Do religion and spirituality matter for hotel workers’ well-being and guests’ happiness? An update of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition theory

Abstract

Drawing on the Attraction-Selection-Attrition (ASA) theory ( Schneider et al., 1995 ), this paper examines how adhering to religious regulations and offering spiritual facilities may affect hotel workers’ psychological well-being and guests’ happiness. Using a mixed method approach, we collected data through two studies on religious practices and spiritual facilities at 5-star hotels in Jordan. In the first stage, interviews were conducted with 18 senior managers at hotels in the Dead Sea area (study 1). In the second stage, data were collected from Muslim guests who visited and stayed at a 5-star hotel in Jordan (study 2) and the hypotheses were tested with partial least squares-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 3.3.3. Our results indicate that spiritual facilities at hotels enhance workers’ well-being and guests’ happiness while not adhering to religious regulations adversely affects workers’ well-being and guests’ happiness. The paper offers a contextual and novel framework to understand the linkages between religion/spirituality and psychology at hotels in a diverse cultural context in the Middle East. The empirical studies highlight the contextual relevance and extension of Schneider’s (1995) ASA theory by incorporating religiosity/spiritualty and well-being of hotel employees in a Middle Eastern context. • Spiritual facilities are important for workers’ and guests’ happiness in hotels. • Religious conformance is important for workers’ and guests’ happiness in hotels. • Prayer rooms are important for boosting close interpersonal relationships. • The study highlights the contextual applicability and extension of Schneider’s (1987) ASA theory.