Wellness Tourism among Seniors in Taiwan: Previous Experience, Service Encounter Expectations, Organizational Characteristics, Employee Characteristics, and Customer Satisfaction

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the influence of the service encounter expectations of senior customers during wellness tours on customer satisfaction. The organizational attributes of hotels, organizational characteristics and employee characteristics, were adopted as mediating variables. A total of 346 valid questionnaires were retrieved from 50 year-old and above seniors in Taiwan. The results showed that the service encounter expectations of seniors had an indirect influence on customer satisfaction and the organizational attributes mediated the service encounter expectations of seniors and customer satisfaction. The moment of truth in the interactions between service staff members and seniors represents the pivotal management implication of this study.

1. Introduction

Nations worldwide are facing problems caused by aging populations. In the previous decades, because of medical progress, improved health conditions, economic growth, and the prevalence of healthcare regimens, the population structure of Taiwan has undergone changes as well. The World Health Organization (WHO), a specialized agency of the United Nations, defined people 65 years old and above as part of the elderly population: if the elderly population reaches 7% of a national population, the nation is an aging society; if the percentage increases to 14%, the nation is an aged society; if the percentage increases to 20% and above, the nation is a super-aged society. Since 1993, the elderly population has reached 7.1% of the total population in Taiwan, meeting the indicator of an aging society specified by the WHO. According to the population statistics published by the Council for Economic Planning and Development of the Executive Yuan in Taiwan in 2012, the elderly population of Taiwan is predicted to reach 14% of the total population in 2018, which meets the standard of an aged society; the elderly population is predicted to reach 20% of the total population in 2025, marking the advent of a super-aged society [1].

In Taiwan, the Ministry of the Interior conducts a survey on elderly people every four years. In those surveys, seniors were grouped into two groups according to age, with 50–64 years old and 65 years old and above being used before 2005, and 55–64 years old and 65 years old and above being used after 2009. The surveys on elderly people conducted in Taiwan adopted two types of age thresholds: 50 and 55 years old. Previous studies on senior travel mostly set the age of older adults according to their individual research implications, causing inconsistent definitions for the age of seniors. Hawes [2], Janke, Davey, and Kleiber [3], and Whitford [4] conducted investigations primarily focusing on elderly people aged 50 years old and above. Shoemaker [5] found that the motivation for travel has changed from the desire for rest and relaxation into a desire to visit new spots and experience new things. This change is an important marketing reference for senior tourism. Thus, this study employed the maturing market definition suggested by Whitford [4], defining seniors aged 50-64 years old as pre-older adults and seniors aged 65 years old and above as older adults, and compared these two groups in terms of their perspectives regarding customer service and satisfaction.

Seniors increasingly value the improvement of health conditions by undergoing preventive treatments. Erfurt-Cooper and Cooper [6] considered that preventive treatments are mainly available from wellness resorts and spas. Regarding the implications of wellness tourism, the spa industry is a combination of multiple aspects of leisure industries such as hydrotherapy, travel, treatments, traditional therapy, food, and leisure activities, which all aim to satisfy customer demand. The concept of spa has been transformed from the original meaning of hydrotherapy only to a health-improving leisure activity that involves the creation of stress-relieving scenarios by using natural resources, and the combination of nutritious and delicious food, exercise, spiritual liberation, full body care and relaxation, and energy therapy. Consequently, wellness tourism benefits more from the wellness tourism industry than from natural hot springs, resulting in the demand for additional spa resorts and spa houses. In summary, Cohen [7] regarded the increasingly common integration of business, customers, and therapies in the spa industry as a global phenomenon. The evolving health awareness and the increasing emphasis on wellness among customers resulted in the growing prominence of the spa industry.

Schegg et al. [8] argued that enhancing customer service can generate an immediate competitive advantage. Turban et al. [9] indicated that customer service involves a series of actions aimed at increasing customer satisfaction (i.e., products or services that satisfy customer expectations), and customer service is crucial for boosting organizational profitability. With increasing age, seniors begin to encounter physical difficulties; therefore, they not only experience several inconveniences in daily life, but are also prone to encountering accidents. In addition, because the senses weaken as people age, the sensitivity of elderly people toward things around them reduces. Therefore, in addition to providing diverse wellness facilities, professional wellness personnel, nutritious meals, and relaxing scenarios, wellness hotels should introduce relevant software and hardware facilities and attentive services that are suitable for seniors to stay in the hotels.

Grougiou and Pettigrew [10] suggested that previous experience of being a customer or an employee influences the service encounter expectations of seniors. Service encounter expectations and the organizational attributes of hotels (i.e., organizational characteristics and employee characteristics) affect the satisfaction of senior customers. According to Marvel [11], the crucial factors that enable hotels to compete in the senior market involve communication, pricing strategies, employee training, and the location and design of a hotel. Riley [12] highlighted that the intention to provide satisfactory service encounters for customers can influence company policies and requirements for employees, alter service strategies, and result in requiring employee behavior modification. Moschis [13] indicated that during service delivery, seniors value the quality of service encounters the most because it represents the status of seniors in social contact and a close relationship with service providers, which is referred to as the moment of truth. According to the service encounter assessment model proposed by Fornell et al. [14], customer expectations exert a positive influence on customer satisfaction. The models of the American Customer Satisfaction Index and the Sweden Customer Satisfaction Barometer referred to by Bitner [15] also indicated that customer expectations have a positive influence on customer satisfaction. Numerous studies have demonstrated that customer service expectations have a direct or indirect influence on customer satisfaction. Do the service encounter expectations of senior customers for wellness tourism affect customer satisfaction? Is it a direct or an indirect influence? In addition, to respond to the expectations of senior customers, spa hotels will modify or adjust their organizational service strategies (e.g., by hiring older service staff members) and require employees to behave in a specific manner (e.g., by treating and serving senior customers as their own elderly relatives) to satisfy the demands of senior customers and enhance customer satisfaction. Consequently, investigating the mediating roles of organizational characteristics and employee characteristics in human resource management and service quality systems is crucial for spa hotels. Therefore, this study aimed to construct and verify the causal relationships among senior customers’ previous experience, service encounter expectations, organizational characteristics, employee characteristics, and customer satisfaction during wellness tours in spa hotels.

2. Literature Review

2.1. Wellness Tourism and Spas

The concept of wellness is derived from the work of a U.S. physician, Halbert Dunn, in 1959. The work discussed a particular state of wellness that incorporates an overall sense of well-being that is formed by body, mind, spirit, and the environment that people depend upon [16]. Wellness comprises well-being and fitness, implying that wellness is attained through fitness activities and comprehensive well-being [17,18]. Various scholars have distinct opinions on the components of wellness. Mueller and Lanz Kaufmann [16] regarded wellness as “a state of health featuring harmony between the body, mind, and spirit, with self-responsibility, physical fitness/beauty care, healthy nutrition/diet, relaxation/meditation, mental activity/education, and environmental sensitivity/social contacts as fundamental elements”. Anspaugh et al. [19] viewed wellness as being composed of environmental, occupational, intellectual, spiritual, physiological, emotional, and social factors.

Kaspar [20] considered wellness tourism as a phenomenon incorporating all the efforts to improve, stabilize, and appropriately recover physical, mental, and social well-being, during which people move to another location and residence where health services are provided. During this time, these people do not have any fixed principles, permanent residences, or work. Therefore, the main purpose of wellness tourism is to maintain and enhance health through touring. In addition, wellness tourists can require services that are highly similar to treatments, although their motives for improving health and preventing diseases differ from those of other types of tourism that are focused on treatment. A spa tour is a major form of wellness tourism [21], and most of the services provided involve health-oriented services called spa therapy [6]. Cohen [7] considered that spa tours can be divided into various types, although most of them basically feature therapies based on water resources and emphasize relaxation and treatment. For instance, cold springs, hot springs, saunas, and steam rooms all highlight the recovery of physical and mental states. Although various service providers hold varying interpretations of spa, all of their main concepts involve the enhancement of health and happiness. Spa services vary depending on local resources, including natural resources such as water quality for treatment, weather, soil, and caves that have medicinal properties. The spa services provided in most Asian areas are traditional or spiritual massages and spring therapies [22].

