The purpose of this study is to critically evaluate the performance of tour guides in Thailand and their impact on the tourist experience. The research objectives include a: review of the literature on service quality and tour guide performance; a survey of tourists’ expectations and satisfaction with tour guides in Thailand; a critical evaluation of tour operators’ and tourists’ perspectives on the variables that constitute a high standard of performance for tour guides; analysing how the performance of tour guides influences the experiences of foreign tourists; and understanding the attributes of tour guides that influence the satisfaction of foreign tourists. The sample in this research comprised 400 tourists in Thailand who were currently on or had previously been on a group package tour in Thailand within the past two years. The survey took place in 2014 between January 1 and July 31and was conducted in the cities of Bangkok and Chiang Mai. A convenience sampling technique was utilised, with respondents being requested to provide a range of demographic variables. Descriptive analyses of these variables were conducted to examine tourists’ demographic profiles in order to understand tourists’ characteristics and their behaviours. The results of the questionnaires were analysed using statistical methods including factor, regression and multivariate analyses. Based on the results, a tour guide service quality evaluating model (TGSQEM) was developed, composed of eight dimensions: reliability (informative); personal traits; empathy1 (service-oriented mind); assurance1 (knowledgeable); professionalism; attitude; assurance2 (able to generate an atmosphere of trust); and empathy. The results identified the various factors that affect tour guide performance whilst enhancing the understanding of the perceptions of tourists’ expectations of tour guide performance and associated service quality. Using quantifiable data, these were then calculated and plotted into a graph utilising the Important Performance Analysis (IPA) technique. This investigation of the variables that influence the service quality performance of tour guides in Thailand has subsequently been used to create a theoretical framework that can be utilized to enhance the service quality of tour guides and contribute to a more successful tourism industry in Thailand. The development of this model represents a furthering of the knowledge about the performance of tour guides and, whilst constituted in a specific cultural context, it is envisaged that it would have generic transferability to tour guiding elsewhere.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:738092 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Khornjamnong, Butsakorn |
| Publisher | University of Bedfordshire |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://hdl.handle.net/10547/622542 |
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