Consumer behavior experiences at food courts: a humanistic and sustainability perspective

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to generate a holistic view of the major and impactful phenomenon that comprises food courts in luxury shopping malls by considering wider important humanistic aspects linked to international visitor experience. Thereby, the paper contributes to a significant and under-researched area that represents a substantial element of sustainable tourism as defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Design/methodology/approach The paper employs an ethnographic research design. Drawing on prior theory on consumer value and participant observation combined with conversation-based empirical data, the paper develops and examines the phenomenon using interpretive thematic analysis. Findings Our findings illustrate how international visitors to food courts in Thai luxury malls experience diverse and varying dimensions of value: functional, social, emotional, epistemic and conditional. Research limitations/implications The data analysis is governed by the overall interpretive lens adopted by the research team. This paper provides an important scholarly enrichment to our understanding of the international visitor experience of food courts, examined through a theoretical lens of the types of value experienced. Practical implications Companies, tourism agencies and government policy makers will potentially glean fresh insights from this new angle of inquiry and be able to incorporate concrete visitor experiences into their planning and execution. Also, the recognition of the significance of such visitor experiences can assist international business executives to reposition and reinforce human-centricity in their business philosophical outlook. Social implications The present study contributes to the humanistic perspective by offering a counterbalance to the predominantly instrumental approach to sustainability that is commonly employed by businesses and policy makers. Originality/value This paper is among the first qualitative investigations to explore how international visitors experience value at the major phenomenon that comprises luxury mall food courts. Reconceptualizing the international visitor from a humanistic perspective, prioritized as a constituent of society, the study recalibrates the focus to the visitor experience.