Culture cushion: inherently positive

inter-cultural tourist experiences

Katherine B. Hartman, Tracy Meyer and Lisa L. Scribner

Katherine B. Hartman and

Tracy Meyer are Assistant
Professors and
Lisa L. Scribner is
Associate Professor, all at
the University of North
Carolina Wilmington,
Wilmington, North Carolina,
USA.

Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a new measure called the culture cushion
to account for the inherent positivity surrounding the inter-cultural tourist experience.
Design/methodology/approach The first study involved the identification of items for the culture
cushion construct and included a semi-structured questionnaire and a panel discussion. The second
study assessed unidimensionality and the convergent, discriminant, and nomological validity of the
culture cushion dimensions. Respondents were asked to answer questions about a specific international
consumption experience and responded to scale items measuring the culture cushion construct.
Findings A two-dimensional measure of culture cushion was found to predict satisfaction and
behavioral intentions. Judgments were more positive when the encounter was novel relative to previous
experiences.
Research limitations/implications Additional studies involving travel locations other than those used
in this study should be conducted to investigate alternate effects of the culture cushion.
Practical implications A major motivation of recreational tourists traveling internationally includes the
ability to observe and participate in activities that are culturally unique. Firms that cater to international
tourist clientele should focus on operationalizing country-specific cultural aspects of the experience to
enhance overall perceptions.
Originality/value The international tourist operates within a dual country framework, using his/her own
cultural lens to notice the uniqueness of the foreign culture while striving to understand and participate
in authentic encounters. The culture cushion construct offers a novel measure of the positivity that
occurs in culturally unique inter-cultural experiences.
Keywords National cultures, Tourism, Measurement, Consumerism
Paper type Research paper

Introduction
International tourism experiences consistent growth and destination diversification
(UNWTO, 2008). According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO),
international tourist arrivals grew from 25 million in 1950 to 903 million in 2007, an average
growth rate of over 4 percent. By 2010 the number is expected to reach 1 billion, and 1.6
billion by 2020. And while Europe and the Americas have long accounted for the largest
number of international tourists, the fastest growing regions now include the Middle East,
North-East and South Asia, and Central and South America. Travel is no longer just for the
wealthy but a mainstream activity for the masses (Cleveland and Laroche, 2007).

Received: November 2008

Revised: November 2008
Accepted: December 2008

DOI 10.1108/17506180910980555

The literature includes many definitions of tourism. Turner and Ash (1975) suggest that
tourism allows individuals to consider things/events from a different perspective in that it
suspends norms and values that govern daily life. This view is consistent with Urry (1990)
who describes tourism as experience and as a free-time activity that contrasts with the daily
routine. This research adopts Cohens (2004, p. 23) definition of a tourist as a voluntary,
temporary traveler, travelling in the expectation of novelty and change experienced on a

