Workplace Dynamics in the Hospitality Sector During Crises
Summary
Workplace dynamics in the hospitality sector during crises have attracted considerable scholarly attention due to their profound implications for employee well-being, service delivery and organisational viability. Crises, defined broadly to include pandemics, economic downturns and natural disasters, precipitate acute challenges such as heightened job insecurity, elevated stress and rapid operational change. In response, organisations deploy strategies ranging from enhanced safety protocols and investment in digital infrastructure to leadership interventions and psychosocial support. Key dynamics include the interplay between job demands and resources, the buffering role of positive emotions against burnout, the influence of leadership and culture on team cohesion, and the cultivation of employee resilience. Practical applications encompass support programmes to mitigate emotional exhaustion, transparent decision-making to sustain trust and micro-level crisis management frameworks that reinforce intrinsic motivation. Research further emphasises the global diversity of crisis experiences and the necessity of context-sensitive approaches that align physical safety measures, mental-health initiatives and performance outcomes.
Research from Nature Portfolio
No recent Nature Portfolio content available.
Workplace Dynamics in the Hospitality Sector During Crises publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in workplace dynamics in the hospitality sector during crises across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Job insecurity: The perception of potential job loss or deterioration in employment conditions, leading to increased stress and behavioural responses.
Burnout: A syndrome characterised by emotional exhaustion, cynicism and reduced professional efficacy resulting from prolonged occupational stress.
Work resilience: The capacity of employees to adapt, recover and sustain performance in the face of crisis-induced adversity.
Leader–member exchange (LMX): The quality of the interpersonal relationship between a leader and individual employees, encompassing trust, support and reciprocated obligations.
References
- The crisis cloud's silver linings: The effects of hope and gratitude on employee burnout and engagement. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services (2023).
- Do job insecurity, anxiety and depression caused by the COVID-19 pandemic influence hotel employees’ self-rated task performance? The moderating role of employee resilience. International Journal of Hospitality Management (2021).
- Enhancing post‐COVID-19 work resilience in hospitality: A micro-level crisis management framework. Tourism and Hospitality Research (2022).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
Turn complex research questions into confident strategic decisions
When you're under pressure to set direction, justify investment, or understand your competitive position, you need more than raw data — you need trusted insights you can act on.
Benchmark your performance against global peers using robust, methodologically sound analysis.
Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative expert insight to uncover strengths, gaps and emerging opportunities.
Gain tailored, decision-ready recommendations aligned to your strategic priorities.
Talk to us to learn more about our data dashboards and bespoke strategy reports.
Grow research skills, confidence and careers with training built for every stage of the research lifecycle.
Developed with Nature Portfolio journal Editors and internationally renowned experts. Discover three ways to learn:
Self-paced, online courses in convenient bite-sized units, covering key skills across scientific writing, publishing, grant writing, data analysis, and more.
Expert trainer-led workshops with hands-on exercises and real-time feedback across core research skills, delivered via interactive group sessions.
Editor-led workshops combining core principles in writing and publishing, personalised 1:1 feedback from Nature Portfolio Editors and hands-on exercises.
Explore course catalogues and workshop agendas, enquire about the options or request institutional pricing.