Boredom syndrome in touristic familiar restaurant owners. A mixed-method study in Juarez, Mexico

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to study the profile of boredom syndrome (BoSy) in a group of tourist restaurant owners in Juárez, Mexico. The methodological approach combined quantitative and qualitative methods. With the advice of a panel of experts and a thorough literature review, a 17-item Likert scale questionnaire and an interview guide were developed from a business perspective. Both instruments incorporated boredom indicators as identified in the field of Psychology and showed high content validity. The results suggested that both the location of the economic entity and the age of the manager significantly influence BoSy levels. The relational analysis showed that, in general, the incidence of BoSy is consistent with theoretical expectations. From a practical perspective, the differences between generations and geographical locations may indicate the need to implement preventive strategies to prevent the actual low levels of BoSy from evolving into greater disinterest and demotivation in the future. In addition, this research identifies how generational and geographical factors influence BoSy levels, revealing that younger family members tend to prefer challenging tasks and are less affected by failure, while older members opt for simpler tasks and seek to avoid failure and its consequences.