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relatively and non-recurrent round-trip. This definition excludes travelers whose trip serves
primarily economic, political, family, or religious purposes such as business travelers,
refugees, expatriates, family visitors, and missionaries, while focusing on travelers whose
trip is for pleasure, recreation, and/or culture exploration (Cohen, 2004). As such, an
international tourist is a special type of tourist who travels to foreign country. According to the
UNWTO (2008), this definition includes more than half of all international tourist arrivals in
2007 (458 million), who were motivated by leisure, recreation, and holidays.
The culture cushion construct developed in this research accounts for the unique
perceptions of the recreational inter-cultural tourist. It suggests that people who travel
internationally are inspired by a sense of exploration and adventure. This is confirmed by
previous research results that suggest international travelers are by nature high in novelty
seeking (Chang et al., 2006) and keenly interested in culturally authentic experiences
(MacCannell, 1976; Wang, 1999).
The unique motivations of traveling to new cultures may explain why the results of
inter-cultural research fail at times to predict consumer reactions to service failures (e.g.,
Armstrong et al., 1997; Stauss and Mang, 1999). When a service failure occurs in the
consumers home country, reactions conform to cultural norms; however, when experiencing
a failure in a foreign country the consumer might consider the act not a true failure but rather
a cultural difference and attenuate the negativity. Traveling internationally inherently
suggests a desire to personally experience these cultural differences. Therefore judgments
may be less about the tourists cultural background and more about the cultural richness of
the consumption encounter.
The ability to observe and participate in activities that are culturally unique is a strong
motivation to travel internationally. Companies that focus on country specific cultural aspects
of the consumption experience have the potential to enhance international tourists
judgments. The goal of this research is to develop and test a new measure called the
culture cushion to account for the inherent positivity surrounding unique inter-cultural
tourist experiences.
Culture cushion
Culture cushion is the mitigating influence of the inter-cultural aspects of experience on the
overall perceptions and evaluations of the experience (Hartman et al., forthcoming). Culture
cushion is a phenomenon that manifests during an inter-cultural consumption experience,
which occurs when a tourist from one culture consumes products or services in another
culture. The inter-cultural consumption experience and the corresponding culture cushion
phenomenon are contextualized by a culturally constituted world (McCracken, 1986).
McCracken (1986, p. 72) argues that culture is the lens through which an individual views,
comprehends, and assimilates the world and the blueprint by which an individual
determines and co-ordinates human activity. As such, culture shapes the meanings
ascribed to objects, behaviors, and environments embedded within the consumption
experience.
However, inter-cultural consumption experiences are unique because they inherently involve
two cultures: the tourists own culture and the other culture encompassing the experience.
Within the dual culture framework, foreign consumers will hold expectations derived from
their own culture, yet will loosen expectations in anticipation of differences while striving to
make sense of foreign objects, behaviors, and environments. This position is consistent with
previous research that found cultural differences are oftentimes seen as the reason service
experiences are different from what one would have expected (Stauss and Mang, 1999).
Additional support is found in research by Steiner and Reisinger (2006, p. 313) who report
that tourists who have an appreciation of an authentic cultural experience will be . . . far less
demanding and far more forgiving. Weiermair (2000), and Weiermair and Fuchs (1999,
2000) provide additional support. They found that the greater the cultural distance and the
authenticity of the experience, the less demanding and the more tolerant tourists tended to
be relative to service quality. As such, it is proposed that cultural attributions will insulate
inter-cultural consumption experiences from potential negativity through two processes.

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First, culture cushion occurs as a result of cognitive responses to inter-cultural consumption

experiences. On the one hand, tourists in a foreign country will experience inter-cultural
consumption through their own cultural lens, which includes culturally-derived expectations
for objects and behaviors prior to and during the experience. On the other hand, tourists in a
foreign country will also anticipate and acknowledge differences between the actual
experience and their own culturally-bound expectations. For example, Rodriguez del
Bosque and San Martin (2008) argue that consumers process new consumption
experiences in terms of existing beliefs, yet adjust their perceptions to their beliefs in
order to minimize cognitive dissonance. Jenkins (1999) suggests that tourists mental
representations of a destination, including knowledge, impressions, and imaginations, will
help tourists anticipate future experiences as well as drive levels of satisfaction about the
tourist experience. Woodside and Dubelaar (2002) found the use of visitor information
guides positively influences evaluations of destinations and events. As such, heightened
awareness and perceived knowledge about the foreign culture will discount aspects of the
experience that do not meet the expectations derived from ones own culture because
foreign tourists will attribute perceived differences to dissimilarities in cultural norms and
standards.
The initial study to identify items for the culture cushion construct represents this line of
thinking. For example, one researcher explained:
I think that the customer service standards are different here than in the US so I would not hold
them to those same standards. If I were in the US I might have felt ignored.

Another researcher explained his reaction to service in a foreign restaurant:

If I were in America I would have expected things to be the way Im used to. Because Im overseas
I realize that things are different, which is why I gave them a high rating.

Second, culture cushion can also relate to affective responses to inter-cultural consumption
experiences. Cohen (2004, p. 69) argues that:
[. . .] modern tourism involves a generalized interest in or appreciation of that which is different,
strange, or novel in comparison with what the traveler is acquainted with in his cultural world.

Traveling within a foreign country evokes heighted interest in things, sights, customs, and
cultures different from ones own (Cohen, 2004). International experiences excite and gratify
travelers because the novelty of the experiences is valued and enjoyed for its own sake
(Cohen, 2004). As such, international travel is a form of play that induces a sense of
adventure where experienced differences between ones own cultural norms and the norms
of the other culture will generate excitement. The experienced differences and
corresponding excitement will soften negative reactions.
The initial item generation study identifies this theme. For example, one researcher explains
after a satisfying experience at a restaurant in a foreign country:
I might not have enjoyed the [experience at] US location considering its normalcy in my everyday
life. The foreign experience was something new and interesting, and turned out to be a very
satisfying experience.

