ABSTRACT
The study examines the effect of COVID-19 protocols on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State. Specifically, the study sought to determine the effect of the use of face mask on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State, effects of hand sanitizer on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State, effect of social distance on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State; and effect of self-quarantines on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State. Four research questions and four hypotheses guided the study. The literature reviewed for this study was under the following subheadings: conceptual framework, theoretical frameworks, empirical studies and summary of literature reviewed.
A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. The study was carried out in hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State. In other to determine the population of the study, purposive sampling techniques were adopted for the study and in each of the 6 hotels in the area; twenty five (25) guests was randomly selected. Hence the total sample size was 150. The instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire developed by the researcher. The reliability result of 0.62 was obtained as the result of the overall reliability of the instrument which indicated that the items were reliable. The data was analyzed using mean and Standard Deviation (SD) for research questions 1-4 while t-test was used to analyzed the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The results revealed that the respondents agreed that all the items were the effect of COVID-19 protocols on choice of hotels in Umuahia North of Abia State. Therefore, the null hypothesis of no significant effects was rejected in all the items tested. Hence the variables had significant effects on the choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State. The researcher recommended among other things, that the management of hotel industries should continue with the COVID-19 protocols for adequate hygiene and preventive measures.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cover
page i
Title
Page ii
Declaration iii
Certification iv
Dedication v
Acknowledgements vi
Table
of Contents vii
List
of Tables viii
Abstract ix
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 Backgrounds to the Study 1
1.2 Statement of the Problems 4
1.3 Objectives of the Study 6
1.4 Research Questions 6
1.5
Research Hypotheses 7
1.4 Significance of
the Study 7
1.7 Scope of the Study 8
CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF RELATED
LITERATURE 9
2.1 Conceptual
Framework 9
2.1.1
Hotels 9
2.1.2
Origin of the Hotel Industry 10
2.1.3
Types of Hotel 11
2.1.4
Classification of Hotels 12
2.1.5 Coronavirus
13
2.1.6 Origin of Coronavirus ( COVID-19) Pandemic in Nigeria 14
2.1.7 COVID-19 protocols from Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) 15
2.1.8
Necessary equipment and personal
protective kit at the reception desk 18
2.1.9
Handling COVID-19 cases in hotels and
accommodation 25
2.1.10
Effect of Covid-19 protocols on quest
behaviour 26
2.2 Theoretical Framework 30
2.2.1 Piaget’ Social Distance Theory 30
2.3 Review of Empirical Literature
31
2.4
Summary of Review of Related Literature 36
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 37
3.1 Design of the Study 37
3.2
Area of the Study 37
3.3
Population of the Study 38
3.4
Sample and Sampling Techniques 38
3.5
Instrument for Data Collection 38
3.6
Validation of Instrument 39
3.7
Reliability of the Instrument 39
3.8
Method of Data Collection 40
3.9
Method of Data Analysis 40
CHAPTER 4: PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
OF DATA 41
4.1
Result Presentation 41
Research Question 1 41
Research Question 2 42
Research Question 3 43
Research Question 4 44
4.2
Test of Hypotheses 45
Hypothesis 1 45
Hypothesis 2 46
Hypothesis 3 47
4.3
Summary of Findings 47
4.4
Discussion of Findings 49
CHAPTER 5: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS 51
5.1 Summary 51
5.2 Conclusion 52
5.3 Recommendations 52
5.4 Implications of the Findings 53
5.5
Limitations of the Study 53
5.6
Suggestions for Further Studies 54
References 55
Appendices 58
LIST OF TABLES
Table Contents Pages
1: Mean
rating on the effects of the use of face mask on
choice of hotels in
Umuahia
North LGA of Abia State 41
2: Mean
rating on the effects of hand sanitizer on choice of
hotels in
Umuahia
North LGA of Abia State 42
3: Mean
rating on the effects of social distance on choice of
hotels in
Umuahia
North LGA of Abia State 43
4: Mean
rating on the effects of self-quarantine on choice of hotels in
Umuahia
North LAG of Abia State 44
CHAPTER
1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
The novel Coronavirus pandemic otherwise
known as COVID-19 has touched every nook and cranny of the globe with severe
impacts on businesses and industry of nations. The causative agent of the
outbreak was identified by the World Health Organization (2020) as the severe
acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), producing the disease
named coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). The disease is characterized by
fever, dry cough, and chest pain with pneumonia in severe cases. It is
important to state that the first wave of the pandemic was reported to have
started in December 2019 at Wuhan, Hubei province, China. By mid-March 2020,
146 countries had been found to have COVID-19 cases (Anderson et al., 2020). As at April 2020,
infection rate had spiked through local transmission with about 2 million
confirmed cases in more than 200 countries (European Centre for Disease
Prevention and Control, 2020).
