Improving Residents’ Quality of Life Through Sustainable Experiential Mega-Events: High- Versus Low-Context Cultures

Abstract

Public managers need to improve city residents’ quality of life as a first step to boost its tourism development. Marketing strategies can play a useful role, as the city marketing theory states. The present article aims to compare the efficacy of two marketing strategies embedded in a public mega-event: (a) an experiential strategy, based on emotions encourage during the event and (b) a green strategy, based on green actions linked to this event. Furthermore, following Hall’s theory of cultural determination, this article aims to compare these strategies’ efficacy in two alternative cultures: a high-context (Mexico) and a low-context culture (Spain). We contacted 202 and 204 residents in Mexico and Spain during the event. In low-context cultures (Spain), an experiential marketing strategy achieves greater results than a green one; conversely, in high-context cultures (Mexico), a green marketing strategy is more effective.

How Destination Social Responsibility Shapes Resident Emotional Solidarity and Quality of Life: Moderating Roles of Disclosure Tone and Visual Messaging

“…Perceived benefits were considered by most previous studies to be a moderator between DSR and resident QOL (e.g., Kim and Lee 2019; Lee, Kim, and Kim 2018; Su, Huang, and Huang 2018) based on the theoretical framework of social exchange theory. The current study argues that emotional factors are also critical to improve resident QOL through DSR (Vila-Lopez, Boluda, and Marin-Aguilar 2020). By applying emotional solidarity theory (Collins 1975; Durkheim 1912; Woosnam, Norman, and Ying 2009), this study proposes and examines the mediating role of resident emotional solidarity toward the destination on the relationship between DSR types and resident QOL.…”

“…Previous studies (e.g., Kim and Lee 2019; Lee, Kim, and Kim 2018; Su, Huang, and Huang 2018) that explored the impact of social responsibility on resident QOL in tourism contexts considered the perceived benefit of residents a key mediator between social responsibility and residents QOL. However, such an approach that only considers perceived benefits may ignore the fact that DSR can also stimulate positive emotions among stakeholders (Su and Swanson 2017) when positive emotions are considered essential for promoting resident QOL (Vila-Lopez, Boluda, and Marin-Aguilar 2020). According to signaling theory and emotional solidarity theory, DSR should be a positive signal disclosed by a destination and received and interpreted by residents, and in the interactive process of disclosing, receiving, and interpreting a DSR signal, resident emotional solidarity toward the destination may be activated.…”

Country image effects after the Brexit crisis. A cross-cultural comparison

“…, 2009). They are short-term orientated, practical and realistic, law-oriented, more "individualistic" and independent and tend to look out more for themselves than for the collective group (Vila-Lopez et al, 2020;Patel et al, 2013). Manrai and Manrai (2011) review several papers comparing different cultures based on Hofstede's (1983) dimensions in the tourism industry.…”

“…High-context cultures are more common in the East than in the West and in countries that have a strong sense of tradition and history and change little over time. They are: resistant to change because of their history and traditions; long-term orientated; and collectivistic which loves personal relationships (Jordá-Albiñana et al , 2009; Vila-Lopez et al , 2020). …”

“…collectivistic which loves personal relationships (Jordá-Albiñana et al , 2009; Vila-Lopez et al , 2020).…”