Another researcher explains:

The excitement and enthusiasm of being in a foreign country will always make me rate (the foreign
experience) higher than a similar US experience.

In summary, culture cushion is a phenomenon that mitigates evaluations of an inter-cultural

experience including perceptions of quality and satisfaction through the combination of
heightened excitement and an understanding of the possible culture differences. Culture
cushion contrasts culture shock (e.g., Stauss and Mang, 1999), which refers to the anxiety
foreign travelers feel while trying to operate in a foreign culture, as a parallel yet opposite
construct. Unlike culture shock, culture cushion occurs during the honeymoon phase of
inter-cultural experiences, which is characterized by excitement and euphoria preceding the
anxiety associated with culture shock during extended stays in a foreign country
(Chapdelaine and Alexitch, 2004; Oberg, 1960). Culture cushion also contrasts individual

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dispositions such as acculturation to global consumer culture (e.g., Cleveland and Laroche,
2007) because it is a situational phenomenon that manifests within the dual culture
framework context inherently embedded in inter-cultural experiences. As such, this study
contributes to existing literature by examining the specific drivers of the culture cushion
phenomenon as well as providing an understanding of its consequences, including the
formation of post-experience evaluations.

Research method
The culture cushion scale development applies widely-accepted scale development
procedures (Anderson and Gerbing, 1988; Bollen and Lennox, 1991; Churchill, 1979; Clark
and Watson, 1995; Gerbing and Anderson, 1988). The following sections describe the scale
item generation, survey, sample, scale assessment, and nomological validity.
Scale item generation
The first step involved the collection of qualitative responses about foreign consumption
experiences to derive items specific to the culture cushion construct. A semi-structured
questionnaire study design was used to provide thick descriptions (Arnould and Wallendorf,
1994; Geertz, 1973) about both consumption experiences and individual reactions to typical
tourist experiences (Study 1). In the study, a total of 113 questionnaires were completed by
41 US undergraduate students while participating in study abroad programs in Europe. The
sample contained 43 eating and drinking establishment experiences (38.1 percent), 43
retail establishment experiences (38.1 percent), and 27 service provider experiences (23.8
percent). The foreign countries represented included the UK (n 42), Spain (n 48), and
other miscellaneous countries (n 23) such as Italy and Ireland.
Initial items were generated by the researchers from a review of the thick descriptions by
explicitly looking for statements and characterizations related to the culture cushion
construct. Identified statements and characterizations were then developed into 91
Likert-type scale items that were clustered into five dimensions (excitement, learning,
perceived knowledge, openness, and expectations).
The initial list of items was tested and revised during a focus group with ten participants who
had previous international consumption experiences. Focus group participants were asked
to review and discuss each scale item in the five dimensions for clarity, consistency, and
wording in order to assess face and content validity. The results of the focus group identified
ambiguity and overlap among the dimensions and inconsistencies among scale items.
Using the results, the number of dimensions was reduced to four (excitement, learning,
perceived knowledge, and openness) with a total of 37 Likert-type scale items.
After a review of the items developed for each dimension, the construct was modeled as a
reflective first-order formative, second-order factor model (see Jarvis et al., 2003). The items
developed for the four first-order factors (excitement, openness, learning, and perceived
knowledge) are reflective indicators, and the four factors combine to form the second-order
culture cushion construct. The theoretical nature of the culture cushion construct suggests
higher levels of culture cushion exist because consumers find the experience thrilling, value
what is learned, are open to new experiences, and have some knowledge about unique
cultural differences going into the encounter. The four dimensions are relatively independent
aspects of the culture cushion that share the characteristic of reducing the negativity
associated with intercultural consumption experiences.
Survey description and sample
The second step of the scale development involved a mystery shopping survey (Study 2).
The survey asked the researcher to consider a specific international consumption
experience and was completed within 24 hours of the experience. The six-page survey was
designed with three distinct parts including descriptive data about the consumption
experience, opinions about the experience including satisfaction and recommendation
intentions, and Likert-type scale items measuring the culture cushion construct.