In the context of Nigeria, the first case
of the pandemic was reported on the 27th February, 2020 (Nigeria Center for
Disease Control, 2020). However, it is important to note that the actual
infection rate of the COVID-19 cases remains unknown in Nigeria due to limited
testing capacity of the country. In an attempt at controlling the spread of the
virus, due to lack of a vaccine for its treatment, the government of Nigeria
have resorted to the use of non-pharmaceutical approaches such as social
distancing, wearing of face mask, self-quarantines, border closures, and local
lockdowns among others. The corresponding effects of these infection spread
management strategies led to shutdown of businesses including, hotels.
A hotel is an establishment that provides
paid lodging on a short term basis (Omogunloye & Ayeni 2012). According to Branson and Lennox (2010) the
history of standard hotel emerged around the era of 7th to 8th centuries where
travellers are offered accommodation by the monasteries without charges but only
expected to contribute some funds based on their economic strengths. But as the
number of travellers grew, this type of accommodation system gave way to the
“Inns” which were basically meant for lodging. Hotel became legally accepted as
a place meant not only for the above mentioned need, but also a place for
holiday makers. Thus as the world went through the process of industrialization
and more people acquired the means of moving from one place to the other, the
hotel business is been metamorphosed into a very well garnished commercial sub sector
of the economy.
Apparently, the importance of hotels to
the development of every society cannot be over emphasized. This is because it
creates temporary lodging facilities to visitors or tourists on business or for
pleasure. When people go on vacation, they lodge in hotels for privacy reasons.
Hotels are very comfortable because people are always welcomed and their needs
are always served. A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a
short term basis (Omogunloye & Ayeni 2012). Hotels provide meals, drinks,
attractions, accommodation etc., to the general public or persons in transit
especially people travelling to places where they have neither their own homes
nor any relation to cater for their needs.
Such persons will like to know few things about the hotels in their
transitory area. In other words, they
may like to know about available hotels, the categories of such hotels, the
room and suit fares, and the type of food served, the necessary comfort
customers are accorded with, the game that is both indoor and outdoor games
available and perhaps and other special feature that make such hotels appealing
to the sojourners in transit.
As rightly noted by Wen, et al. (2020), the pandemic is changing
the behavior of tourists, as they are now more sensitive towards the health and
safety standards of firms and destinations. Since the inception of the COVID-19
pandemic, service delivery in hotels has become more challenging since good
hygiene has been generally advocated as one of the measures to stay away from
contracting the deadly virus. With this in mind, guests’ service quality
expectation, especially as it concerns health appears to have risen. It is in
line with the aforesaid that Seyitoğlu, and Ivanov, (2020) opined that
hospitality firms have to rewrite their health and safety protocols to decrease
the probability of spreading the virus. According to Sigala, (2020), facial
masks, transparent anti-virus helmets, and rubber gloves may become standard
equipment for hospitality employees in direct contact with customers. Equally,
Rosen (2020) noted that some hotels have adopted robots for the disinfection of
rooms with ultraviolet light.
It is instructive to note that while the
core service of hospitality companies, such as hotels does not change in the
Corona Virus era, the way the service is delivered to visitors/guests is
changing (Seyitoğlu, & Ivanov, 2020). In support, Mastrogiacomes (2020)
stated that the impacts of the Corona Virus require that hotels should
strategize to meet up with the industry demands. Therefore, hotel managers are
expected to be at the forefront in identifying and analyzing the extra
challenges and changes in the service delivery system, which have been
triggered as a result of the coronavirus crisis. For instance, a crisis such as
pandemics does impact heavily on service, choice of hotel and/or service
delivery in the hotel industry. Tourism as a service industry, consisting of
transportation, accommodation, and hospitality (Collins, Kreiner & Wall, 2015);
or as an amalgam of activities across various industry sectors, is one of the
most affected by the pandemic.
Despite the attractive and stabilized
outlook of the Nigeria hospitality industry in the pre Covid-19 era, the
emergence and resurgence of this disease were observed to have drastically
affected the hospitality industry in Nigeria. It is therefore worthwhile to
explore the consequences of the current pandemic on the Nigeria’s hospitality
industry. It is meaningful to state that some impact studies of Covid-19 in
Nigeria context have emerged. Ohia et
al., (2020) predicts the effect of COVID-19 on the Nigeria’s health sector.
Jacob et al. (2020) assessed COVID-19 pandemic and Nigeria’s higher
institutions. Adenomon and Maijamaa (2020) examined the impact of COVID-19 on
the Nigerian stock exchange from the 2nd January 2020 to 16th April 2020. Ozili
(2020) examined Covid-19 pandemic and economic crisis: the Nigerian experience
and structural causes. Olapegba et al.,
(2020) assessed the knowledge and perceptions of Nigerians about Covid-19. In
view of the above studies, it is justifiable to argue that studies that
examined the application of COVID-19 protocols and choice of hotel in Umuahia
North LGA are scarce. Hence, the focus of this study is to examine the effect
of COVID-19 protocols on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
1.2
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS
To a large extent, the challenges facing
the hotel industry like application of Covid 19 protocols could expose guests
to some stress, making them dissatisfied with hotel services, and could create
a high level of customer turnover, thus forcing many hotels out of business. In
Umuahia North particularly, where over 20 hotels are presently established, the
effect of Covid 19 protocols in the last two years makes survival for the hotel
businesses difficult. Specifically, most hotels struggle to remain in the
business as a result of obvious application of Covid 19 protocols and choice of
hotel caused by the pandemic.