Spa tourism has become a major leisure activity in Taiwan in recent years; additionally, it has become a highly representative leisure activity. The spa tourism in Taiwan has encountered seasonal problems; thus, how to provide customers with diverse services to attract them is a crucial topic [23]. Because older adults are characterized as having great amounts of leisure time and the ability to travel anytime render older adults a critical source of customers for the off-season operation of spa businesses. The development of spa hotels in Taiwan originated in the period of Japanese colonization, during which the colonizers discovered the abundant hot spring resources in Taiwan and established public baths in places such as Beitou, Yangmingshan, Chiaohsi, and Jhihben. Subsequently, numerous Japanese people came to Taiwan for developing hot springs in the mountain areas and establishing spa hotels. With the economic growth in the 1970s, the Taiwanese government selected 14 hot springs in Chiaohsi, Guanziling, Sihjhongsi, and Jhihben, and two cold springs in Suao and Beipu as the pivotal hot spring scenic areas for development [24]. Therefore, traditional hot spring hotels gradually transformed into spa resorts, health-promoting hot springs, and five-star grand hotels, or exquisite medium-sized spa hotels. These locations provide superior services for customers, thereby attracting large crowds of tourists. Moreover, going to hot springs is a common and prevalent habit among Taiwanese people.

2.2. Service Encounter Expectations

Hsieh et al. [25] broadly defined service expectations as the craving for service. Parasuraman et al. [26] and Zeithaml et al. [27] indicated that customer expectations involve everything that customers expect to gain from service providers. Therefore, customer expectations denote the services or products that customers crave for, or those that should be provided. Solomon et al. [28] proposed the main concept of service encounter, and defined the term as the face-to-face interactive relationship between service providers and receivers at certain times during service consumption. They viewed service encounters as the core of service marketing that greatly influences the aspects of service quality control, service delivery systems, and customer satisfaction. Service encounter is also called the moment of truth, which occurs at a time point when a customer directly interacts with any one customer contact employee. After a period of remaining in interaction and communication, the chance for the service encounter between a customer and an employee to transform into an exchange relationship increases, and the implications for both parties in a service encounter are the levels of trust and commitment [29]. Therefore, this study combined service encounters and service expectations as service encounter expectations, and defined the term as everything customers expect to gain from service providers, or the services or products that they consider should be provided by service providers in the interactive relationship between service providers and service receivers.

In previous years, because of new strategies and measures regarding the promotion of mental and physical health, new hospitality sectors have been established—particularly luxury hotels (e.g., wellness hotels). This type of novel service is typically offered for the improvement of personal health. In investigating the motivation and factors for senior tourism, Jang and Wu [30] found that crucial motivations were the pursuit of knowledge and environments that are tidy and safe. Huang and Tsai [31] indicated that during tours, senior travelers in Taiwan valued attractions that involved cultural features and nature-related products. According to Dixon [32], seniors preferred tourism products or itineraries that can be modified based on individual needs, budgets, or health conditions. Heung and Kucukusta [33] gathered expert opinions about wellness tourism development in China and proposed three attributes and resources for developing and marketing wellness tourism: environmental and safety attributes, healthcare facilities, and supporting facilities. Because of the limitations of the experts’ opinions and the small sample size, the expectations of elderly tourists regarding wellness tourism, which could also provide valuable information for the development of this market, were not sufficiently analyzed. Chen et al. [34] proposed that for elderly citizens aged 50 years and above who had stayed in hotels in the hot spring areas in Taiwan, validated service requirements for wellness tourism involved seven service factors: health promotion treatments, mental learning, experience of unique tourism resources, complementary therapies, relaxation, healthy diet, and social activities. This study indicated that the service factor healthy diet was valued by seniors, which is rarely mentioned in previous literature.

2.3. Previous Experience

The schema theory is widely applied in the study of consumer behavior [35]. A schema denotes the basic structure for understanding things and gaining knowledge and experience. According to the schema-triggered affect or the category-based affect model proposed by Fiske [36], individuals react based on existing previous experiences or beliefs. Mandler [37] regarded the cognitive structure of an individual as an empirical mode. The methods that an individual employs to process information can be roughly divided into assimilation and accommodation. Assimilation denotes a condition in which an individual preserves their original cognitive schema and combines new information into the schema; accommodation denotes a condition in which an individual modifies an original cognitive schema or establishes a new schema to categorize new information.

Multiple studies have revealed that previous experience influenced the service encounter expectations of customers [27,38,39,40,41]. Negative experiences are more easily remembered than positive ones are [42] and can result in reduced willingness to repurchase and decreased word-of-mouth referrals [43]. Grougiou and Pettigrew [10] conducted a qualitative study on elderly people who were 60 years old and above in Scotland to ascertain the factors involved in the customer satisfaction of seniors. The results indicated that during service encounters, previous experiences of being a customer or an employee caused senior customers to prefer specific ways of service delivery rather than new methods. Previous experience involves all of the experiences that seniors have obtained from previous travels, friends and relatives, and previous work experience.

2.4. Organizational Attributes of Spa Hotels

Grougiou and Pettigrew [10] divided the organizational attributes of reception services into organizational characteristics and employee characteristics to investigate the factors influencing the service encounter satisfaction of senior customers. Their results demonstrated that the organizational and employee characteristics could influence customer satisfaction. Organizational characteristics involve organizational size, location, human resource policies, and marketing techniques. The organizational characteristics of a hotel can influence the satisfaction of senior customers. Employee characteristics involve employee age and attitude, and the latter includes the demonstration of respect and empathy for customers. In addition, Barger and Grandey [44] argued that during service encounters, the smiles of employees can affect the smiles of customers and that the smiles and service quality of employees can influence service satisfaction.

Compared with the specific demands of general customers, Marvel [11] aimed to explore the factors that hotels must implement to satisfy elderly customers. According to the study, the four major factors of hotels that seniors value include communication, pricing policies, basic hotel services, and architectural and design features. Regarding communicating with older adults, employees should avoid using insensitive wording such as old timer and elderly, and mild adjectives such as mature are suggested to be used for describing older adults. When communicating with senior customers with hearing loss, employees are required to speak slowly and express their meanings explicitly. Written communication should be carefully drafted as well. For example, words printed on flyers, hotel brochures, and menus should not be presented in small fonts. Concerning pricing policies, pricing strategies are the most common hotel marketing techniques used for attracting older adults. That is, providing a discount attracts older adults because the price elasticity of demand is over 1. As the price drops slightly, older adults’ quantity of demand for tourism increases substantially.

Two major characteristics of seniors render their needs more flexible than those of general customers. First, seniors patronize hotels purely because of the demand for leisure; therefore, they emphasize prices more than business people do because the expenditures of business people are usually partially subsidized by their companies. Second, seniors have relatively greater flexibility for travel dates because they are free from the pressures of work and children. Regarding basic hotel services, hotels must provide amenities and features that accommodate the needs of seniors (e.g., hotel shuttle buses, small meals, single rooms, and clear signs). Concerning architectural and design features, elderly people value factors such as the brightness of hotels, color schemes, furnishings, and the design of elevators and doors.

According to Riley [12], the service encounter between customers and employees involved three situations. First, employee job satisfaction and the standard service procedures are necessary in a successful service encounter. Second, successful service encounters cause employees to feel great pressure. Third, employees are required to comply with coping strategies for achieving successful service encounters. These situations demonstrated that the intention to accomplish satisfactory service encounters can influence corporate policies and the requirements for employees. The third situation indicated that to provide customers with superior service encounters, companies can require employees to alter service strategies and modify their behavior. Chen et al. [34] explained that during service encounters, the ability of an organization to maintain profitability is deeply related to customer service. Based on this perspective, hotel businesses must systematically modify and improve customer service strategies for enhancing organizational financial performance. The aforementioned literature indicated that hotel businesses will alter personnel policies, modify service quality, and establish standard procedures to improve their services for satisfying customer expectations. Chen [45] analyzed the service characteristics of the spa hotels in Taiwan that require improvement to satisfy customer expectations. The results demonstrated that in the competitive market of spa hotels in Taiwan, most of the service factors requiring improvement are hotel organizational characteristics, including food service quality, the convenience of the reservation process, the safety and privacy of spa facilities, convenience in traffic routes and pick up, additional facilities and activities, hotel lot size, travel route recommendations, baby bathroom facilities, personalized service, rapid service, features of spa pools, images of spa hotels, ability to quickly solve problems, price, and interior design. According to these studies, corporations may alter organizational manpower policies or equipment to satisfy customer expectations and needs, proving that service encounter expectations influence organizational characteristics.