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A total of 72 undergraduate student researchers participated in one of four study abroad

programs. The mean age of the researchers was 20.4 years, 58 percent were female and 86
percent were business majors. The majority (72 percent) had visited a foreign country before
as a tourist while only 22 percent had any proficiency in a foreign language. All of the
researchers shared the USA as their home country. From data collected prior to the study
abroad program, student researchers scored high on dimensions of the acculturation to the
global consumer culture scale (Cleveland and Laroche, 2007) and scored low on the
consumer ethnocentrism scale (Shimp and Sharma, 1987).
The student researchers completed a total of 122 questionnaires about consumption
experiences with restaurants (43 percent), retail stores (31 percent) and service firms (26
percent). The average amount of money spent during the consumption experiences, which
was converted to US dollars based upon exchange rates at the time of purchase, was
$44.77 and varied dramatically (SD $68:14). The foreign countries represented included
France (n 36), Australia (n 29), Germany (n 18) and other miscellaneous European
countries (n 39) such as Italy, Spain and The Netherlands. Over 85 percent of the
experiences were entirely in English (n 51) or a combination of English and a foreign
language (n 53) whereas 15 percent were in a foreign language only (n 18).
The satisfaction items were constructed to capture various aspects of the encounter
including the atmosphere, customer service and purchase process on a scale of 1 (very
dissatisfied) to 7 (very satisfied). The average score on the satisfaction scale was 5.63 with a
1.01 standard deviation. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed the three items
loading on one factor with loadings of at least 0.70 (Churchill, 1979). The three-item scale
has sufficient reliability as demonstrated by a coefficient alpha of 0.72 (Nunnally and
Bernstein, 1994). Behavioral intentions included two items, one based on the researchers
intentions to recommend (1 do not recommend; 7 highly recommend) and another
based on intentions to repeat the experience (1 no way; 7 absolutely). The mean for the
measure was 5.88 with a 1.52 standard deviation. The items did load onto one factor with
factor loadings of 0.96. The reliability of the scale is evidenced by a coefficient alpha of 0.92
(Nunnally and Bernstein, 1994).
Culture cushion scale assessment
Several assessments of the culture cushion scale were made. Variables with missing values
were identified and mean substitution transformations completed. Each item was assessed
for univariate and multivariate normality because standard structural equation modeling
estimation procedures (i.e., maximum likelihood) and test statistics (i.e., chi-square) have
been found to be highly sensitive to violations of univariate and multivariate normality (Byrne,
2001). In line with recommended univariate normality statistics, the skewness and kurtosis
for each of the items was less than 2.00. As such, all of the items fell within the recommended
univariate normality statistics of absolute values.
An exploratory factor analysis was conducted with varimax rotation on the 37 scale items.
The analysis produced four factors in general accordance with the four dimensions and
explains a total of 71 percent of the variance in the data. All but two items loaded with the
appropriate factors. The analyses also identified numerous scale items with low intra-scale
factor loadings (loadings less than 0.70) and high inter-scale cross-loadings (loadings
greater than 0.15).
Based on the low intra-scale factor loadings and the high inter-scale cross loadings, the
measurement model was respecified based on theory and content evaluations along with a
review of high standardized residuals to determine which were appropriate to discard.
Problematic items were sequentially removed from the exploratory analysis starting with the
items with the lowest intra-factor loadings. The final two-factor model with 14 total items
explained 70.81 percent of the total variance in the data. The first factor, perceived
knowledge, included four of the original seven items. The knowledge dimension refers to the
knowledge the consumer perceives he or she has prior to the intercultural experience. This
familiarity suggests that the consumer has gathered information necessary to have some
idea as to what to expect relative to performance differences that can be attributed to

