Tapio Ikkala
Airi Lampinen
ABSTRACT
We present a qualitative study of hospitality exchange processes that take place via the online peer-to-peer platform Airbnb. We explore 1) what motivates individuals to monetize network hospitality and 2) how the presence of money ties in with the social interaction related to network hospitality. We approach the topic from the perspective of hosts -- that is, Airbnb users who participate by offering accommodation for other members in exchange for monetary compensation. We found that participants were motivated to monetize network hospitality for both financial and social reasons. Our analysis indicates that the presence of money can provide a helpful frame for network hospitality, supporting hosts in their efforts to accomplish desired sociability, select guests consistent with their preferences, and control the volume and type of demand. We conclude the paper with a critical discussion of the implications of our findings for network hospitality and, more broadly, for the so-called sharing economy.
- Adler, J. (1985). Youth on the Road: Reflections on the History of Tramping. Annals of Tourism Research 12(3), 335--354.Google Scholar
Cross Ref
- boyd, d. (2005). Sociable Technology and Democracy. In Lebowsky J., Ratcliffe M. ed. Extreme Democracy. Lulu, 183--93.Google Scholar
- Bialski, P. (2012). Becoming Intimately Mobile. Peter Lang.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Brotheron, B. (1999). Towards a Definitive View of the Nature of Hospitality and Hospitality Management. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 11(4), 165--73.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Ciborra, C. U. (1996). Introduction: What Does Groupware Mean for the Organization Hosting It? In C. U. Ciborra (Eds.) Groupware and Teamwork: Invisible Aid or Technical Hindrance. Edited by John Wiley & Sons, 1--19. Google ScholarDigital Library
- Cropanzano, R., Mitchell, M. S. (2005). Social Exchange Theory: An Interdisciplinary Review. Journal of Management 31(6), 874--900.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Dernoi, L. A. (1981). Towards a New Style in North-South relations. Tourism Management 2(4), 253--264.Google Scholar
- Edelman, B. G., Luca, M. (2014). Digital Discrimination: The Case of Airbnb.com. Working Paper. Harvard Business School.Google Scholar
- Germann Molz, J. (2014). Toward a Network Hospitality. First Monday 19(3).Google Scholar
- Germann Molz, J. (2011). CouchSurfing and Network Hospitality: 'It's Not Just about the Furniture.' Hospitality and Society 1(3), 215--25.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Germann Molz, J. (2007). Cosmopolitans on the Couch: Mobile Hospitality and the Internet. In J. Germann Molz & S. Gibson (Eds.) Mobilizing Hospitality: The Ethics of Social Relations in a Mobile World. Farnham, 65--80.Google Scholar
- Heal, F. (1990). Hospitality in Early Modern England. Oxford University Press.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Lashley, C. (2000). Towards a Theoretical Understanding. In In Search of Hospitality: Theoretical Perspectives and Debates. Butterworth-Heinemann.Google Scholar
- Lampinen, A. Account Sharing in the Context of Networked Hospitality Exchange. In CSCW '14. ACM Press (2014), 499--501. Google ScholarDigital Library
- Lynch P., Di Domenico, M. L., Sweeney, M. Resident Hosts and Mobile Strangers: Temporary Exchanges within the Topography of the Commercial Home. In J. Germann Molz & S. Gibson (Eds.) Mobilizing Hospitality: The Ethics of Social Relations in a Mobile World. Farnham, 122--145.Google Scholar
- Mauss, M. (1923 {1990}). The Gift: The Form and Reason for Exchange in Archaic Societies. W. W. Norton.Google Scholar
- Malinowski, B. (1992) Argonauts of the Western Pacific. E. P. Dutton.Google Scholar
- Morrison, A. J., O'Gorman, K. D. Hospitality Studies: Liberating the Power of the Mind. In CAUTHE 2006: To the City and Beyond. Footscray, Vic., (2006)Google Scholar
- Pyyhtinen, O. (2010). Simmel and 'the Social.' Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
- Selwyn, T. (2000). An Anthropology of Hospitality. In C. Lashley, J. Alison (Eds.) In Search of Hospitality: Theoretical Perspectives and Debate. Taylor & Francis.Google Scholar
- Simmel, G. (1990). The Philosophy of Money. Routledge.Google Scholar
- Simmel, G. (1949). The Sociology of Sociability. American Journal of Sociology 55(3), 245--61.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Strauss, A. and Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of Qualitative Research. Sage.Google Scholar
- Wittel, A. (2001). Toward a Network Sociality. Theory, Culture and Society 18(6), 51--76.Google ScholarCross Ref
Index Terms
- Monetizing Network Hospitality: Hospitality and Sociability in the Context of Airbnb
Recommendations
Hosting via Airbnb: Motivations and Financial Assurances in Monetized Network Hospitality
CHI '16: Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing SystemsWe examine how financial assurance structures and the clearly defined financial transaction at the core of monetized network hospitality reduce uncertainty for Airbnb hosts and guests. We apply the principles of social exchange and intrinsic and ...
Defining the price of hospitality: networked hospitality exchange via Airbnb
CSCW Companion '14: Proceedings of the companion publication of the 17th ACM conference on Computer supported cooperative work & social computingThis study examines how money mediates and structures social exchange in a hospitality exchange service, and how social and economic factors guiding exchange get intertwined in this context. We present a qualitative study on the experiences of people ...
Quality Standards, Service Orientation, and Power in Airbnb and Couchsurfing
Although Couchsurfing and Airbnb are both online communities that help users host strangers in their homes, they differ in an important sense: Couchsurfing prohibits monetary payment while Airbnb is built around it.We conducted interviews with users ...
Comments