Improving Cruise Crew Competency and Cultivating Global Citizenship: A Sustainable Development Approach for the Cruise Industry

In our increasingly interconnected world, the idea of global citizenship has taken center stage, especially in alignment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. At the same time, the cruise sector, in its resurgence after the COVID-19 setback, is facing workforce equilibrium issues. This study delves into career guidance, specifically concerning cruise staff roles. The focus is on how global citizenship perceptions, work-related values, service-oriented attitudes, competencies, and career self-concepts interplay among emerging service professionals. Initially, the global perspective of these professionals considerably boosts their work values, attitudes, and competencies related to cruise ship roles. Furthermore, a positive service attitude enhances work values and competencies. Also, work values appear to augment both skill sets and career self-awareness among cruise staff. The skills of cruise staff significantly amplify their career self-concept. Moreover, both the service mindset and skill set of cruise staff serve as intermediaries in the nexus between global citizenship, work values, and career identity. Lastly, the service perspective, abilities of cruise staff, and job values are pivotal links between global citizenship views, occupational values, and career recognition. The findings underline the significance of fostering a global outlook, emphasize the alignment of job selections with work values, and accentuate the importance of building service mindsets and capabilities for robust career self-awareness. A dual approach, incorporating global citizenship teachings and skill-building for cruise roles, can help bridge the workforce gap in the cruise sector. In essence, these findings can enlighten cruise companies as they evaluate the community involvement facet of their ESG directives.