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cultural differences. The second factor, excitement, comprised the original ten items. The
items reflect the enjoyment consumers derive from experiencing something culturally
unique.
A confirmatory factor analysis of the measurement model was conducted using AMOS. For
this task, the tests for unidimensionality, convergent validity, and discriminant validity
described and recommended by Anderson and Gerbing (1988) were used. In order to
assess unidimensionality of the measurement model, we restricted each indicators causal
path to one individual latent variable, allowed for covariance between the latent variables,
and assessed the fit measures for both the full model (four dimensions, 37 items) and the
reduced model (two dimensions, 14 items). Although the reduced model produced better
results than the full model, the initial 14-item model still did not have a good fit. Two thrill items
with low factor loadings and high standardized residual covariances were removed from the
model. Additionally, modification indexes revealed six high error covariances that were freed
up in the model. The final two-factor model with 12 total items did indicate a good fit
(x 2 51:00, 66 df, p 0:32; RMSEA 0:026; RFI 0:959, AGFI 0:896). Table I shows
the maximum likelihood factor loadings for the final analysis. The coefficient alphas were
0.96 and 0.90 for the excitement and perceived knowledge subscales respectively,
indicating the measures are appropriately reliable (Nunnally and Bernstein, 1994). Based on
the data analysis results as well as statistical information provided from standardized
regression weights, correlations, the variances and standardized residuals, the reduced
model demonstrated unidimensionality. Accordingly, tests for convergent and discriminant
validity were conducted on the final model only.
In order to assess convergent validity, each indicators estimated path coefficient was
determined to be statistically significant by examining the regression parameter estimate
(Anderson and Gerbing, 1988). Because all path coefficient critical ratios exceed 2.0, the
model demonstrates convergent validity. In order to assess discriminant validity, the
estimated correlation parameters between the two latent variables were constrained to one
and a chi-square difference test was performed on the values obtained for the constrained

Table I Culture cushion dimension factor loadings

Culture cushion dimensionsa
Excitement (a 0:96)
The experience seemed more enjoyable in another country
The experience was more exciting and engaging because I
experienced it in another country
Knowing this experience was different than a typical experience in the
USA was stimulating
There was something thrilling about having this experience in a foreign
country
Just having this experience in a foreign culture was exciting
Participating in this experience as if I were a local was fun
It was a thrill to have this experience in a foreign country
There is just something cool about having this experience in another
country
Perceived knowledge b (a 0:90)
I was fairly unfamiliar with the local customs going into this experience
I did not have the same understanding of things as I would have in a
similar situation back home
Before the experience, I thought things might be different during the
experience but I did not know
My understanding about what to anticipate during this experience was
pretty limited

Loadings

0.85
0.88
0.81
0.94
0.95
0.87
0.91
0.96
0.81
0.80
0.79
0.80

Notes: a All items measured on a 1 to 7 Likert type scale (1 strongly disagree; 7 strongly agree); b
Items perceived knowledge items were reverse coded such that a higher score indicated more
perceived knowledge

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and unconstrained models (Anderson and Gerbing, 1988). Based upon the results of the
analyses, the model demonstrates discriminant validity.
Culture cushion scale nomological validity assessment
To learn if the construct performs as the theory predicts, SEM analyses of the relationship
between the two dimensions of the culture cushion and satisfaction and recommendation
intentions were conducted. The model denoting the effects of excitement and knowledge on
recommendation intentions did fit (x 2 75:57, 68 df, p 0:25; RMSEA 0:03; RFI 0:93).
Both perceived knowledge (g 0.230, p , 0.05) and excitement (g 0:239, p 0:02) were
significant predictors. Similarly, model fit shows among perceived knowledge, excitement
and satisfaction (x 2 92:81, 81 df, p 0:17; RMSEA 0:03; RFI 0:92) and both the
perceived knowledge (g 0:122, p , 0:05) and excitement (g 0:103, p , 0:05) paths
were significant predictors. This suggests that the two dimensions of the culture cushion
scale do perform as expected. The cultural value inherent in the inter-cultural experiences
was found to contribute to the perceived outcome.
The role of similarity of the experiences to those occurring in the USA is also of interest. The
theory includes affirmative answers to the following two questions. Are experiences similar to
those experienced in the USA less culturally relevant? Consequently, does cultures role
attenuate in the evaluation of the encounter? However, culture cushion likely plays a role in
understanding perceptions of culturally-novel experiences. The measure for similarity of the
experience was an eight-item measure that asks informants to note on a scale of 1 to 7 how
similar (1) or different (7) the experience was relative to their initial expectations, the objects
or things involved in the encounter, the atmosphere, the customer service, the purchase
process, the behaviors of other customers, the researchers own actions and overall.
Analysis includes computing average scores for each encounter and performing a tertiary
split to form three groups (low similarity, moderate similarity, and high similarity) and
comparing the low similarity group and the high similarity group. A regression of
recommendation intentions on perceived knowledge and excitement for the low similarity
group revealed that unique variance was explained by both dimensions of the culture
cushion (F 2; 38 5:245, p , 0:01; perceived knowledge: b 0:39, p , 0:02; excitement:
b 0:35, p , 0:03). However, in the high similarity group, the multivariate regression was
non-significant (p 0:67). Similar results were found with regard to satisfaction. A
regression of satisfaction on perceived knowledge and excitement for the low similarity
group was significant and once again both dimensions were found to predict satisfaction
(F 2; 39 5:616, p , 0:01; perceived knowledge: b 0:41, p , 0:01; excitement:
b 0:36, p , 0:02). This finding in comparison to a non-significant multivariate regression
of the high similarity group (p 0:28). Thus, the culture cushion construct uniquely captures
the cultural positivity derived from a cultural experience that is very different from anything
experienced in the USA.

