This hotel and restaurant management doctoral graduate student from Jordan knew he wanted to study the cultural dimensions that affect international hotel management before he even knew what university he would attend.

“Common sense tells us that people are different, but with globalization and people becoming more similar across the world, I wanted to see if there are still differences that separate people,” Ayoun says.  “Specifically, I wanted to test if (hotel managers’) national culture influence the way they manage and develop their business.”

Ayoun’s research involved participation and coordination on an international level.  To ensure his findings were conclusive, Ayoun needed to mail 2,000 questionnaires to top hotel chains throughout the U.S., Turkey, Thailand and Malaysia.  The costs associated with conducting his study were more than he could afford, so he applied for one of four graduate/undergraduate research scholar awards given through the College of Human Environmental Sciences.

“This study was in my mind, but to carry it out and implement it is a whole different story.  It’s not easy for a student to cover all the expenses associated with research,” Ayoun says.  “But this [fellowship] helped me cover most of my expenses.  Without it there would be no study.”

The funding, which enabled Ayoun’s academic dreams, was the Lanphere Professor Research Scholar Award.  Typically awarded in the amount of $1,000 for one year, the scholarship was almost doubled to $1,800 for Ayoun due to the scope and significance of his research.

As a result, five papers were derived from what Ayoun discovered in his research.  One of which he presented at the 11th Annual Conference on Graduate Education and Graduate Student Research in Hospitality and Tourism in Houston.  His paper generated interest from many conference goers, including professors from Michigan, California and Las Vegas, all of which will inevitably lead to future collaborations. 

Because of the quality of his research, Ayoun was also nominated for the OSU Graduate Research Excellence Award to be awarded in May.