2.5. Customer Satisfaction

Oliver [46] mentioned that satisfaction derives from two Latin words, satis (enough) and facere (to make or do). Therefore, being sufficient is the basic concept for product and service satisfaction. Words relevant to satisfaction also include satiation and satiety, both of which involve the meaning of exceeding expected amounts or extents. Hempel [47] indicated that satisfaction hinges upon realizing the level of product benefits that customers expect. Zeithaml and Binter [48] regarded satisfaction as customers’ evaluation regarding whether the quality and price of a product or service satisfy their needs and expectations; additionally, satisfaction is affected by personal and situational factors. To summarize the aforementioned explanations, satisfaction denotes the state of being satisfied even beyond the expected level. Customer satisfaction is the difference between customer expectations and service performance. When a hotel provides service that satisfies or exceeds the expectations of a customer, the service is determined as satisfactory [49].

In the conceptual model of service quality proposed by Parasuraman et al. [50], both service quality and customer satisfaction are regarded as a “comparison between expectations and performance,” and are measured by the same method. In addition, Parsuraman et al. [49] developed the SERVQUAL scale, a tool that enables further development and application in various research projects. The scale is divided into five major sections for measuring customer perception of service quality: reliability, assurance, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness, which form the acronym RATER. Customer perception of service quality derives from the gap between customers’ expectations for service and the service that is actually obtained. This scale has also been applied by numerous scholars in evaluating hotel accommodation services. This study investigated how the service encounter expectations of seniors affect customer satisfaction. Consequently, the gap between expectation and actual service was adopted as the criterion for measuring satisfaction. In addition, the five major dimensions of the PZB model are also capable of reflecting and measuring the service demands in wellness tourism such as the specific needs of seniors and the factor of physical decline that require rapid, safe, and appropriate care from employees. Therefore, responsiveness is a crucial measurement factor. Furthermore, empathy can reflect the feelings of being understood and the perceptions of being respected and honored among seniors during service experiences. Consequently, this study adopted the SERVQUAL scale as the measurement items for analyzing the satisfaction of service encounter expectations among elderly customers during wellness tours.

Multiple studies have supported the argument that customer service expectations directly influence customer satisfaction [14,51]. However, several studies have argued that customer service expectations indirectly influence customer satisfaction [52,53,54]. For instance, Wong and Dioko [53] indicated that customer service expectations affect customer satisfaction through perceived value. Therefore, this study explored both the direct and indirect influence of seniors’ service encounter expectations on customer satisfaction by using organizational characteristics and employee characteristics as mediating variables.

3. Methodology

3.1. Research Framework and Hypotheses

The research framework and hypotheses of this study were constructed and proposed based on descriptions in the aforementioned studies. The research framework of this study involved five latent variables: previous experience, service encounter expectations, organizational characteristics, employee characteristics, and customer satisfaction (Figure 1). Six hypotheses were proposed (Table 1).

Figure 1. Research framework.

Figure 1. Research framework.

Table 1. Research hypotheses.

Codes	Research hypotheses
H1	Previous experience has a significant and positive influence on service encounter expectations.
H2	Service encounter expectations have a significant and positive influence on organizational characteristics.
H3	Service encounter expectations have a significant and positive influence on employee characteristics.
H4	Organizational characteristics have a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction.
H5	Employee characteristics have a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction.
H6	Service encounter expectations have a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction.

Table 1. Research hypotheses.

Codes	Research hypotheses
H1	Previous experience has a significant and positive influence on service encounter expectations.
H2	Service encounter expectations have a significant and positive influence on organizational characteristics.
H3	Service encounter expectations have a significant and positive influence on employee characteristics.
H4	Organizational characteristics have a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction.
H5	Employee characteristics have a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction.
H6	Service encounter expectations have a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction.

3.2. Questionnaire Design

The questionnaire contains six sections. The sections regarding previous experience, organizational characteristics, and employee characteristics were mainly structured based on the framework proposed by Grougiou and Pettigrew [10]. However, because the study did not propose items relevant to the travel and accommodation services for seniors, the items in these sections were compiled and revised by four professionals (including spa hotel chief operating officers, midlevel hotel managers, and marketing scholars) based on the study content. Initially, the questionnaire items suitable for this study comprised an extensive list; however, several items were eliminated during revision. Eventually, by implementing semantic adjustments and modifications, the second revision yielded the finalized questionnaire. The items in the section of service encounter expectations were formulated mainly based on the service factors proposed by Chen et al. [34] for the wellness tours among seniors. The dimensions of tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy proposed by Parsuraman et al. [49] were adopted in the section for customer satisfaction, and the section items were composed and revised based on the original items of the dimensions. All of the aforementioned items were measured using a 5-point Likert scale. The sixth section was designed for collecting the socioeconomic backgrounds of respondents. The operational definitions, number of items, and measurement scales for the variables of this study are presented in Table 2.

Table 2. The operational definitions, number of items, and measurement scales for the variables of this study.

Variables	Operational definition	Number of items	Measurement scale
Previous experience	The awareness of the service experiences of being a customer or an employee among older adults	4	5-point Likert scale
Service encounter expectations	In the interactive relationship between service providers and service receivers, customers’ awareness of all the things that they expect to obtain from service providers or the services that they consider should be provided	31	5-point Likert scale
Organizational characteristics	The awareness of older adults regarding the organizational size, location, personnel policies, and marketing techniques of a hotel	16	5-point Likert scale
Employee characteristics	The awareness of older adults regarding the ages and attitudes of employees	8	5-point Likert scale
Customer satisfaction	The differences between customer expectations and the service performance of businesses	24	5-point Likert scale

Table 2. The operational definitions, number of items, and measurement scales for the variables of this study.

Variables	Operational definition	Number of items	Measurement scale
Previous experience	The awareness of the service experiences of being a customer or an employee among older adults	4	5-point Likert scale
Service encounter expectations	In the interactive relationship between service providers and service receivers, customers’ awareness of all the things that they expect to obtain from service providers or the services that they consider should be provided	31	5-point Likert scale
Organizational characteristics	The awareness of older adults regarding the organizational size, location, personnel policies, and marketing techniques of a hotel	16	5-point Likert scale
Employee characteristics	The awareness of older adults regarding the ages and attitudes of employees	8	5-point Likert scale
Customer satisfaction	The differences between customer expectations and the service performance of businesses	24	5-point Likert scale

3.3. Common Method Variance Test for Respondents and Data Acquisition

Since 2008, Taiwan’s Ministry of Education has promoted active aging learning and established senior universities specifically for citizens over the age of 55 to encourage seniors to continue their education and better their physical and mental health. These institutions provide channels for diverse lifelong learning and inspire seniors in Taiwan to continue learning as they age. In this study, we investigated the satisfaction that seniors derived from staying at spa hotels. Samples were drawn from elderly people who were 50 years old and above, studied at senior universities, and had the experience of staying in a spa hotel. The main reason for focusing on students at senior universities was that compared with typical seniors, they value social activities and exhibit stronger motivations for learning; in addition, these two characteristics are crucial factors for wellness tourism. The duration of the sampling period was from January 2014 to March in 2014. The sampling method was decided based on the ratio of the numbers of northern, central, and southern senior universities among all the senior universities in Taiwan during the 2013 academic year. The senior universities for the survey were randomly selected. Then, the researchers contacted responsible units through telephone calls to inquire whether sending questionnaires or visiting the universities for conducting a questionnaire survey was possible. After receiving approval, the researchers sent questionnaires to the students of entire classes, asked the senior students who had stayed at a spa hotel to answer the questionnaires, and retrieved the questionnaires. From the senior universities in Northern Taiwan, Central Taiwan, and Southern Taiwan, 185, 31, and 130 valid questionnaires were retrieved, respectively. Of the 422 questionnaires we retrieved, 346 were valid, yielding a response rate of 81.9%.

