The self-as-entertainment personality construct: Validation and application in the hospitality context

We examined the validity and applicability of the self-as-entertainment (SAE) personality construct in the context of the hospitality industry. Participants were 309 employees at 4-star hotels in the southern region of China. Findings indicated that the 3 dimensions of the SAE construct (environment, mind play, and self) showed acceptable measurement properties and a reasonable fit. SAE–environment had a positive and significant effect on hotel employees’ organizational commitment; however, the relationships between organizational commitment and SAE–mind play and between organizational commitment and SAE–self were not significant in this study. Further, SAE–environment and SAE–self were significantly and positively related to hotel employees’ service orientation. Future researchers should extend our study to other locations to reveal a more stable view of the SAE construct, and should also investigate the complex nature of hospitality employees’ work environments.