Importance-performance analysis (IPA) of sustainable tourism initiatives: The resident perspective

While importance-performance analysis (IPA) is one of the most ubiquitous methodological tools utilized in tourism research, its supply-side application to residents has been lacking. Additionally, little research has examined residents' perceptions of sustainable tourism initiatives (STIs) or their community's performance on these STIs. Given this gap, this study conducted an IPA of resident attitudes towards STIs across three U.S. counties in the Commonwealth of Virginia with varying levels of emphasis placed on sustainable tourism within their strategic plans. The results revealed residents of the three counties placed uniformly high levels of importance on the STIs, but varied in their perceptions of performance. The county with the most emphasis placed on sustainable tourism within their plan was found to have the highest performance evaluations. Methodological and theoretical considerations are discussed in detail, including the placement of cross-hairs and how IPA can be situated within social exchange theory and Oliver's expectancy-disconfirmation paradigm.     

Not quite paradise: Inadequacies of environmental impact assessment in the Maldives

The Maldives, a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), has seen a rapid development of its tourism industry over the last 35 years with visitor numbers rising from 1062 visitors per year in 1972 through to over 600,000 today. Both in popular conception and reality the Maldives relies on its marine life and beaches to sustain a tourism industry that contributes over 30% of total GDP.     

Analysing stakeholders’ perceptions of golf-course-based tourism: A proposal for developing sustainable tourism projects

Social interpretations of the impact of development on territories differ according to the socio-political positions of different actors, and especially depending on the degree of power wielded by each actor. These interpretations should be taken into account if the governance of development projects is to be improved, and with it, the sustainability of tourist projects in general. This paper examines a range of stakeholders' perceptions of the impacts of a golf-based tourism development in the south-west of Spain. A mixed methodology is used to analyse the results, highlighting the significance of a social impact assessment. Our findings confirm two differing discourses, one corresponding to influential actors and the other to non-influential, showing unequal degrees of variety and complexity in their argumentation and a clearly distinct capacity for shaping the local socio-environment. Our conclusions indicate that the impact of tourism development is perceived differently in line with stakeholders’ socio-political positions.     

Community attachment,tourism impacts,quality of life and residents’ support for sustainable tourism development

This study examined the formation of residents’ support for sustainable tourism development based on the social exchange theory and bottom-up spillover theory. A self-administered survey along with a structural analysis was used. Our result revealed that overall quality of life satisfaction influenced support for sustainable tourism development, and that material life domains and non-material life domains were two important determinants of overall QoL. Perceived sociocultural impacts of tourism had a significant relationship with non-material life domains. Perceived economic impacts of tourism influenced both material and non-material life domains. Community attachment and residents’ perceived impacts of tourism were significantly associated.     

Nurturing nostalgia?: A response from rural tourism stakeholders

The desire to relive bygone days stimulates nostalgia-seekers to travel to rural settings that have a kind of vintage charm. However, there is no evidence that stakeholders actually acknowledge the beneficial outcomes of nostalgia. This exploratory study sought to identify whether rural tourism stakeholders deliberately nurture visitor nostalgia with the intention of harvesting its positive outcomes. The findings suggest that the notion is credited as constructive, both at a personal and social level, but stakeholders do not seem to be fully cognizant of its potentiality. The study presents a diagrammatic tool that identifies those elements that need to be targeted so that nostalgia is triggered, strengthened and comforted.     

社区旅游参与视角下民族村寨旅游地居民地方感生成研究

居民地方感领域的研究在深化“人-地”关系认识、旅游目的地地方性塑造、旅游资源开发与保护以及旅游规划等方面具有特殊意义。已有研究主要探讨人口统计学特征、物理环境和社会环境等影响因素,缺乏对旅游世界中人与场的积极互动而产生的地方感等问题的讨论。本研究从社区旅游参与视角,通过田野调查的方法收集郎德上寨村民主诉的旅游参与实践,对民族旅游村寨居民地方感的生成问题进行分析。研究发现:郎德上寨村民的社区旅游参与主要表现为“合作激励型”“自我激励型”“机械被动型”和“利益激励型”4种类型;在社区旅游参与过程中,村民获得了强烈的地方感,并由自然地理和人文物理环境、社会文化特性、经济制度、乡土认同、血缘认同、文化认同、房屋归属感和生活便利性等内容体现。本研究还发现,居民地方感在不同的社区旅游参与形态中表现出差异性;社区旅游参与和地方感之间是双向、交互式的影响关系,其中,旅游效益感知因素在二者的关系中起着重要的中介作用。     

Can community-based tourism contribute to sustainable development? Evidence from residents’ perceptions of the sustainability

In this paper, the research gaps in sustainable tourism development were addressed by examining residents' perceptions of the sustainability of community-based tourism based on tourism area life cycle theory. The survey questionnaire was distributed to the residents of six Taiwanese communities, and it was designed to determine the residents' perceptions of the economic, socio-cultural, environmental, and life satisfaction sustainability of tourism. In total, 849 usable questionnaires were collected. The analytical results further elucidated the sustainability of nature-based tourism and suggested that the economic, socio-cultural, and environmental sustainability varied significantly in the consolidation, development, and involvement stages of community-based tourism development. The four dimensions of sustainability were evaluated according to the pre- and post-development perceptions of tourism sustainability, and significantly different results were obtained. The study concludes that the residents’ perceptions differed across the developmental stages; thus, managers should consider the development opportunities and adopt appropriate strategies across different development stages.     