That the items of this study were answered by a single type of respondents could generate problems related to common method variance. Therefore, this study adopted the Harman’s one-factor test proposed by Podsakoff and Organ [55] to test whether the questionnaire data involved the common method variance problem. We conducted a principle component analysis on the merged items of previous experience, service encounter expectations, organizational characteristics, employee characteristics, and customer satisfaction to calculate the proportion of the (maximum) explained variance of the first factor among the total cumulative variance. If most variance could not be explained, the problem of common method variance could be considered nonexistent. The results of the exploratory factor analysis on all items indicated that the explained variance of the first factor was 25.76%, and the cumulative explained variance was 68.82%. The former variance did not exceed 50% of the latter; therefore, the problem of common method variance did not exist.

4. Results

4.1. Descriptive Statistical Analysis

Table 3 presents the structural analysis of respondent samples. The majority of the respondents were female (60.7%). Respondents who were 50–64 years old and those who were 65 years old and above accounted for 64.2% and 34.7% of the total respondents, respectively. Most of the respondents were married (93.1%). Regarding educational attainment, respondents with college or university degrees accounted for the largest proportion (36.4%), followed by those with senior (vocational) high school degrees (31.8%). Concerning the variable of current occupation, half of the respondents were retired (50.9%). Half of the respondents resided in Northern Taiwan (59.5%). Respondents with a monthly disposable income of NT$20–40 thousand accounted for the largest proportion (29.2%), followed by those with that of less than NT$20 thousand (26.9%). Half of the respondents perceived themselves as healthy (54.6%).

4.2. Item Analysis of Previous Experience, Organizational Characteristics, and Employee Characteristics

We conducted an item analysis on the reliability and discriminative power of the items of previous experience, organizational characteristics, and employee characteristics, items that we developed based on the dimensions proposed by Grougiou and Pettigrew [10]. Consequently, the reliability and discriminative power of these items must be analyzed and tested by item analysis. As Table 4 presents, all of the items of previous experience and employee characteristics had a t value of greater than 3 and an item-to-total correlation coefficient of greater than 0.5. Therefore, all of the four items were preserved. All of the items for the variable of organizational characteristics had a t value of greater than 3; nevertheless, all of these items had an item-to-total correlation coefficient of greater than 0.5 except for the following three items: “I think that large service places provide a greater number of services than small service places do”; “I think that large service places cost more than small service places do but provide superior services”; “I list service places with a relatively greater size as a priority in choosing service places”.

Table 3. Structural analysis of respondent samples (n = 346).

Variables	Data category	Number of samples	Percentage (%)
Gender	Male	134	38.7
	Female	210	60.7
Age	50–64 years old	222	64.2
	65 years old and above	120	34.7
Marital status	Married	322	93.1
	Single	8	2.30
	Other	10	2.90
Educational attainment	Junior high school and below	76	22.0
	Senior (vocational) high school	110	31.8
	College/university	126	36.4
	Graduate school and above	26	7.50
Current occupation or industry	Retired	176	50.9
	Military, public, and teaching personnel	18	5.20
	Agriculture, forestry, fishing, and animal husbandry	6	1.70
	Service sector	32	9.20
	Industrial sector	5	1.40
	Self-employed	29	8.40
	Housewife	59	17.1
	Commerce	10	2.90
	Technology industry	3	0.90
	Other	8	2.30
Major residence	Northern Taiwan	206	59.5
	Central Taiwan	30	8.70
	Southern Taiwan	101	29.2
	Eastern Taiwan	3	0.90
Monthly disposable income (NT$)	20 thousand and below	93	26.9
	20–40 thousand	101	29.2
	40–60 thousand	68	19.7
	60–80 thousand	33	9.50
	80–100 thousand	14	4.00
	100 thousand and above	17	4.90
Self-perceived health condition	Very unhealthy	9	2.60
	Unhealthy	4	1.20
	Average	105	30.3
	Healthy	189	54.6
	Very healthy	38	11.0

Note: The missing data were omitted.

Table 3. Structural analysis of respondent samples (n = 346).

Variables	Data category	Number of samples	Percentage (%)
Gender	Male	134	38.7
	Female	210	60.7
Age	50–64 years old	222	64.2
	65 years old and above	120	34.7
Marital status	Married	322	93.1
	Single	8	2.30
	Other	10	2.90
Educational attainment	Junior high school and below	76	22.0
	Senior (vocational) high school	110	31.8
	College/university	126	36.4
	Graduate school and above	26	7.50
Current occupation or industry	Retired	176	50.9
	Military, public, and teaching personnel	18	5.20
	Agriculture, forestry, fishing, and animal husbandry	6	1.70
	Service sector	32	9.20
	Industrial sector	5	1.40
	Self-employed	29	8.40
	Housewife	59	17.1
	Commerce	10	2.90
	Technology industry	3	0.90
	Other	8	2.30
Major residence	Northern Taiwan	206	59.5
	Central Taiwan	30	8.70
	Southern Taiwan	101	29.2
	Eastern Taiwan	3	0.90
Monthly disposable income (NT$)	20 thousand and below	93	26.9
	20–40 thousand	101	29.2
	40–60 thousand	68	19.7
	60–80 thousand	33	9.50
	80–100 thousand	14	4.00
	100 thousand and above	17	4.90
Self-perceived health condition	Very unhealthy	9	2.60
	Unhealthy	4	1.20
	Average	105	30.3
	Healthy	189	54.6
	Very healthy	38	11.0

Note: The missing data were omitted.

Table 4. Item analysis results.

Variables	Item	t value	Item-to-total correlation
Previous experience	I have been here, and when I revisit this place, I expect to experience the same service quality because I felt satisfied in my previous visit(s).	4.11	0.80
	According to my previous travel experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.	5.00	0.73
	After collecting relevant information, I think that the service provided by this spa hotel is the best choice.	6.69	0.78
	According to my service-related work experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.	6.55	0.74
Organizational characteristics	I think that large service places provide a greater number of services than small service places do.	7.45	0.43 *
	I think that large service places cost more than small service places do but provide superior services.	4.19	0.26 *
	I list service places with a relatively greater size as a priority in choosing service places.	7.65	0.42 *
	The transportation to the spa hotel is convenient.	9.57	0.51
	The spa hotel has a beautiful view and environment.	11.24	0.53
	The service staff contains middle-aged reemployed workers.	9.67	0.52
	Members of the service staff have a background in medical care (e.g., nurses or dietitians).	10.73	0.54
	Members of the service staff possess healthcare-related certifications (e.g., physical therapists, fitness instructors for older adults, or nurse aides).	11.74	0.55
	The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	12.53	0.63
	The sensing devices installed at the service location include checkout functions.	10.86	0.59
	The sensing devices provided at the service location include electronic meal vouchers.	10.40	0.56
	The sensing devices provided at the service location include spa time reminders.	11.95	0.63
	Service staff members frequently give sincere (nonstandardized) greetings.	13.17	0.63
	Service staff members frequently have sincere (nonstandardized) expressions.	12.88	0.64
	The spa hotel actively reminds me of the time of my next vacation activity.	10.22	0.54
	The spa hotel actively sends me accommodation coupons for special holidays.	10.77	0.58
Employee characteristics	The service provided by senior service staff members can better satisfy my needs compared with that provided by young service staff members.	7.26	0.74
	The service provided by senior service staff members is more satisfactory than that provided by young staff members.	6.35	0.71
	Senior service staff members are more patient in listening to my inquiries than young service staff members are.	5.36	0.65
	Service staff members respect my needs.	10.69	0.68
	During service, service staff members make me feel respected and honored.	8.08	0.67
	Service staff members treat me like they do their own senior relatives.	8.33	0.72
	Service staff members actively approach and serve me.	7.17	0.72
	Service staff members remain dedicated to serving customers during service delivery.	8.20	0.72

Note: ^* means items that were deleted in this phase.

Table 4. Item analysis results.

