Responsible Service of Alcohol: An Evaluation of Policies and Practices of Five Star Hotels in Karnataka A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Master of Philosophy in Tourism Management By Zacharia Joseph (Reg. No. 1720033) Under the Supervision of Joby Thomas Associate Professor School of Business Studies and Social Sciences CHRIST (Deemed to be University) BENGALURU, INDIA June 2019 I Approval of Dissertation Dissertation entitled Responsible Service of Alcohol: An Evaluation of Policies and Practices of Five Star Hotels in Karnataka by Zacharia Joseph, Reg No 1720033 is approved for the award of the degree of Master of Philosophy in Tourism. Supervisor: ______________________________________ Chairman: ______________________________________ General Research Coordinator: ______________________________________ Date: …………………….. Place: Bengaluru II DECLARATION I, Zacharia Joseph hereby declare that the dissertation, titled Responsible Service of Alcohol: An Evaluation of Policies and Practices of Five Star Hotels in Karnataka is a record of original research work undertaken by me for the award of the degree of Master of Philosophy in Tourism. I have completed this study under the supervision of Dr Joby Thomas, Associate Professor, Department of Tourism Studies. I also declare that this dissertation has not been submitted for the award of any degree, diploma, associateship, fellowship or other title. I hereby confirm the originality of the work and that there is no plagiarism in any part of the dissertation. Place: Bengaluru Date: ………………… Zacharia Joseph Reg No. 1720033 School of Business Studies and Social Sciences CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru III CERTIFICATE This is to certify that the dissertation submitted by Zacharia Joseph (Reg. No. 1720033) titled ‘Responsible Service of Alcohol: An Evaluation of Policies and Practices of Five Star Hotels in Karnataka’ is a record of research work done by him during the academic year 2017-2018 under my supervision in partial fulfillment for the award of Master of Philosophy in Tourism. This dissertation has not been submitted for the award of any degree, diploma, associateship, fellowship or other title. I hereby confirm the originality of the work and that there is no plagiarism in any part of the dissertation. Place: Bengaluru Date: ………………… Dr Joby Thomas Associate Professor School of Business Studies and Social Sciences CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru Academic Coordinator School of Business Studies and Social Sciences CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru IV ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Writing the acknowledgement seems to be the most difficult part of this dissertation as this work would not have been possible and complete without the support I received from various quarters. There are so many people to thank and show gratitude that it is quite possible It miss thanking a few. I, wish to thank and acknowledge each and every person I approached and who advised and helped me on this journey. My friends known and unknown, the industry professionals, who took time out of there busy schedule to answer my questionnaire and share their valuable insights. My colleagues at work, my fellow research scholars and the faculty in the Department of Tourism Studies for their constant support and directions. Words cannot do justice to my gratitude for my guide and mentor, Dr Joby Thomas. I thank him for his patience and support though out this work. Sir has not only been helpful and friendly but also strict when needed and this without doubt is the major reason that I have been able to complete this research. I do hope that my work does justice and is up to his expectations. My sincere thanks to Dr Jain Mathew, Dean, Department of Management Studies, for his support and motivation. His constant check on my progress has been one of the major motivations to complete this work. I wish to thank the management of CHRIST (Deemed to be University) for their timely help and support at various quarters during this study. My thanks to my family, whose support and encouragement was with me throughout. Finally, I thank God for bringing all these good people into my life and the support they gave me during this journey. Zacharia Joseph V ABSTRACT Networking and socializing has been a human practice since ancient times and alcohol has been the social lubricant –yesterday, today and also tomorrow. While we cannot trace its origin to a particular culture or civilization, its role and impact has been recorded in ancient texts and literature across cultures. A person can get drunk for a few rupees or spend a few lakhs for the same. It is consumed across social classes- by a daily wage worker to a business tycoon. The only thing differentiating the two being the price he has paid for the drink and the glass he is having it from. Even though the price and glass differs the effect it has on a person is more or less the same. This research and study is based on the belief that alcohol in itself is not the major cause of all the issues and troubles it is blamed for, but it is the nature and manner in which it is treated, consumed and served. This study is based on the latter aspect, ‘the service of alcohol’. