Researchers and marketers are interested in understanding and predicting the complex behaviours of consumers. One important facet of consumer behaviour is the ‘involvement’ construct. Involvement is ‘a person’s perceived relevance of the object based on inherent needs, values, and interests’. 1 This study examined the interplay between the involvement construct and push/pull factors as motivators in destination selection. Clements and Josiam 2 found that college students who had travelled during the Spring Break vacation had significantly higher levels of involvement than non-travellers. This study surveyed 795 college students during their Spring Break vacation at the beach in Panama City Beach, Florida. Vacationers were found to be highly involved with the concept of travelling on Spring Break. As hypothesised, high levels of involvement were significantly associated with push factors relevant to travel to beachfront destinations on Spring Break. High levels of involvement were also significanlty associated with the pull factors of Panama City Beach, Florida, as a popular beachfront destination for Spring Breakers.

As the tourism industry grows, the need to predict travel behaviours increases. This study analysed the travel decision of college students who vacationed during the spring break. The involvement construct, borrowed from consumer behaviour literature, was utilised to evaluate the role of involvement in travel decision making. Demographics and their rela tionship to level of involvement were also evaluated. The data supported the hypothesis that there was a significant relationship between the level of involvement and the decision to go on a spring break. A relationship between involvement and destination selection was also found.

Outlines a step‐by‐step procedure to evaluate both the costs and the benefits of any training proposal. The evaluation permits owners and managers to make informed decisions about appropriate training methods. The operator is often forced to choose between informal on‐the‐job training and structured off‐the‐job training. Utilizes a financial analysis model for identifying the dollar value of both performance and training. Compares benefits and costs of two different training approaches side‐by‐side to identify the method that will deliver the maximum financial benefit.

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