Variables	Item	t value	Item-to-total correlation
Previous experience	I have been here, and when I revisit this place, I expect to experience the same service quality because I felt satisfied in my previous visit(s).	4.11	0.80
	According to my previous travel experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.	5.00	0.73
	After collecting relevant information, I think that the service provided by this spa hotel is the best choice.	6.69	0.78
	According to my service-related work experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.	6.55	0.74
Organizational characteristics	I think that large service places provide a greater number of services than small service places do.	7.45	0.43 *
	I think that large service places cost more than small service places do but provide superior services.	4.19	0.26 *
	I list service places with a relatively greater size as a priority in choosing service places.	7.65	0.42 *
	The transportation to the spa hotel is convenient.	9.57	0.51
	The spa hotel has a beautiful view and environment.	11.24	0.53
	The service staff contains middle-aged reemployed workers.	9.67	0.52
	Members of the service staff have a background in medical care (e.g., nurses or dietitians).	10.73	0.54
	Members of the service staff possess healthcare-related certifications (e.g., physical therapists, fitness instructors for older adults, or nurse aides).	11.74	0.55
	The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	12.53	0.63
	The sensing devices installed at the service location include checkout functions.	10.86	0.59
	The sensing devices provided at the service location include electronic meal vouchers.	10.40	0.56
	The sensing devices provided at the service location include spa time reminders.	11.95	0.63
	Service staff members frequently give sincere (nonstandardized) greetings.	13.17	0.63
	Service staff members frequently have sincere (nonstandardized) expressions.	12.88	0.64
	The spa hotel actively reminds me of the time of my next vacation activity.	10.22	0.54
	The spa hotel actively sends me accommodation coupons for special holidays.	10.77	0.58
Employee characteristics	The service provided by senior service staff members can better satisfy my needs compared with that provided by young service staff members.	7.26	0.74
	The service provided by senior service staff members is more satisfactory than that provided by young staff members.	6.35	0.71
	Senior service staff members are more patient in listening to my inquiries than young service staff members are.	5.36	0.65
	Service staff members respect my needs.	10.69	0.68
	During service, service staff members make me feel respected and honored.	8.08	0.67
	Service staff members treat me like they do their own senior relatives.	8.33	0.72
	Service staff members actively approach and serve me.	7.17	0.72
	Service staff members remain dedicated to serving customers during service delivery.	8.20	0.72

Note: ^* means items that were deleted in this phase.

4.3. Exploratory Factor Analysis of Previous Experience, Service Encounter Expectations, Organizational Characteristics, and Employee Characteristics

This study conducted an exploratory factor analysis on the following four factors: the previous experience and service encounter expectations for and the organizational and employee characteristics of spa hotels. The Kaiser–Myer–Olkin (KMO) value of previous experience was 0.771 (>0.7), and the significance of Bartlett’s sphericity test was 0.000, reaching a significant level. Therefore, the items of previous experience were suitable for conducting factor analysis, and the total variance explained was 60.35%. As presented in Table 5, compared with the mean of previous experience, the items of “According to my previous travel experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.” (M = 3.79) and “I have been here, and when I revisit this place, I expect to experience the same service quality because I felt satisfied in my previous visit(s)” (M = 3.77) had relatively greater means. Consequently, older adults tend to choose hotels based on collected information (e.g., word-of-mouth recommendations) or previous experience. The results of exploratory factor analysis of previous experience demonstrated that previous experience was a relevant factor.

Table 5. Results of the exploratory factor analysis of previous experience, service encounter expectations, organizational characteristics, and employee characteristics.

Factor	Questionnaire item	Factor loading	Mean	Standard deviation	Cronbach’s α
Previous experience
Previous experience (M = 3.713)	I have been here, and when I revisit this place, I expect to experience the same service quality because I felt satisfied in my previous visit(s).	0.792	3.77	0.744	0.779
	According to my previous travel experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.	0.776	3.79	0.699
	After collecting relevant information, I think that the service provided by this spa hotel is the best choice.	0.775	3.60	0.824
	According to my service-related work experience, I think that the service of this SPA hotel is reliable.	0.762	3.69	0.703
Service encounter expectations
Experience of local tourism resources (M = 3.54)	Local cultural celebration involvement	0.746	3.60	0.823	0.943
	Provide private attractions	0.680	3.66	0.849
	Provide cultural custom experiences	0.670	3.48	0.813
	Community development	0.628	3.40	0.802
	Atmosphere of relaxed tranquility	0.543	3.88	0.806
	Provide nocturnal exploration activities	0.519	3.24	0.884
Health-improving measures (M = 3.37)	Provide hot spring therapy guidance	0.787	3.40	0.897
	Provide medication consultation	0.785	3.26	0.916
	Provide traditional healing	0.760	3.33	0.846
	Provide aquatic workout guidance	0.631	3.39	0.905
	Provide fitness exercise guidance	0.615	3.46	0.926
	Provide weight control guidance	0.549	3.40	0.927
Spiritual feast (M=3.05)	Provide psychological consultation	0.776	3.01	0.962
	Provide enlightenment lectures by resident religious and spiritual mentors	0.720	2.90	0.983
	Provide butler care service	0.696	3.06	0.908
	Provide book clubs	0.606	3.21	0.888
Body treatments (M = 3.36)	Provide massage	0.795	3.49	0.907
	Provide herbal bath	0.705	3.49	0.880
	Provide essence oil massages	0.703	3.26	0.884
	Provide post-surgery recovery care	0.669	3.41	0.846
	Provide exfoliation services	0.664	3.13	0.892
Enjoying food and relaxation (M = 3.58)	Use of non-toxic or detoxification food ingredients	0.655	3.74	0.910
	Provide family activities	0.617	3.67	0.871
	Provide meditation environment	0.609	3.35	0.869
	Provide recreation rooms for chatting and chess	0.569	3.37	0.850
	Provide landscape therapy (environment and psychological consultation)	0.541	3.44	0.895
	Provide local ingredients based cuisines	0.526	3.92	0.780
Service encounter expectations
Mental learning (M = 3.48)	Provide musical performances	0.684	3.58	0.890	0.943
	Provide art exhibitions	0.622	3.42	0.901
	Provide group DIY activities	0.568	3.44	0.887
Total explained variance = 64.68%
Organizational characteristics
Marketing techniques (M = 4.13)	Service staff members frequently have sincere (nonstandardized) expressions.	0.808	4.20	0.717	0.871
	Service staff members frequently give sincere (nonstandardized) greetings.	0.792	4.10	0.718
	The spa hotel actively sends me accommodation coupons for special holidays.	0.575	4.25	0.746
	The spa hotel actively reminds me of the time of my next vacation activity.	0.541	3.96	0.776
Technology services (M = 3.79)	The sensing devices provided at the service location include electronic meal vouchers.	0.842	3.65	0.753
	The sensing devices installed at the service location include checkout functions.	0.758	3.71	0.782
	The sensing devices provided at the service location include spa time reminders.	0.629	3.94	0.772
	The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	0.589	3.85	0.800
Basic features (M = 4.04)	The spa hotel has a beautiful view and environment.	0.784	4.21	0.669
	The transportation to the spa hotel is convenient.	0.757	4.06	0.720
	The service staff contains middle-aged reemployed workers.	0.553	3.85	0.754
Professional care (M = 4.06)	Members of the service staff possess health care-related certifications (e.g., physical therapists, fitness instructors for older adults, or nurse aides).	0.827	4.13	0.766
	Members of the service staff have a background in medical care (e.g., nurses or dietitians).	0.674	4.10	0.721
	The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	0.581	3.96	0.745
Total explained variance = 66.10%
Employee characteristics
Employee attitude (M = 4.19)	Service staff members remain dedicated to serving customers during service delivery.	0.835	4.25	0.660	0.854
	During service, service staff members make me feel respected and honored.	0.823	4.21	0.654
	Service staff members treat me like they do their own senior relatives.	0.823	4.18	0.727
	Service staff members respect my needs.	0.761	4.21	0.626
	Service staff members actively approach and serve me.	0.747	4.09	0.725
Senior employees (M = 3.66)	The service provided by senior service staff members can better satisfy my needs compared with that provided by young service staff members.	0.893	3.61	0.846
	Senior service staff members are more patient in listening to my inquiries than young members are.	0.869	3.70	0.834
	The service provided by senior service staff members is more satisfactory than that provided by young staff members.	0.852	3.68	0.797
Total explained variance = 71.45%

Table 5. Results of the exploratory factor analysis of previous experience, service encounter expectations, organizational characteristics, and employee characteristics.

