Cross-cultural differences in voluntary payment decisions. Evidence from guided tours

We provide an experimental investigation of empirical phenomena of free tours – city tours after which tourists remunerate the guide with voluntary Pay-What-You-Want payments. Using a sample of 471 international travellers from 50 nations, we analyse cross-country differences in the size of the voluntary payments. We explain differences in average payment sizes in relationship to cultural values defined by Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions [1983. National cultures in four dimensions: A research-based theory of cultural differences among nations. International Studies of Management & Organization, 13(1–2), 46–74] and selected from the World Value Survey. We show that the cultural factors have stronger impact on payments when the decision about the amount to be paid is made before the tour. We discuss practical, managerial implications of our findings and discuss consequences of the voluntary payments introduction to the tourism sector.