Influence of Place Identity on Residents’ Attitudes to Dark Tourism

ABSTRACT

Underpinning the importance of place identity, this study investigates its role on residents’ attitude to dark tourism. Deploying a survey of post-disaster residents in a town in Southwest China, the current study indicates that place-based self-esteem and self-efficacy are salient in influencing residents’ perceptions of tourism impacts and support for dark tourism. Further, place identity’s other two principles—distinctiveness and continuity—are found to be important antecedent variables with indirect effects mediated by self-esteem. While the literature on dark tourism suggested that economic benefit is a common reason for residents’ support for tourism, this study recommends a new perspective to better understand and predict residents’ attitudes toward dark tourism.

摘要

强调地方认同理论的重要性，本文研究了地方认同对居民对待黑色旅游的态度之影响。通过对中国西南地区一个震后小镇居民的问卷调查，本研究表明：基于地方的自我尊敬、自我效能显著地影响居民的旅游感知及对黑色旅游的支持；而独特性和连续性是两个重要的前置变量，它们通过自我尊敬间接地影响着居民的态度。已有文献认为经济获益是居民支持黑色旅游的常见原因，而本文提供一个新视角以更好地理解并预测居民对待黑色旅游的态度。

KEYWORDS:

• Place identity
• residents’ attitude
• distinctiveness
• continuity
• dark tourism
• tourism development

关键词:

• 地方认同
• 居民态度
• 独特性
• 连续性
• 黑色旅游
• 旅游发展

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This paper is sponsored by Chinese National Science Foundation. [Grant No. 41601611].

Notes on contributors

Shengrong Chen

Shengrong Chen is a PhD Candidate at the School of Tourism Management, Sun Yat-sen University. Her research interests include dark heritage, dark tourism, and the application of social constructionism in tourism research.

Suosheng Wang

Suosheng Wang has research interests in destination marketing and image studies, travel behavior, sustainable/eco-tourism, cultural and event tourism, resident attitudes toward tourism, tourism students’ career perceptions and industry commitment, tourism and hospitality curriculum, and tourism research methodology, etc.

Honggang Xu

Honggang Xu is a professor at the School of Tourism Management, Sun Yat-sen University. Her research interests include regional tourism development, tourism planning, and system dynamics.