Factor	Questionnaire item	Factor loading	Mean	Standard deviation	Cronbach’s α
Previous experience
Previous experience (M = 3.713)	I have been here, and when I revisit this place, I expect to experience the same service quality because I felt satisfied in my previous visit(s).	0.792	3.77	0.744	0.779
	According to my previous travel experience, I think that the service of this spa hotel is reliable.	0.776	3.79	0.699
	After collecting relevant information, I think that the service provided by this spa hotel is the best choice.	0.775	3.60	0.824
	According to my service-related work experience, I think that the service of this SPA hotel is reliable.	0.762	3.69	0.703
Service encounter expectations
Experience of local tourism resources (M = 3.54)	Local cultural celebration involvement	0.746	3.60	0.823	0.943
	Provide private attractions	0.680	3.66	0.849
	Provide cultural custom experiences	0.670	3.48	0.813
	Community development	0.628	3.40	0.802
	Atmosphere of relaxed tranquility	0.543	3.88	0.806
	Provide nocturnal exploration activities	0.519	3.24	0.884
Health-improving measures (M = 3.37)	Provide hot spring therapy guidance	0.787	3.40	0.897
	Provide medication consultation	0.785	3.26	0.916
	Provide traditional healing	0.760	3.33	0.846
	Provide aquatic workout guidance	0.631	3.39	0.905
	Provide fitness exercise guidance	0.615	3.46	0.926
	Provide weight control guidance	0.549	3.40	0.927
Spiritual feast (M=3.05)	Provide psychological consultation	0.776	3.01	0.962
	Provide enlightenment lectures by resident religious and spiritual mentors	0.720	2.90	0.983
	Provide butler care service	0.696	3.06	0.908
	Provide book clubs	0.606	3.21	0.888
Body treatments (M = 3.36)	Provide massage	0.795	3.49	0.907
	Provide herbal bath	0.705	3.49	0.880
	Provide essence oil massages	0.703	3.26	0.884
	Provide post-surgery recovery care	0.669	3.41	0.846
	Provide exfoliation services	0.664	3.13	0.892
Enjoying food and relaxation (M = 3.58)	Use of non-toxic or detoxification food ingredients	0.655	3.74	0.910
	Provide family activities	0.617	3.67	0.871
	Provide meditation environment	0.609	3.35	0.869
	Provide recreation rooms for chatting and chess	0.569	3.37	0.850
	Provide landscape therapy (environment and psychological consultation)	0.541	3.44	0.895
	Provide local ingredients based cuisines	0.526	3.92	0.780
Service encounter expectations
Mental learning (M = 3.48)	Provide musical performances	0.684	3.58	0.890	0.943
	Provide art exhibitions	0.622	3.42	0.901
	Provide group DIY activities	0.568	3.44	0.887
Total explained variance = 64.68%
Organizational characteristics
Marketing techniques (M = 4.13)	Service staff members frequently have sincere (nonstandardized) expressions.	0.808	4.20	0.717	0.871
	Service staff members frequently give sincere (nonstandardized) greetings.	0.792	4.10	0.718
	The spa hotel actively sends me accommodation coupons for special holidays.	0.575	4.25	0.746
	The spa hotel actively reminds me of the time of my next vacation activity.	0.541	3.96	0.776
Technology services (M = 3.79)	The sensing devices provided at the service location include electronic meal vouchers.	0.842	3.65	0.753
	The sensing devices installed at the service location include checkout functions.	0.758	3.71	0.782
	The sensing devices provided at the service location include spa time reminders.	0.629	3.94	0.772
	The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	0.589	3.85	0.800
Basic features (M = 4.04)	The spa hotel has a beautiful view and environment.	0.784	4.21	0.669
	The transportation to the spa hotel is convenient.	0.757	4.06	0.720
	The service staff contains middle-aged reemployed workers.	0.553	3.85	0.754
Professional care (M = 4.06)	Members of the service staff possess health care-related certifications (e.g., physical therapists, fitness instructors for older adults, or nurse aides).	0.827	4.13	0.766
	Members of the service staff have a background in medical care (e.g., nurses or dietitians).	0.674	4.10	0.721
	The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	0.581	3.96	0.745
Total explained variance = 66.10%
Employee characteristics
Employee attitude (M = 4.19)	Service staff members remain dedicated to serving customers during service delivery.	0.835	4.25	0.660	0.854
	During service, service staff members make me feel respected and honored.	0.823	4.21	0.654
	Service staff members treat me like they do their own senior relatives.	0.823	4.18	0.727
	Service staff members respect my needs.	0.761	4.21	0.626
	Service staff members actively approach and serve me.	0.747	4.09	0.725
Senior employees (M = 3.66)	The service provided by senior service staff members can better satisfy my needs compared with that provided by young service staff members.	0.893	3.61	0.846
	Senior service staff members are more patient in listening to my inquiries than young members are.	0.869	3.70	0.834
	The service provided by senior service staff members is more satisfactory than that provided by young staff members.	0.852	3.68	0.797
Total explained variance = 71.45%

The KMO value of service encounter expectations was 0.926, and the significance of Bartlett’s sphericity test was 0.000, reaching a significant level. Therefore, the items of service encounter expectations were suitable for conducting factor analysis, and the total variance explained was 64.68%. As presented in Table 5, the factor loading of the item of “provided relaxed learning atmosphere” was 0.457 (<0.5); therefore, this item was deleted in the analysis. The results of the exploratory factor analysis of service encounter expectations revealed six factors, which were named as experience of local tourism resources, health-improving measures, spiritual feast, body treatments, enjoying food and relaxation, and mental learning. Among the individual items, those of “provide local ingredients based cuisines”, “atmosphere of relaxed tranquility”, and “use of non-toxic or detoxification food ingredients” exhibited the greatest means in the variable service encounter expectations, indicating that seniors valued the factor enjoying food and relaxation more than they did the others. Therefore, compared with other services, seniors highly anticipate the excellent quality of food- and relaxation-related services during wellness tours. In addition, the mean of the factor spiritual feast was relatively lower, indicating that the respondents expressed relatively lower expectations for the spiritual levels of experiences.

The KMO value of the organizational characteristics of spa hotels was 0.858, and the significance of Bartlett’s sphericity test was 0.000, reaching a significant level. Therefore, the items of organizational characteristics were suitable for conducting factor analysis, and the total variance explained was 66.10%. As presented in Table 5, the organizational characteristics of spa hotels involved four factors, which were named marketing techniques, technology services, basic features, and professional care. The three items with the highest means were “The spa hotel actively sends me accommodation coupons for special holidays (M = 4.25)”, “The spa hotel has a beautiful view and environment (M = 4.21)”, and “Service staff members frequently have sincere (nonstandardized) expressions (M = 4.20)”, indicating that seniors valued accommodation deals (affordable prices) and sincere reception the most. Particularly, the factor of technology services received a relatively lower level of emphasis (M = 3.77).

The KMO value of the employee characteristics of spa hotels was 0.835, and the significance of Bartlett’s sphericity test was 0.000, reaching a significant level. Therefore, the items of employee characteristics were suitable for conducting factor analysis, and the total variance explained was 71.45%. The results of exploratory factor analysis indicated that the employee characteristics of spa hotels involved two factors, which were employee attitude and senior employees (employee attitude > senior employees). The three items with the highest means were “Service staff members remain dedicated to serving customers during service delivery”, “During service, service staff members make me feel respected and honored”, and “Service staff members respect my needs”. The respondents valued the factor employee attitude (M = 4.19) more than they did the factor senior employees (M = 3.66), indicating that seniors emphasized the service attitude of employees more than they did the interactions with senior service staff members.

