The spatial spillover effects of haze pollution on inbound tourism: evidence from mid-eastern China

Abstract

Although previous studies have paid much attention to the impact of haze on inbound tourism, there is little empirical research on intercity differences in the spatial effects of haze pollution. Using panel data on 174 prefecture-level cities in mid-eastern China from 1998 to 2016, this paper quantitatively explores the heterogeneity of the direct and spillover effects of haze on inbound tourism. The results show that both haze pollution and inbound tourism growth in mid-eastern China have apparent spatial autocorrelation and significant spatial spillover effects. From a regional perspective, the direct and spillover effects of haze on inbound tourism are –0.052 and –0.189, respectively. From a local perspective, the spatial spillover effects of haze gradually decrease from south to north. The existence of spatial heterogeneity in the direct and spillover effects of other determinants suggests that the haze control strategy must be approached as a systematic project. This study contributes to theory by highlighting the importance of considering the spillover effects and spatial heterogeneities among destinations when evaluating the relationship between haze pollution and inbound tourism. The results have implications for local governments desiring to prevent and control haze pollution and to effectively guide inbound tourists to achieve sustainable development of inbound tourism.

摘要

已有研究重点关注了雾霾对入境旅游的影响, 但当前对雾霾污染空间效应的城市间差异的实证研究仍相对缺乏。利用中国中东部1998年到2016年间174个地级市的面板数据, 本文定量探讨了雾霾对入境旅游影响的直接和溢出效应及其空间异质性特征。结果表明：中国中东部的雾霾污染和入境旅游增长均具有显著的空间自相关性和空间溢出效应。从区域视角来看, 雾霾对入境旅游的直接和溢出效应分别为-0.052和-0.189。从局部视角来看, 雾霾污染的空间溢出效应从南向北逐渐减小。入境旅游其他影响因素的直接和溢出效应同样具有空间异质性, 表明雾霾管控策略必须被视作一个系统工程。本文认为在考察雾霾污染与入境旅游之间的关系时, 重视目的地间的溢出效应及其空间异质性十分必要, 并以此为理论研究做出贡献。研究结果对地方政府预防和控制雾霾污染以有效引导入境游客来实现入境旅游的可持续发展具有重要意义。

Keywords:

• Haze
• PM2.5
• inbound tourism
• spillover effects
• spatial heterogeneity
• mid-eastern China

关键词:

• 雾霾
• PM2.5
• 入境旅游
• 溢出效应
• 空间异质性
• 中国中东部

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Funding

This work receives financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant numbers 41671137, 41771151, 41871141].

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Dong Xu

Dong Xu is a PhD Candidate in the School of Geographical Science, Nanjing Normal University, China. His primary research interest is tourism geography and tourism planning.

Zhenfang Huang

Zhenfang Huang is a professor in the School of Geographical Science, Nanjing Normal University, China. His research interest includes tourism management, tourism geography and tourism planning.

Guolin Hou

Guolin Hou is currently the director of the Department of Tourism, School of Geographical Science, Nanjing Normal University, China. His research interest is ecotourism and climate change.

Chen Zhang

Chen Zhang is a senior lecturer in the School of Geographical Science, Nanjing Normal University, China. She mainly engaged in tourism geography research.