OOB also includes personality traits that are the most stable and important components of personal characteristics in a person’s life
[7][8]. Simply stated, personality traits refer to a psychological phenomenon that creates an external impression based on personal characteristics. Nevertheless, the characteristics of personality are not totally reflected externally; some parts are deeply held concepts that are hidden inside by that individual. Different personalities will produce different personal behaviors
[9]. At present, the most widely accepted theory is the five-type personality, which includes extroverted, agreeable, conscientious, open-minded, and neurological personality types
[7][8]. These five major personality types serve as the basic framework of personality
[7][8][10].
2. The Mediating Effect of Ownership of Psychological Behavior and Tour Leader Experience on Accountability in Order to Explore the Sustainable Business Model of the Tourism Industry
Both employee personality and organizational behavior (OB) have been demonstrated as key determinants of organizational success
[11][12]. Moreover, while an employee’s personality may be an important predictor of OB
[13][14], it may also be a better indicator of a firm’s profit than OB
[15][16]. Although there are different perspectives on the nexus of these two variables, one view is that accountability is a response derived from employee personality and OB
[17][18].
Accordingly, accountability has been viewed as playing an instrumental role in driving employee personality, as well as diffusing OB throughout the tourism industry
[19][20]. The performance of a tour leader can either make or break a tour’s quality
[21][22][23], as the tour leader is the essential interface between the local guides and the tour participants, serving as a front-line provider of travel services. Mossberg
[24] asserted that the performance of the tour leader affects customer loyalty and word-of-mouth of the service. Consequently, the tour leader must take full accountability; that is, the leader fully understands the rights and responsibilities of providing professional services for package tour groups
[25].
Accountability
Accountability has been studied in the tourism industry concerning a variety of related variables, including organizational behavior
[26][27][28], management
[11][29], and marketing
[16][30]. In general, travel agency managers have been urged to become more accountable in order to better satisfy tourist needs and achieve their business performance objectives
[15][31]. The dominant view is that accountability is positively related to performance
[32][33]. Though the greater emphasis on accountability may be an intuitively attractive response to rapidly changing tourist conditions, empirical findings on the relationship between accountability and psychological ownership in the tourism industry have been mixed. Some studies have found general support for a positive association between accountability and organizational behavior, as it applies to a range of tourism businesses
[34].
A tour leader, also known as a tour manager, sometimes performs the tasks of a tour guide
[28][35]. In East Asian countries, outbound travel often involves Group Independent Tours (GITs)
[36][37], and the tour leader plays a critical role in such tours
[26][38]. Religious tours, cultural tours, reunion tours for veterans, and tours for professional and interest groups are just several examples of outings that require the services of a tour leader
[39][40]. The tour leader accompanies members of the tour during their trip
[41][42], and is required by GPTs (Group Package Tour) to deliver core products and services, including guiding and keeping tourists happy.
Tour leaders play several instrumental, mediatory (experience management), and interpretative/sustainability (destination/resource management) roles, and have various capacities and functions as a leader, communicator, organizer, salesperson, consultant, entertainer, and representative of the travel agency
[43][44]. They must be able to calmly handle crises, such as airline strikes or bus breakdowns, during the outbound period.
Organizational studies are “the examination of how individuals construct organizational structures, processes, and practices and how these, in turn, shape social relations and create institutions that ultimately influence people”
[4]. Organizational studies comprise different areas that deal with the different aspects of organizations; many such approaches are functionalist, but critical research can also provide an alternative framework for understanding in the field. Organizational change is fundamental to the study of management
[45].
Recently, most issues of accountability have focused on the organization of management duties and responsibilities, employee behavior and decision-making, and the results/procedure of the implementation and practice in the education domain. Relevant studies are detailed below:
-
Organization of management duties and responsibilities: As an aspect of governance, this has been central to discussions related to problems in the public sector, non-profit and private (corporate) sectors, and individual contexts
[46][47]. Sandwich strategy initiatives are increasingly facilitated, in terms of “closing the feedback loop”, enhancing the relationship with accountability from citizen voices
[48]. Lys, Naughton, and Wang
[49] revealed their finding that CSR performance relies on financial performance and corporate accountability, but also depends on CSR performance. A viable investigative method for the framework of algorithmic power and the applicability of transparency policies for algorithms has been discussed, alongside challenges in implementing algorithmic accountability
[50][51]. The consistency and quality of information provided in the transfer of accountability (TOA) process between nurses led to findings on how to improve the procedure of TOA with no risks and poor handover
[52]. The individual-level accountability concept of felt accountability and how to describe the perceptions of one’s personal accountability have also been assessed
[53].
-
Employee behavior and decision-making: Thompson
[54] posited that many different individuals in large organizations contribute in many ways to decisions and policies; as such, it is difficult, even in principle, to identify who should be accountable for the results. Two ideal types of such hybrids—differentiated and integrated—and two key challenges of governance they face have been submitted: accountability for dual performance objectives, and accountability to multiple principal stakeholders
[55][56]. The accountability framework has identified multiple levers for change, including quasi-regulatory and strengthened accountability systems
[57][58]. The new accountability relationships between a local city hall, its citizens, and stakeholders, after executing austerity politics and its budget cuts for local authorities, have been shown to lead to social implications in terms of resource diversions and service cuts
[59].
-
Implementation and practice in the education domain: Coburn, Hill, and Spillane
[60] argued that accountability and alignment constitute important ways to measure how these additional variables function (i.e., system-level, organizational, and individual capacities; organizational networks and environments; the specificity of policy; and the ambitiousness of the instructional ideas advanced by policy) within settings that vary systematically by the strength of the accountability system and level of alignment. The authors proposed a new approach that reclaims and embraces accountability, and reconstructs its targets, purposes, and consequences in education
[61]. The accountability pressure affecting various non-achievement student behaviors and the causal impact of this form of accountability pressure have been examined
[62]. The relationships between the distribution of school expenditures, class size, qualified teachers, mathematics achievement, and performance-driven accountability policies in equity have been discussed
[63][64]. Furthermore, some studies have attempted to provide an effective accountability system, which should give students, parents, and governments confidence in new frameworks for shaping new standards
[65][66].
-
Relevant Studies in the Hotel Industry: Munteanu, Bibu, Nastase, Cristache, and Matis
[67] stated that sports and recreational facilities, traditional food and beverage businesses, employees’ behaviors, and accountability systems affect service quality. A theoretical framework to determine the variables that explain the phenomenon of turnover intention, and that identifies the antecedents of employee turnover, has been proposed
[68][69].
-
Empowerment, Humility, Stewardship, Standing Back, Forgiveness, Courage, Accountability, Authenticity, and Affective Commitment: Those have been determined to be crucial in servant leadership issues
[70][71]. This sector triggered the motives of this study. For travel industry leaders, when implementing the company’s assigned foreign tourism missions, facing tourists, local tour guides, and suppliers of relevant resources, the leader of the team should consider accountability issues, and whether there are any intermediary factors that will affect the psychological predecessors of the team leader and even further influence the level of responsibility of the team leader.