4.4. Older Adults’ Cognition of New Technology Services

Another topic of interest in this study was discrepancies in seniors’ cognition of new technology services. The above four technology services served as categorical variables and cluster analysis was used to group respondents. The process was divided into two phases; the first phase used hierarchical cluster analysis to estimate the number of groups within the sample. Results indicated two groups was the optimal number for this study. The second phase used k-means to understand the differences between the groups. Results indicated all four technology services were larger for the group 2 compared to the group 1. As such, the group 2 was named the aspired group and the group 1 was named the reserved group (Table 6). This study used cross tabulation to compare demographic statistic variables of respondents between each group. Only showed significant difference (${\chi }^2=\text{10.833, }p<0.05$) on self-perceived health. Good self-perceived health (very healthy, healthy) was noticeably higher for the group 2 (Table 7). Therefore, self-perceived health is an important factor to consider when determining seniors’ perception of new technology services.

Table 6. Results of cluster analysis using automated systems.

Automated systems	Group 1 (n = 115)	Group 2 (n = 222)	p value	Post-hoc test
The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	3.37	4.26	0.00	2 > 1
The sensing devices installed at the service location include checkout functions.	3.06	4.05	0.00	2 > 1
The sensing devices provided at the service location include electronic meal vouchers.	2.97	4.00	0.00	2 > 1
The sensing devices provided at the service location include spa time reminders.	3.28	4.29	0.00	2 > 1

Table 6. Results of cluster analysis using automated systems.

Automated systems	Group 1 (n = 115)	Group 2 (n = 222)	p value	Post-hoc test
The sensing devices installed at the service location involve door sensors.	3.37	4.26	0.00	2 > 1
The sensing devices installed at the service location include checkout functions.	3.06	4.05	0.00	2 > 1
The sensing devices provided at the service location include electronic meal vouchers.	2.97	4.00	0.00	2 > 1
The sensing devices provided at the service location include spa time reminders.	3.28	4.29	0.00	2 > 1

Table 7. Cross table of self-perceived health condition and group.

Self-perceived health condition	Group 1	Group 2
	Frequency (%)	Frequency (%)
Very unhealthy	1 (0.90)	2 (0.90)	$\begin{array}{l}{\chi }^2=10.833\\ p<0.05\end{array}$
Unhealthy	3 (2.60)	1 (0.50)
Average	42 (36.5)	58 (26.2)
Healthy	61 (53.0)	130 (58.6)
Very healthy	8 (7.00)	30 (13.6)

Table 7. Cross table of self-perceived health condition and group.

Self-perceived health condition	Group 1	Group 2
	Frequency (%)	Frequency (%)
Very unhealthy	1 (0.90)	2 (0.90)	$\begin{array}{l}{\chi }^2=10.833\\ p<0.05\end{array}$
Unhealthy	3 (2.60)	1 (0.50)
Average	42 (36.5)	58 (26.2)
Healthy	61 (53.0)	130 (58.6)
Very healthy	8 (7.00)	30 (13.6)

4.5. Differences of Service Encounter Expectations and Customer Satisfaction on Age

This study employed t-test to explore the difference between the service encounter expectations and customer satisfaction of pre-older adults and older adults. The results showed that there was no significant difference in customer satisfaction between the two groups but that there was a partially significant difference in service encounter expectations (Table 8). Table 8 showed that for pre-older adults, the desires for local and cultural experiences were markedly higher than for older adults, as was the desire for delicious and healthy local foods. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups with regard to customer satisfaction; however, the corresponding values of pre-older adults were slightly higher than those of older adults, with exceptions for “service staff members actively provide assistance and care (M = 3.82 vs. 3.91)” and “service staff members are trustworthy (M = 3.84 vs. 3.99),” which were slightly lower. The results indicated that older adults had higher levels of satisfaction regarding service staff members’ sincere and professional actions.

Table 8. T-test for service encounters of seniors.

Items	Mean		t value	p value
	Pre-older adults	Older adults
Local cultural celebration involvement	3.72	3.40	3.37	0.01 *
Provide private attractions	3.77	3.44	3.47	0.01 *
Provide cultural custom experiences	3.55	3.36	2.05	0.04 *
Atmosphere of relaxed tranquility	3.96	3.74	2.40	0.02 *
Provide nocturnal exploration activities	3.31	3.08	2.37	0.02 *
Use of non-toxic or detoxification food ingredients	3.81	3.58	2.25	0.03 *

Note: ^* means p < 0.05.

Table 8. T-test for service encounters of seniors.

Items	Mean		t value	p value
	Pre-older adults	Older adults
Local cultural celebration involvement	3.72	3.40	3.37	0.01 *
Provide private attractions	3.77	3.44	3.47	0.01 *
Provide cultural custom experiences	3.55	3.36	2.05	0.04 *
Atmosphere of relaxed tranquility	3.96	3.74	2.40	0.02 *
Provide nocturnal exploration activities	3.31	3.08	2.37	0.02 *
Use of non-toxic or detoxification food ingredients	3.81	3.58	2.25	0.03 *

Note: ^* means p < 0.05.

4.6. Confirmatory Factor Analysis of Customer Satisfaction

This study employed confirmatory factor analysis to analyze the convergent validity and discriminant validity of the variable customer satisfaction. The goodness-of-fit indices of the overall model, which all reached an acceptable level, are presented as follows: ${\chi }^2=\text{397.29}$ (p = 0.00), ${\chi }^2/df=1.74$, GFI = 0.91, AGFI = 0.88, RMSEA = 0.046, RMR = 0.02, PGFI = 0.69, NFI = 0.94, and NNFI = 0.96. According to the analytical results, all of the factors had an average extracted variance of more than 0.5 and a construct reliability of greater than 0.6, indicating that the customer satisfaction possessed convergent validity. In addition, the correlation coefficients among the five factors ranged between 0.814 and 0.096 (all of them were lower than 0.9); therefore, these factors exhibited discriminant validity [56].

According to the mean of each dimension of customer satisfaction (Table 9), the items with the highest four means were “The hotel has clean and comfortable restaurants, places, and accommodations”, “The hotel has elegant and green environments”, “The hotel provides convenient parking,” and “Hotel signs and notices are clear and precise.” The factor with the highest mean was tangibles, and those with the lowest means were empathy and responsiveness. Overall, the satisfaction of seniors for the tangibles of hotels (M = 4.07) was greater than those for empathy (M = 3.79) and responsiveness (M = 3.79).

Table 9. Results of the confirmatory factor analysis of customer satisfaction.

Factor	Item	Factor loading	Error variance	Mean	Standard deviation	AVE	CR
Tangibles (M = 4.07)	The hotel has modern décor and equipment.	0.54	0.27	3.94	0.735	0.66	0.98
	The hotel has clean and comfortable restaurants, places, and accommodations	0.56	0.2	4.13	0.700
	Hotel service staff members are neatly attired.	0.5	0.21	4.05	0.675
	The hotel has elegant and green environments.	0.64	0.18	4.10	0.759
	The hotel provides convenient parking.	0.57	0.21	4.10	0.709
	Hotel signs and notices are clear and precise.	0.54	0.19	4.10	0.678
Reliability (M = 3.96)	Customers can rapidly obtain required services.	0.69	0.15	3.97	0.785	0.66	0.89
	Service staff members perform excellently on the first attempt.	0.6	0.19	3.91	0.733
	Service staff members provide assistance when customers encounter problems.	0.58	0.18	4.03	0.717
	Service staff members are capable of providing promised services.	0.55	0.24	3.92	0.732
Responsiveness (M = 3.79)	Service staff members attend to disregarded tasks immediately.	0.59	0.25	3.87	0.760	0.68	0.96
	Service staff members do not forget my requests because of being busy.	0.59	0.25	3.77	0.778
	Service staff members actively provide assistance and care.	0.62	0.16	3.84	0.745
	Service staff members respond to and handle my complaints.	0.63	0.21	3.76	0.765
	Service staff members provide excellent service without consulting their supervisors.	0.62	0.28	3.73	0.800
Assurance (M = 3.93)	The image and reputation of the hotel is trustworthy.	0.56	0.22	3.92	0.727	0.66	0.88
	The hotel provides reliable and satisfactory service.	0.62	0.19	3.93	0.748
	Service staff members are trustworthy.	0.61	0.13	3.90	0.703
	Service staff members remain cordial and polite during service delivery.	0.54	0.17	3.97	0.676
Empathy (M = 3.79)	Service staff members care about my questions.	0.68	0.18	3.84	0.731	0.71	0.92
	Service staff members prioritize my interests.	0.76	0.14	3.72	0.771
	Service staff members understand my particular needs.	0.75	0.14	3.70	0.774
	Service staff members provide immediate assistance to my additional questions.	0.64	0.2	3.75	0.735
	The business hours of the hotel facilitate customer inquiries.	0.5	0.28	3.92	0.685

Table 9. Results of the confirmatory factor analysis of customer satisfaction.