Discussion
The results support the two-process framework that incorporates both cognitive and
affective elements. The first dimension of the culture cushion, perceived knowledge,
represents the cognitive aspect relative to what one perceived to have learned relative to the
customs of the visiting country prior to the trip. The second dimension, excitement,
represents the affectively positive aspect of experiencing something new. The two
dimensions combined provide empirical evidence of the inherently positive nature of
inter-cultural consumption encounters. In addition, the results indicate that the less similar
the experience was relative to those previously encountered, the more enhanced the role of
the culture cushion. This provides additional support for the uniquely positive influence of
novel aspects of the inter-cultural experience.
Alternative explanations do exist for influence of perceived knowledge on encounter
judgments. Tourists who gather information prior to the trip may be similar to those high in
sensation seeking. Zuckerman (1994) defines sensation seeking as the desire for novel
experiences and the willingness to take risks (e.g., physical, legal, financial) for the sake of

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such experiences. Sensation seeking individuals attempt to take control over the risky
activity by planning ahead (Trimpop et al., 1999). Taking time to learn is similar to taking
personal control over the experience, which creates a protective frame such that increasing
knowledge increases the enjoyment of the unusual circumstances (Apter, 1992; Trimpop
et al., 1999). Many people who travel internationally may be high in sensation seeking (Lepp
and Gibson, 2003; Litvin, 2008). Perhaps when people fill this need (the encounter is novel),
they view the encounter more positively and overlook any negativity easily.
Although similarity effects demonstrated were not theoretically derived a priori, the results do
find support in several areas. For example, the authentic nature of the inter-cultural
experience could play a role. MacCannell (1976) suggests that tourists search for authentic
experiences; those that cant be found in everyday life. This desire for authenticity, the desire
to experience something new and unique relative to the day-to-day normative encounter
may explain why dissimilar experiences were perceived more positively. In addition, Quan
and Wang (2004) advocate the existence of two tourist experience dimensions: peak
touristic experiences and supporting consumer experiences, the first being major
motivations to tourism and the second referring to experiences that satisfy basic
consumer needs on the journey (e.g., eating, sleeping, transport). The peak touristic
experiences would likely be those that are at sharp contrast to the daily experience. Culture
cushion likely affects the peak encounters.
Woodside and Dubelaar (2002) advocate the need for a deeper understanding of tourism
behavior. Zhang et al. (2008) echo this theme by suggesting that a better understanding is
needed regarding the impact of culture in international experiences. This research effort
strives toward that goal. Yet, much information is still necessary to learn.
For practitioners, the findings demonstrate that international recreational tourists enjoy the
unique cultural aspects of experiences. The desire to experience something different
motivates travel to faraway places to some degree. This proposition supports the
recommendation that a business serving international tourists continues to do business in a
manner steeped in local cultural rituals. Changing service processes or rituals to better
match what the tourist receives in his/her home country would be counterproductive. If these
companies educate the international tourist so he/she has better understanding of what will
happen and perhaps how that relates to the local culture, it may lead to an even more
enriching experience. In addition, businesses should consider tailoring their online
communications in an effort to delineate the cultural differences the international tourist is
likely to experience. Empowering customers to provide online testimonials of their
experience further educates other customers.
For the international tourist observing and participating in culturally different experiences
than one normally has in his/her home country enriches the inter-cultural experience. Only
through ones cultural lens do consumers notice differences when traveling to a foreign
country thus engaging the culture cushion construct. The culture cushion measure is an
important and novel contribution in that it helps to explain the somewhat counterintuitive
satisfaction that consumers often exhibit during service encounters abroad that would
normally be considered service failures in the home country (Armstrong et al., 1997; Stauss
and Mang, 1999). Finally, additional research studies should examine the culture cushion
measures reliability and validity in additional countries and contexts.

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Katherine B. Hartman can be contacted at: hartmank@uncw.edu

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