The inter-relationship between rural and mass tourism: The case of Catalonia,Spain

In certain regions of Southern Europe, mature coastal resorts are currently coexisting with rural tourism areas several kilometers inland. This paper analyzes the inter-relationship of these two types of tourism and the conditions for sustaining both in Mediterranean destinations. To do so, common and uncommon characteristics of the tourist product in rural and mass tourism are identified. The case study focuses on the region of Catalonia, Spain. By applying a hedonic price model, the valuation of some traditional mass tourism characteristics in rural tourism is tested. The results show that rural and mass tourism in the region share several attributes, some of them with opposite effects. The general conclusion is that both types of tourism are compatible, but should be developed and promoted independently to preserve the attractiveness of the destination. Some managerial recommendations for rural tourism in Catalonia are also derived from this analysis.     

A clear path towards sustainable mass tourism? Rejoinder to the paper ‘Organic,incremental and induced paths to sustainable mass tourism convergence’ by David B. Weaver

The paper forms a rejoinder to the paper by David Weaver (‘Organic, incremental and induced paths to sustainable mass tourism convergence’). It fully agrees with David Weaver that a sustainable development of tourism should focus on sustainable mass tourism development and not, as is currently the case, so much on niche products labelled ‘sustainable’. However, it critiques Weaver's operationalization of sustainability, his assumption that sustainable mass tourism (SMT) will be the ‘emergent norm’ due to external factors, and his destination development theory showing different paths that, however, all end in SMT. Finally it is shown that the path development idea might be at odds with systems thinking.     

Sustainable performance index for tourism policy development

Development of sustainable tourism policies could be a useful way of encouraging new forms of business, increasing employment and promoting the conservation of landscapes; in this regard, the application of the European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas represents a referential methodology for local development and a possibility to involve local stakeholders in the definition of sustainability policy. In many cases, integrated sustainability indicators are developed within a participatory process; the present study represents an innovative attempt to evaluate sustainability holistically, by defining specific targets through the definition of indicators suitable to measure and evaluate the temporal evolution of development policies, mainstreaming sustainability to reduce adverse effects on the environment and promoting conservation of local and traditional values. Application of sustainability indicators to measure welfare and development at local scales is strategic to evaluate the short and long term effects of strategies developed through the European Charter participatory process.     

乡村居民参与旅游发展的多维价值及完善建议——以贵州安顺天龙屯堡文化村为个案研究

乡村居民作为乡村旅游资源的重要载体和乡村旅游开发的核心利益主体,其参与旅游发展的态度、参与程度不仅关系到乡村居民自身利益,对于提高旅游者体验质量,开拓乡村旅游市场,促进乡村旅游地可持续发展等都有着重要的现实意义。本文在文献研究和实地调研的基础上,从实证经济学角度出发,以贵州安顺天龙屯堡乡村旅游发展模式为个案,对乡村居民参与旅游发展的实践进行分析,进一步探索和揭示乡村社区居民参与旅游发展的意义,并对社区居民参与旅游发展中的潜在问题提出完善建议。     

经济发达地区农村妇女参与乡村旅游的动机研究——以中山市新伦村为例

工作动机是指直接引起、推动并维持人的工作,以实现一定职业目标的内部动力.文章通过对中山市新伦村妇女参与乡村旅游的心理特征进行深度访谈,发现当地妇女在参与乡村旅游过程中,由于受到家庭经济条件、地区经济环境、就业心理、地区传统文化等多方面的影响,表现出为孩子树立榜样、逃避紧张工作、展示兴趣爱好、提高家庭收入等工作动机,具有明显的地域特殊性.这些就业动机导致了当地妇女低层次、高流动率的参与,在一定程度上阻碍了乡村旅游的升级与发展.     

古村落旅游开发中的利益主体研究——以大旗头古村为例

古村落既是旅游的热点,也与其他类型风景区存在差异.本文以广东省大旗头古村为例,应用利益主体理论,在对利益主体调研的基础上,建立利益主体的层次分析模型、概念模型,并提出假设命题,对模型数据进行了描述性、可靠性和拟合程度的分析.在此基础上,文章运用通径分析方法,对上述模型和假设进行验证,并构建起大旗头古村利益主体之间的关系图谱.研究表明,古村落不同利益主体的关注点既有共性,也存在差异,但对古村落的文化和环境方面是共同关注的地方.最后,根据通径决定系数的差异,将古村落各利益主体之间的关系划分为密切型、中间型和疏远型3种.