James A. Busser

Purpose: This paper aims to understand the relationships among calling, employee engagement, work-life balance and life satisfaction for executive chefs based on role theory and spillover theory.Design/methodology/approach: Surveys were completed by members of the American Culinary Federation in North America, the Nevada Restaurant Association and attendees at the ChefConnect Annual Conference. The data were analysed with confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.Findings: All relationships in the model were significantly positive except for calling to life satisfaction. Importantly work-life balance was a significant mediator between calling and life satisfaction as well as for employee engagement and life satisfaction.Research limitations/implications: The research provides a more comprehensive framework for hospitality scholars to understand the outcomes of work as a calling through meaningfulness. The sample of executive chef limits generalizability.Practical implications: The identification of a calling through in-depth interviews is recommended. Once recognized, managers should further foster chef’s passion through employee engagement facilitated by workplace autonomy and continuing education and work-life balance supported with human resource management practices including time off for critical life events. This will allow calling to flourish, increase life satisfaction and reduce the likelihood of turnover and burnout.Originality/value: Outcomes reveal the complexity of the relationship between calling and life satisfaction. Contrary to previous findings, the presence of positive work-life balance was critical to attain life satisfaction, even when work was viewed as a calling.

This study tested a conceptual model in order to examine the role of specific image formation agents in forming destination image and place attachment from the perspective of pop star fans. By examining each construct’s subdimensions, the significant path analysis results supported the proposed model and offered a holistic view of the relationships among the variables, thus extending the literature. Findings suggested that autonomous image formation agents have d3istinct roles in forming destination image and place attachment in comparison with induced and organic agents. The findings highlight the important role of destination image in mediating the relationship between image formation agents and place attachment. This study further revealed a direct impact of image formation agents on place attachment dimensions. Meaningful implications for destination marketers are presented.

Sport tourism is the fastest growing segment of the tourism industry. Although there are a number of benefits to cities as a result of sport tourism, the most desired aspect of hosting contests is economic impact. This study examined the gaming and non-gaming impact of six major sporting events held in Las Vegas over a ten-year period. The results indicate that length of stay is a significant contributor to economic impact and that sport tourism has an important role to play in the economy of Las Vegas.

Student involvement in extracurricular activities has the potential to contribute to a variety of valued college outcomes. The purpose of this study was to understand the outcomes associated with recreation students' participation in the Professional Golf Management Student Association, as well as the experiences that contributed to those outcomes, using qualitative research. Four major themes that represented the experiences and outcomes of student involvement emerged from in-depth interviews. These themes suggested students had their needs for relatedness, self-determination, competence, and enjoyment met through their club involvement. All students reported that their club involvement contributed to their sense of belonging and identification with their peers and academic program. The students, especially those involved in club leadership roles, believed they could make a difference in the success of their club, academic program, and community through their club involvement and that they were also developing important interpersonal and professional skills. Finally, the students reported that involvement in the association contributed to the enjoyment of their academic program and the creation of meaningful memories.

Each year, over 20 million youth participate in sport (Ewing & Seefeldt, 2002 Ewing, M. E. and Seefeldt, V. 2002. “Patterns of participation in American agency-sponsored youth sports”. In Children and Youth in Sport: A Biopsychosocial Perspective, Edited by: Smoll, F. L. and Smith, R. E. 39–59. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt. [Google Scholar] ). Public parks and recreation agencies are increasingly reliant on volunteers to deliver services (Silverberg, Backman, & Backman, 2000 Silverberg, K. , Backman, S. and Backman, K. 2000. Understanding parks and recreation volunteers: A functionalist perspective. Loisir et Societe/Society and Leisure, 23(2): 453–475. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar] ). These volunteers are especially vital to the delivery of youth recreation and sport programs (Twyam, Ferrell, & Johnston, 2002/2003). Volunteer positions in sport programs, especially coach positions, are difficult to fill (Cuskelly, Taylor, Hoye, & Darcy, 2006 Cuskelly, G. , Taylor, T. , Hoye, R. and Darcy, S. 2006. Volunteer management practices and volunteer retention: A human resource management approach. Sport Management Review, 9: 141–163. [Crossref] [Google Scholar] ), and the retention of youth coaches is low (Paiement, 2007 Paiement, C. 2007. Youth sport coaches: Factors that predict satisfaction with the coaching experience. Research Quarterly for Exercise & Sport, 78(1): Axxvi–Axxviii. [Google Scholar] ). The purpose of this study was to understand the motivations of youth sport coaches. A convenience sample of youth sport coaches completed the Volunteer Functions Inventory that measures motivations, along with demographic information. Results indicated that values were the most important function for youth sport coaches. A MANOVA revealed significant differences between first year and returning coaches for the functions of self-serving and personal growth but not for values and social. Implications for the recruitment and retention of youth sport coaches and future research are provided.