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, alcohol is a social lubricant and bars and restaurants have always been a popular place for socializing. The people who deal with the sale and service of alcoholic beverages along with the management and owners have a moral responsibility to ensure that alcohol is both served and consumed responsibly. This practice of Responsible Beverage Service or Responsible Service of Alcohol might look simple and easy on paper but to practice it, is a different story! It involves the support and approval of all the stakeholders. The owner and management on their part have to compromise on the earnings from the extra sale alcohol. The server has the additional responsibility of checking that his customers are not getting intoxicated and that he is following all the rules and regulations associated with alcohol service and above all the consumers too have to support and accept responsible service practices by the establishment. This study has looked into the practice of Responsible Beverage Service followed in the bars and restaurants in five star hotels, in the state of Karnataka. The initial study involved a review on early research and study on Responsible Beverage Service, Its impact on controlling alcohol abuse and intoxication, Responsible Beverage Service practices and various other dimensions and issues associated with Responsible Service of Alcohol. VI This research has focused on both the consumer as well as the server’s perspective on Responsible Beverage Service. The primary data for the study was collected from both consumers and hotels through a structured questionnaire, followed by data analysis using the appropriate tool. The findings give an insight and understanding into the acceptance of responsible beverage service in the state. What works and what needs to be improved? The practices which has the most impact in controlling alcohol abuse and answers to other questions associated with the study. VII TABLE OF CONTENTS No. Content Name Page No. Approval of Dissertation II Declaration III Certificate IV Acknowledgement V Abstract VI Table of Contents IX List of Tables XII List of Figures XVI 1 Chapter 1 – Introduction 1 1.1 Alcohol in India 2 1.2 Alcoholic Beverages available in India 4 1.3 Theoretical Framework 9 1.3.1 Affect of alcohol on human body 9 1.3.2 RBS Model 11 1.4 Responsible Beverage Service in Karnataka and rest of India 14 1.5 Responsible beverage service across the world 15 1.6 Purpose and scope of the study 19 1.7 Research questions and objectives 20 VIII 1.8 Objectives of the study 20 1.9 Chapterization Scheme 2 Chapter 2- Literature Review 22 2.1 History of server responsibility 22 2.2 Responsible Beverage Service (RBS) definition and 22 Strategies 2.3 Research till Date 23 2.4 RBS and Staff Training 24 2.5 RBS and Harm Reduction 26 2.6 Hurdles in implementing RBS 28 2.7 Findings from Literature 32 3 Chapter 3- Research Design 33 3.1 Operational Definitions 33 3.2 Research Gap 34 3.3 Hypotheses for the Study 35 3.4 Sources of Data Collection 36 3.5 Method of Data Collection 36 3.6 Statistical tools and techniques 38 4 Chapter-4- Statistical Analysis and Interpretation 39 4.1 Demographic Characteristics 40 Section I 46 Section II 64 Section III 66 IX 5 Chapter 5 -Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion 82 5.1 Findings and Discussion 82 5.2 Objective wise Findings and Discussion 83 5.3 Suggestions 86 5.4 Conclusion 87 5.5 Scope for Further Research 88 X LIST OF TABLES Table Table Name Page Number Number 1.1 State wise drinking age 4 3.1 Sources of variables 35 3.2 Reliability Test Score 38 4.1 Demographic Characteristics -Gender 40 4.2 Age group of customers 41 4.3 Gender* Age Cross tabulation 42 4.4 Educational Qualification 42 4.5 Employment 43 4.6 Education * Employment Cross tabulation 44 4.7 Customer Response to RBS 51 4.8 Correlations 53 4.9 Standardized OLS Regression weights for 54 the dimensions of RBS on Customer Loyalty in Bar and Restaurants 4.10 Customer Response to effective RBS 61 strategies to be followed by Five star Hotels XI 4.11 Tests of Normality 64 4.12 Spearman's ordinal correlation coefficient 65 result between acceptance towards RBS practices and acceptance towards reduction in alcohol abuse. 4.13 Descriptive Statistics 78 4.14 Descriptive Statistics on