Examining employees' affective and behavioral responses to internal crisis communication in times of COVID-19.

ABSTRACT

Communication is an essential component of crisis management strategies in hospitality and tourism. This study aimed to build on the integrated internal crisis communication framework. This study employed qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. Following a preliminary qualitative study, a conceptual model was developed and tested with a total of 806 responses. The results showed that the approach and content of internal crisis communication messages directly affected employees' evaluations of their organizations' crisis management efforts and their psychological safety, both of which further affected their perceived social resilience and turnover intentions. Furthermore, the results of multigroup analyses revealed the different impacts of internal crisis communication on participants who were in full-time positions vs. part-time positions and salaried employees vs. hourly employees. Finally, theoretical and practical implications were provided based on the research findings.