As environmentally sustainable practices are becoming popular in the hotel industry, their impact... more As environmentally sustainable practices are becoming popular in the hotel industry, their impact on efficiency is an important issue. To investigate the performance of hotels in this context, we use data envelopment analysis (DEA) double bootstrap approach to firstly assess the technical efficiency and its determinants of a sample of medium and large scale hotels in Sri Lanka for the period 2010–2014. Secondly, we evaluate the impact of a number of explanatory variables in determining hotel efficiency. The results reveal that the average technical efficiency is 61% with the maximum being 71.5% and the minimum 46.8%. The results conclude that being environmentally responsible enhances the efficiency of hotels, specifically in terms of improving energy efficiency and waste management. Water consumption is shown to have a contradictory result in relation of improving efficiency. Finally, we estimate the bootstrapped Malmquist productivity index to examine the level of productivity in the Sri Lankan hotel industry. The results of this study provide hotel operators and government with insights into the nature of competitive advantage which can assist them with strategic decision making to improve the technical and environmental management of hotels.
Through a survey of residents of Queensland's (Australia) capital Brisbane, living within 20 ... more Through a survey of residents of Queensland's (Australia) capital Brisbane, living within 20 km of its central business district (CBD), this study measures their willingness to trade-off ownership of conventional internal combustion engine cars (ICVs) for the impending advent of new forms of automotive transport. These forms embrace electric powertrains, on demand ride sharing and an autonomous (driverless) mode of operation. The choice experiment's outcome highlighted the willingness of participants to change their transportation habits. Only 16% adopted the neither (status quo option of retaining their privately owned car with 40% choosing the 80%/20% shared electric autonomous vehicles (SEAVs)/conventional option and 44% the 50%/20% option. Cost was revealed as the most important driver of choice although congestion induced extra travel time and number of serious accidents were also highly significant. Only increased urban space was not significant. Following viewing a video on the advantages of SEAVs only 11% of recipients chose the status quo option. Wealthier participants, commuters and married couples were now more likely to adopt SEAVs. But those with children and those who loved driving became less likely to do so. Younger people and those who lived closer to the CBD were shown to be less likely to reject SEAVs.
Focusing on the efficiency evaluation of the hotel industry of Sri Lanka, this article attempts t... more Focusing on the efficiency evaluation of the hotel industry of Sri Lanka, this article attempts to diagnose the level and determinants of efficiency and provide insights for improvement. Sri Lanka, being a developing country undergoing a post war development stage, maximisation of efficiency is a challenging issue for individual hotels in the face of competition from major global players. We use Data envelopment analysis (DEA) double bootstrap approach to assess the technical efficiency and its determinants of a sample of medium and large scale hotels in Sri Lanka for the period 2010-2014. The results reveal that the average technical efficiency is 70.5% with the maximum being 96.4% and the minimum 43.6%. We find that age, size and type influence the efficiency levels of the hotels. Another key finding is that being environmentally responsible enhances the efficiency of hotels. The results of this study provide hotel operators and government with insights of competitive advantage an...
Nature based tourism has gained an important position in contributing to the dual goals of nature... more Nature based tourism has gained an important position in contributing to the dual goals of nature conservation and generating an income stream from the natural environment. To be more effective in providing services which facilitate the achievement of these goals, stakeholders need to identify tourists’ preferences and how they value their nature and wildlife experiences. Tourism, as an experiential good has the potential to impact tourists’ awareness, appreciation and actions in relation to the specific wildlife they encounter and the environment in general. Therefore, user preferences and valuations of nature and wildlife may change as a result of the experience. Exploring the valuation of environmental goods by analysing changes in respondents’ willingness to pay (WTP) before and after experiencing the good is, however, an area that has been given little attention in the literature. This research attempts to show how exposure to the environment is an influencing factor in the val...
As environmentally sustainable practices are becoming popular in the hotel industry, their impact... more As environmentally sustainable practices are becoming popular in the hotel industry, their impact on efficiency is an important issue. To investigate the performance of hotels in this context, we use data envelopment analysis (DEA) double bootstrap approach to firstly assess the technical efficiency and its determinants of a sample of medium and large scale hotels in Sri Lanka for the period 2010–2014. Secondly, we evaluate the impact of a number of explanatory variables in determining hotel efficiency. The results reveal that the average technical efficiency is 61% with the maximum being 71.5% and the minimum 46.8%. The results conclude that being environmentally responsible enhances the efficiency of hotels, specifically in terms of improving energy efficiency and waste management. Water consumption is shown to have a contradictory result in relation of improving efficiency. Finally, we estimate the bootstrapped Malmquist productivity index to examine the level of productivity in the Sri Lankan hotel industry. The results of this study provide hotel operators and government with insights into the nature of competitive advantage which can assist them with strategic decision making to improve the technical and environmental management of hotels.
Through a survey of residents of Queensland's (Australia) capital Brisbane, living within 20 ... more Through a survey of residents of Queensland's (Australia) capital Brisbane, living within 20 km of its central business district (CBD), this study measures their willingness to trade-off ownership of conventional internal combustion engine cars (ICVs) for the impending advent of new forms of automotive transport. These forms embrace electric powertrains, on demand ride sharing and an autonomous (driverless) mode of operation. The choice experiment's outcome highlighted the willingness of participants to change their transportation habits. Only 16% adopted the neither (status quo option of retaining their privately owned car with 40% choosing the 80%/20% shared electric autonomous vehicles (SEAVs)/conventional option and 44% the 50%/20% option. Cost was revealed as the most important driver of choice although congestion induced extra travel time and number of serious accidents were also highly significant. Only increased urban space was not significant. Following viewing a video on the advantages of SEAVs only 11% of recipients chose the status quo option. Wealthier participants, commuters and married couples were now more likely to adopt SEAVs. But those with children and those who loved driving became less likely to do so. Younger people and those who lived closer to the CBD were shown to be less likely to reject SEAVs.
Focusing on the efficiency evaluation of the hotel industry of Sri Lanka, this article attempts t... more Focusing on the efficiency evaluation of the hotel industry of Sri Lanka, this article attempts to diagnose the level and determinants of efficiency and provide insights for improvement. Sri Lanka, being a developing country undergoing a post war development stage, maximisation of efficiency is a challenging issue for individual hotels in the face of competition from major global players. We use Data envelopment analysis (DEA) double bootstrap approach to assess the technical efficiency and its determinants of a sample of medium and large scale hotels in Sri Lanka for the period 2010-2014. The results reveal that the average technical efficiency is 70.5% with the maximum being 96.4% and the minimum 43.6%. We find that age, size and type influence the efficiency levels of the hotels. Another key finding is that being environmentally responsible enhances the efficiency of hotels. The results of this study provide hotel operators and government with insights of competitive advantage an...
Nature based tourism has gained an important position in contributing to the dual goals of nature... more Nature based tourism has gained an important position in contributing to the dual goals of nature conservation and generating an income stream from the natural environment. To be more effective in providing services which facilitate the achievement of these goals, stakeholders need to identify tourists’ preferences and how they value their nature and wildlife experiences. Tourism, as an experiential good has the potential to impact tourists’ awareness, appreciation and actions in relation to the specific wildlife they encounter and the environment in general. Therefore, user preferences and valuations of nature and wildlife may change as a result of the experience. Exploring the valuation of environmental goods by analysing changes in respondents’ willingness to pay (WTP) before and after experiencing the good is, however, an area that has been given little attention in the literature. This research attempts to show how exposure to the environment is an influencing factor in the val...
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Papers by Thamarasi Kularatne