Also, the absence of proper sanitary
protocols might lead some guests into feeling unsafe and at high risk of
contracting Covid 19 in such a facility. This has led to hotels ensuring high
standards of hygine in their services.
COVID-19 has negatively impacted most
facets of human endeavor; the hospitality and tourism industry is faced with
unprecedented global health, social and economic crises. The hotel industry
appears to be one of the hardest hit as global hotel bookings were greatly
affected. A report by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO),
shows that the hotel industry in all world regions recorded a large
double-digit decline in global revenue per available room, posting the biggest
decreases (UNWTO, 2020). As it concerns Nigeria, Oruonye, and Ahmed (2020)
found that industries in the tourism sector, including hotels, are facing
declining demand and patronage, with travel crashes and cancellations leading
to revenue loss as a result of COVID-19. Since the hotel industry is service-
oriented, there is no doubt that COVID-19 has brought about changes and more
challenges in service delivery. Hotels are expected to take proactive steps in
handling these extra service delivery challenges and changes if they are to
remain viable in the long run. In Umuahia North, Abia State, Nigeria, for
instance, the number of hotels have proliferated in the last few years;
suggesting a surge in visitor arrivals in the area. However, with the emergence
of the COVID-19 crisis, there is the need to examine the application of Covid
19 protocols which the hotels have been forced to undergo, and are undergoing
as a result of the pandemic. This is necessary because for the hotels to
contribute meaningfully to tourism development in this city like Umuahia North
LGA, a good application of Covid 19 protocols and service delivery system is
adjudged necessary since it affects the total experience of guests/tourists
choices.
Observance of COVID-19 protocols like
social distancing, wearing face mask, regular washing of hands, among others
might affect the comfort of the users and choice of hotel thereby discouraging
them from using hotel services during this COVID-19 period. At the same time,
adequate information is required to prevent and manage the virus from
spreading. Efforts to contend with the pandemic involved international and
local travel restrictions, screening, self- isolation, quarantine, closure of
night clubs services among others. There is the need to examine if observing or
application of COVID-19 protocols and choice of hotels affect the industry in Umuahia
North of Abia State. It is the foregoing background that motivated the present
study to examine the effect of COVID-19 protocols on choice of hotels in
Umuahia North LGA of Abia State where similar study has not been conducted to
the best knowledge of the researcher.
1.3
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The main objective of
this study is to examine the effect of COVID-19 protocols on choice of hotels
in Umuahia North of Abia State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study strived to;
1. Examine
the effect of the use of face mask on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of
Abia State;
2. Ascertain
the effects of hand sanitizer on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia
State;
3. Identify
the effect of social distance on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia
State; and
4. Identify
the effect of self-quarantines on
choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
The following research questions guided
the study:
1.
What are the effects of the use of face
mask on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State?
2.
What the effects of hand sanitizer on
choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State?
3.
What are the effects of social distance on
choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State?
4. What
are the effects of self-quarantine on
choice of hotels in Umuahia North of Abia State?
1.5
RESEARCH HYPOTHESES
The following Null hypotheses formulated were
tested for this study. These include;
(1). Use of face mask has no effect on
choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
(2). Use of hand sanitizer has no effect
on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
(3). Social distance has no effect on
choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
(4). Self-quarantine has
no effect on choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
1.4
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The findings of this study will be of immense benefit to the following groups;
personnel
and operators, government, hotel
strategic planner, customer, and future
researchers.
It is expected that the outcome of this
study will provide insight into the application of COVID-19 protocols in hotel
industry in preparing industry personnel and operators for the application of
COVID-19 protocols and choice of hotels ahead of time.
The study will assist the government, at
all levels, in policy formulation and implementation in the area of providing
application of COVID-19 protocols and choice of hotels for sustainable tourism
development.
The hotel strategic planner will also
benefit from the study in the idea of incorporation of application of COVID-19
protocols facilities in the scheme of the business for immediate or future
business success. Researchers in hospitality development will equally benefit
from this study as it will further create a new direction of how to mitigate
challenges facing the hotel industry.
The study findings will help to identify and highlight the weaknesses in
application
of COVID-19 protocols among customers and
how to design an appropriate customer service programme. This will help hotel to recover its customers after implementing the
necessary customer services and it will be able to compete fully with other
hotels both local and international.
The study findings will help to build on the body of the existing
literature and knowledge. This will help to provide reference for future
researchers and they will be able to carry out research with ease since this
study will provide secondary data to the researchers.
1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope of this current study includes;
use of face mask, use of hand sanitizer, social distance and self-quarantine as
independent variable. The study will geographically covered Umuahia North LGA
Abia State. The Umuahia North local government council is headed by a chairman
who is also the head of the executive arm of the local government. The dependent variable to be covered is the
choice of hotels in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State.
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