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Linda S. Ralston, Ph.D.

Faculty Position

Associate Professor, (Customer Service Management, Services Marketing, and Sustainable Tourism)

Director of the International Tourism and Hospitality Management
Coordinator of Leisure Services Management

Discover more about Dr. Ralston and her teaching at her personal web page. Dr. Ralston has a blog page at http://www.utourdoc.com/.

Contact Information

Office: ANNEX 1001
Phone: (801) 581-8080
E-mail: linda.ralston@health.utah.edu

Degrees

Ph.D., Recreation and Resource Development,
Texas A&M University, 1993.

M.S., Recreation and Leisure Services,
Central Missouri State University, 1986.

B.S., Recreation Management,
Central Missouri State University, 1974.

Professional Affiliations:

• Member, National Recreation and Parks Association
• Member, Society of Park and Recreation Educators
  • Member of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Committee
• Member, National Tour Association
  • Member of the Tourism Cares Scholarship Selection Committee
• Member, Travel and Tourism Research Association
  • Member, Greater Western Chapter of TTRA
• Member, Certified Travel Institute
• Member, Utah Recreation and Parks Association

Research Activities/Interests

My research interests may be best explained as an attempt to build a relationship between theory and practical application. I hope to take the best from theory driven research and develop practical applications which can serve immediate benefits for the leisure service provider.

Additionally, since the students at the University of Utah are the future leaders in the leisure service profession, I feel it is important to provide opportunities for students to participate in "community-based" research projects whenever possible.

This includes undergraduate students in their classes and independent research projects, as well as graduate students in their thesis or dissertation research program. The specific areas of current focus include:

• Travel motivations and their impact on marketing.
• Service quality and the intention to return (consumer loyalty).
• Sustainable tourism development.

Publications

"Exploring the influence of unconscious human needs on travel preferences." Co-author with Dr. Xuan Tran.  Annals of Tourism Research, Elmsford, New York. 2006.

"The Influence of Location and Moral Appeal Messages on Voluntary Participation in a Recycling Program." Co-author with Dr. Joong-won Lee. Korean Journal of Hospitality Administration, Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 115-131, 2003.

"Effects of culture on tourist evaluation: The case of Vietnam's tourism facilities and services." Co-author with Dr. Xuan Tran.  Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research. Nevada: Las Vegas. Volume VIII, pp. 675-678, 2003.

"Teaching: igniting the fire within." Schole': A Journal of Leisure Studies and Recreation Education. Ashburn, Va: 16 p. 125 - 130, 2001.

"Benefit segmentation of the Taiwan outbound pleasure travel market." Co-author with Yu-Tsui Lin.  Journal of Outdoor Recreation Study, Taipei, Taiwan: The Outdoor Recreation Association of the Republic of China, 1998.

"Service-Learning: Connecting practical experience with classroom instruction." Co-authored with Gary Ellis, Ph.D. SCHOLE Autumn, 1997.

"The influence of attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral controls on hotel guests' intention to return: A conceptual model." Co-authored with Fen Ju Lin. Visions in Leisure and Business, 1996.

"The relationship between Utah travel motivators and tourist attitudes." Visions in Leisure and Business, 1996.

"Benefit segmentation of the Taiwan outbound pleasure travel market: An exploratory study. Co-authored with Yu-Tsui Lin. Proceedings of the 1995 Travel and Tourism Association's International Conference, 1995.

"The association between the need for affiliation and traveler type with the motivation for travel." Visions in Leisure and Business, 1993.

"The application of systematic survey methods at open access special events and festivals." Co-authored with Julia Hamilton. Visions in Leisure and Business, 1992.

Courses

• PRT 3100 Foundations of Parks, Recreation and Tourism
• PRT 3100 Guest Lecture: Introduction to Tourism Management
• PRT 3198 Customer Service Training
• PRT 3208 Food & Beverage Management (on-line)
• PRT 3211 PRT Services Marketing (on-line)
• PRT 3310 Leisure Behavior & Human Diversity (Diversity Requirement and on-line)
• PRT 3320 Recreation Programming & Leadership (Service-Learning)
• PRT 3430 The Global Citizen (International Requirement and on-line)
• PRT 3440 Entrepreneurial Recreation
• PRT 5460/6460 Electronic Marketing (Service-Learning)
• PRT 5470/6470 Contemporary Issues in International Tourism (International Requirement & Upper Division Communication & Writing)
• PRT 5960/6960 Event Management
• PRT 5960/6960 Sustainable Tourism