for research on gift-giving, advice-giving, usership, and interpersonal social, health, and financial choices.

Late blight, caused by the oomycete Phytophthora infestans, poses a significant challenge to organic tomato and potato production systems across the globe. To enhance education and outreach programming pertaining to tomato organic late blight management in Wisconsin, we sought to identify grower strategies and needs through an online survey conducted during spring 2018. Our findings demonstrated that organic growers emphasized crop diversity, crop rotation and soil health in their late blight management decisions. Grower concerns about biopesticides were identified and suggest that the use of input-based products within integrated management programs could be enhanced by further research on effectiveness and modes of actions. Additionally, stronger emphasis on oomycete pathogen biology and the significance of late blight as a community disease were identified as important areas of emphasis in the development of organic disease management education programming and resources that promote more effective cultural and chemical disease management strategies that adhere to the regulation and principles underlying the USDA National Organic Program. The integration of a live polling questionnaire conducted in winter 2019 allowed us to corroborate findings from the online survey and underscored the importance of two-way learning to enhance outreach efforts between Extension and organic growers in Wisconsin and the surrounding upper Midwestern states.