Factor	Item	Factor loading	Error variance	Mean	Standard deviation	AVE	CR
Tangibles (M = 4.07)	The hotel has modern décor and equipment.	0.54	0.27	3.94	0.735	0.66	0.98
	The hotel has clean and comfortable restaurants, places, and accommodations	0.56	0.2	4.13	0.700
	Hotel service staff members are neatly attired.	0.5	0.21	4.05	0.675
	The hotel has elegant and green environments.	0.64	0.18	4.10	0.759
	The hotel provides convenient parking.	0.57	0.21	4.10	0.709
	Hotel signs and notices are clear and precise.	0.54	0.19	4.10	0.678
Reliability (M = 3.96)	Customers can rapidly obtain required services.	0.69	0.15	3.97	0.785	0.66	0.89
	Service staff members perform excellently on the first attempt.	0.6	0.19	3.91	0.733
	Service staff members provide assistance when customers encounter problems.	0.58	0.18	4.03	0.717
	Service staff members are capable of providing promised services.	0.55	0.24	3.92	0.732
Responsiveness (M = 3.79)	Service staff members attend to disregarded tasks immediately.	0.59	0.25	3.87	0.760	0.68	0.96
	Service staff members do not forget my requests because of being busy.	0.59	0.25	3.77	0.778
	Service staff members actively provide assistance and care.	0.62	0.16	3.84	0.745
	Service staff members respond to and handle my complaints.	0.63	0.21	3.76	0.765
	Service staff members provide excellent service without consulting their supervisors.	0.62	0.28	3.73	0.800
Assurance (M = 3.93)	The image and reputation of the hotel is trustworthy.	0.56	0.22	3.92	0.727	0.66	0.88
	The hotel provides reliable and satisfactory service.	0.62	0.19	3.93	0.748
	Service staff members are trustworthy.	0.61	0.13	3.90	0.703
	Service staff members remain cordial and polite during service delivery.	0.54	0.17	3.97	0.676
Empathy (M = 3.79)	Service staff members care about my questions.	0.68	0.18	3.84	0.731	0.71	0.92
	Service staff members prioritize my interests.	0.76	0.14	3.72	0.771
	Service staff members understand my particular needs.	0.75	0.14	3.70	0.774
	Service staff members provide immediate assistance to my additional questions.	0.64	0.2	3.75	0.735
	The business hours of the hotel facilitate customer inquiries.	0.5	0.28	3.92	0.685

4.7. Validation of Theoretical Model

This study adopted structural equation modelling to analyze the causal relations among previous experience, service encounter expectations (of seniors), organizational characteristics, employee characteristics (of hotels), and customer satisfaction. LISREL, a statistical software package, was used as the analytical tool for validation. The goodness-of-fit indices of the overall model are as follows: ${\chi }^2=\text{302.75}$ (p = 0.00), ${\chi }^2/df=1.78$, GFI = 0.92, AGFI = 0.90, RMSEA = 0.048, RMR = 0.023, PGFI = 0.68, NFI = 0.92, and NNFI = 0.96. These indices demonstrated that the data and the model reached the standard of fitness.

As illustrated in the path diagram of the overall structural model in Figure 2, the solid arrows indicate significant causal relationships, while the dotted line indicates no significant causal relationship. The path coefficient from the variable of previous experience to that of service encounter expectations was 0.39 (t = 5.14), and therefore H1 was supported. The path coefficient from the variable of service encounter expectations to that of organizational characteristics was 0.47 (t = 6.84), indicating that H2 was supported. The path coefficient from the variable of service encounter expectations to that of employee characteristics was 0.36 (t = 4.14); therefore, H3 was supported. The path coefficient from the variable of organizational characteristics to that of customer satisfaction was 0.27 (t = 3.23), which indicated that H4 was supported. The path coefficient from the variable of employee characteristics to that of customer satisfaction was 0.63 (t = 3.29); thus, H5 was supported. The path coefficient from the variable of service encounter expectations to that of customer satisfaction was 0.094 (t = 0.89); therefore, H6 was not supported; in addition, the explanatory power of the latent independent variable for customer satisfaction was 37%.

5. Conclusions and Suggestions

The results of this study indicated that the service encounter expectations of seniors for wellness tourism had an indirect influence on customer satisfaction and that the mediating variables were organizational characteristics and employee characteristics. In addition, service encounter expectations were affected by previous experience, indicating that the services or products that elderly consumers expected to be satisfied during their interactions with service providers were frequently influenced by the information they have collected (e.g., word-of-mouth recommendations) or their previous satisfactory experiences of staying at a certain hotel. Hotel businesses can focus on cultivating relaxing atmospheres and experiences in the interior and exterior environments of a hotel, and provide delicious and healthy local foods for pre-older adults. Older adults valued employee attitudes such as the sincere facial expressions of service staff members and their warm reception, whereas whether employees were seniors was relatively less influential. Preferential prices were greatly attractive for senior customers, whereas technology services were not favorable. With the emphasis on the interactions between seniors and service staff members, the enhancement of employee empathy and responsiveness was crucial for excellent service quality. Moreover, among the three variables for customer satisfaction, employee characteristics had the greatest level of influence. Consequently, the performance of hotel service staff members was crucial to the quality of wellness tourism services for seniors.

Figure 2. Empirical results of the theoretical model. (The solid arrows indicate significant causal relationships, while the dotted line indicates no significant causal relationship. The numbers in front of and within the parentheses represent path coefficient and t value, separately.)

Figure 2. Empirical results of the theoretical model. (The solid arrows indicate significant causal relationships, while the dotted line indicates no significant causal relationship. The numbers in front of and within the parentheses represent path coefficient and t value, separately.)

The contribution of this study is the proposal of key services or products that cater to the service encounter expectations of older adults; these services or products can influence customer satisfaction through organizational characteristics and employee characteristics. Therefore, the management implications of this study for pre-older adults are that their important desires for wellness tourism include physical fitness concerns because of their relatively better health. Thus, opportunities for refined and local cultural involvement and natural resources programs are important means for attracting pre-older adults, as are non-toxic or detoxifying foods.t On the other hand, hotel businesses can refer to the proposed services relevant to service encounter expectations and introduce the training mechanisms for service reception and professionals from institutions that provide services to older adults (e.g., senior citizen centers, community nursing homes, and nonprofit senior care organizations); thus, hotels can establish standard operating procedures designed for serving older adults that enable current employees to achieve consistent service performance. In addition, when recruiting employees, hotel businesses can select job applicants who possess the necessary service characteristics. They can also require these new employees to undergo training programs that prepare them to consistently perform satisfactory service for older adults, thus further enhancing the experience satisfaction of older adults. Hotel businesses can establish incentive systems for rewarding employees who perform excellently to encourage employees to serve older adults sincerely and with empathy. Regarding marketing, hotel businesses can provide preferential prices specifically designed for older adults during off seasons to attract senior customers. Lastly, for hot spring businesses at the forefront of new technology services, investigating the influencing factors for seniors’ cognition and adoption of new technology services will help incorporate the health statuses of seniors. And these health statuses are more than just physiological, but also include mental and learning factors.

The major limitation of this study is that the respondents were only seniors at senior universities because other groups of seniors may also be potential customers of spa hotels. Therefore, the results of this study cannot be extrapolated to all seniors. Subsequent studies may focus on various groups of seniors (e.g., those from seniors centers and nonprofit senior associations) to conduct extensive surveys by applying the research model designed in this study. Perhaps economic backgrounds can be adopted as a discriminant variable to investigate the factors for the service expectations and satisfaction for luxury wellness tours among wealthy travelers.