- Title
- Internationalisation of Australian tertiary education in the hospitality industry: Reflections on cross-cultural issues in postgraduate research projects
- Creator
- O'Mahony, Barry; Sillitoe, Jim
- Date
- 2012
- Type
- Text; Book chapter
- Identifier
- http://researchonline.federation.edu.au/vital/access/HandleResolver/1959.17/61693
- Identifier
- vital:5793
- Identifier
- http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84895339367∂nerID=40&md5=2a55b4ffca1006f414973c48a399c4fc
- Identifier
- ISBN:9781613242872
- Abstract
- In recent years, there has been an increasing number of international students engaged in Doctoral studies in the fields of Hospitality and Tourism at Australian universities. In particular, many students come' from our near neighbours in Asia such as Malaysia and Thailand, which coincidentally reflects the growing number of major international hotel chains establishing or growing their property portfolios across the Asian Pacific region. Whilst the increase in student postgraduate by-research numbers is a welcome and a valuable development for Australian universities, it nevertheless has proved to be somewhat problematic for both the postgraduate student and their supervisors with respect to the pragmatic outcomes of the studies. For example, there is still some uncertainty about the precise nature of the benefits to the student and their home institution, to the hosting university, and to the respective countries, that accrue from these intensive studies. We suggest that, in order to advance our own contributions and impact in this area, there is more work that we need to do in further enhancing or capitalising on the research findings of the studies and the experiences which have attended the students' candidature. We are, therefore, proposing that we need to spend some time reconceptualising the meta meaning of this kind of international research experience at the postgraduate level. In the light of the degree and significance of cultural differences which regularly emerge during the supervision process, and given the paucity of fundamental and applied research into crosscultural hospitality provision, we believe that we need to re-examine the question of how our programs and procedures which are required for postgraduate level studies should be structured to provide both a quality scholarly developmental experience for students in the discipline while simultaneously generating practical benefits for relevant stakeholders, particularly those in the Hospitality industry. Consequently, what we have set ourselves the task of doing here is to focus on the link between the formal intellectual requirements of the doctoral process and the pragmatic interests of the students and all their supporting institutions in order to make more use of the three plus years of engagement with tightly focussed research problems which underpin a postgraduate by-research qualification. Our aims, in terms of the outcomes of this reflection, are to: (i) better understand differences in the nuances of cultural meanings of hospitality and help embed these meanings in future scholarly studies, (ii) contribute to an enhancement of the quality of the Hospitality practices of students' sponsoring institutions as a result of the student's doctoral experience, (iii) make closer ties between the hosting university and relevant authorities who oversee the hospitality standards of neighbouring countries in respect of international visitors, and (iv) develop closer institutional ties with hospitality training organisations, both educational and professional, in these neighbouring countries. Specific issues that will command attention in this reflection will include: the development of theoretical models of hospitality procedures which explicitly involve crosscultural dimensions; clearer definitions of critical processes of hospitality practice which involve cross-cultural understandings such as loyalty, respect, and trust; the development of perspectives on internationalisation in the hospitality industry that can be built into our own practices; and to capitalise upon the areas of difference between Western and Eastern notions of hospitality that can be shared with hospitality providers who seek to develop or enhance cross cultural training programs for their staff.
- Publisher
- Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
- Relation
- Internationalising Education: Global Perspectives on Collaboration and Change p. 157-166
- Rights
- This metadata is freely available under a CCO license
- Subject
- Cross-cultural issues; Cross-cultural training; Higher education; Hospitality training; Intercultural training; Internationalisation; Postgraduate projects
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