Academica Turistica
Tourism & Innovation Journal – Revija za turizem in inovativnost
Year 14, No. 1, June 2021, issn 2335-4194
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14_1
3 Sustainable Tourism: Introduction to the Thematic Block
Ksenija Vodeb and Helena Nemec Rudež
7 Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation of Cultural Heritage:
The Case of the Municipality of Vrsar
Kristina Afrić Rakitovac, Nataša Urošević, and Nikola Vojnović
23 Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination: Example of the Island of Pag
Aleksandra Krajnović, Ivica Zdrilić, and Nikolina Miletić
39 A Destination’s Social Sustainability: Linking Tourism Development
to Residents’ Quality of Life
Emil Juvan, Eva Podovšovnik, Miha Lesjak, and Jasmina Jurgec
53 Managers’ Perspectives about the Relationship between Tourism and Climate Change:
Case of the Republic of Croatia
Aleksandar Racz, Dora Smolčić Jurdana, and Zvonimira Šverko Grdić
71 A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices in Hotel Businesses
in Punjab, India: Preliminary Findings
Baljit Kaur
87 Quality of a Rural Destination: Visitor and Resident Approach
Kateřina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská
101 Willingness to Pay More: The Quest for Superstar Museums
Nuria Recuero Virto, María Francisca Blasco López, and Juan Antonio Mondejar
115 Abstracts in Slovene – Povzetki v slovenščini
119 Instructions for Authors
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2 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Sustainable Tourism: Introduction
to the Thematic Block
Ksenija Vodeb
Guest Editor
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies – Turistica, Slovenia
ksenija.vodeb@fts.upr.si
Helena Nemec Rudež
Guest Editor
University of Primorska, Faculty of Tourism Studies – Turistica, Slovenia
helena.nemec@fts.upr.si
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.3-5
Despite three decades of active and intense discussion
of tourism sustainability in academia and in tourism
practice, recent references have shown that there is
still much room for progress in this research area. At
this very moment of a new milestone for tourism and
society as a whole, new circumstances have arisen that
change our understanding and suggest new choices
that shift the concept of sustainable tourism as we
have known it. The pandemic can be seen as one of
the challenges, and it offers an opportunity to rethink
our understanding of sustainable tourism (Persson-
Fischer & Liu, 2021). But, even before the pandemic, it
was clear that sustainable tourism, as a fluid and com-
plex paradigm, urgently requires a systematic shift in
comprehension. It therefore seems timely to review
the progress of this tourism development concept and
explore its possible future directions (Nunkoo & See-
tanah, 2019).
Sustainable tourism is now considered the domi-
nant development paradigm in tourism research (Ru-
hanen et al., 2015; Bramwell & Lane, 2012), but it is
rather inconstant and dynamic, which requires a pre-
cise, continuous and appropriate approach. Indeed,
there is a plethora of relevant academic papers on this
topic, providing valuable knowledge and understand-
ing of the concept, as well as strategies and instru-
ments for sustainable tourism implementation. An ex-
ample of sustainable tourism indicators, designed by
theWorld Economic Forum, is the Global Sustainable
Competitiveness Index (gsci), which was developed
in 2012 as a subsection of the earlier well known and
acknowledged Tourism and Travel Competitiveness
Index (ttci). On the other hand, there still persists a
critical gap between the theory and practice of sustain-
ability in tourism. Moreover, the prevailing economic
indicators used by the United Nations World Travel
Organization (unwto) and many other tourism or-
ganisations (national, regional, and local), profession-
als and decision makers with a mindset that sustain-
ability is merely an environmental issue, show how
incomplete our knowledge and awareness of sustain-
able tourism is. Furthermore, recent social and tech-
nological changes in our society pose a great challenge
and open new questions that need to be addressed and
answered.
Ruhanen et al. (2019) investigated how research
on sustainable tourism has evolved in the more than
thirty years since the publication of the Brundtland re-
port. They show that the field of research has matured
over the past five years to the point where empha-
sis on climate change, modelling, values, behaviour
and theoretical advancement in sustainable tourism
have become important. Budeanu et al. (2015) pointed
out the problem of low or even lack of criticality in
sustainable tourism research and suggested the need
for research contributions to improve adaptability to
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 3
Ksenija Vodeb and Helena Nemec Rudež Sustainable Tourism
respond to and manage change under unpredictable
circumstances. In a nutshell, they believe that the re-
search conducted on this topic needs to be more effec-
tive in the future, and provide tourism practitioners
with concrete solutions and tools. Additionally, they
assigned to tourism sustainability the transformative
power of the wider society due to its interrelation-
ships with other spheres of human life and the eco-
nomic sectors. They concluded that (p. 16) the aca-
demic world of tourism is a relatively small commu-
nity and certainly one that is disproportionately tiny
in relation to the size of the sector and its impacts. It
would be necessary to bring additional academic ca-
pacity to the subject in order to achieve a strong out-
come that could help to develop a solid ground for its
development and progress.
Sharpley (2020) is very critical towards tourism
and argues that its developmental role, unequal acces-
sibility, degree of dependency, overconsumption and
overproduction are the biggest challenges at the global
level. The only solution he sees to reduce the use of fos-
sil fuel in tourism in the future is to reduce air travel.
Zhang and Chan (2020) problematised the vague con-
ceptualisation of sustainable tourism and pointed it
out as the reason for its ineffectiveness and under-
performance in practice. They believe that sustain-
able development is a resource-concerned ethic, which
should be concerned with resources and human needs
in each specific context. Conversely, Streimikiene et
al. (2021, p. 265) sound much more optimistic by con-
cluding that competitiveness, environmental and so-
cial issues of sustainable tourism development can be
addressed together by implementing innovations and
fostering sustainable consumption principles. Provid-
ing innovative tourism services to tourists, achieving a
competitive advantage by contributing to welfare, sat-
isfying the needs of local communities, and addressing
sustainable development priorities of tourism destina-
tions are achievable goals.
Whether this shift in the current comprehension
of sustainable development lies in the responsible be-
haviour and actions of stakeholders, or in the bal-
anced performance of these actions and collabora-
tion between stakeholders, sustainable tourism as it
was defined and understood three decades ago is no
longer relevant due to the maturation of the concept.
The collection of papers in this thematic block in-
spired by the above discussion brings together selected
papers presented at the International Tourism Con-
ference Encuentros 2020 – Sustainable Destinations:
Walking the Sustainable Talk. To ensure an even more
diverse selection of articles on sustainable tourism, the
call for papers was disseminated to the wider research
community after the conference. Afterwards, many
interesting manuscripts were submitted for publica-
tion consideration, but the guest editors had to limit
the number of papers selected in order to proceedwith
the publication process for the most theoretically and
empirically high-quality papers.
This thematic block contains six articles authored
by scholars fromdiverse geographic and research back-
grounds addressing key issues in sustainable tourism:
community participation, resident quality of life, icm
principles of an island destination, climate change, en-
vironmentally sustainable practices in hospitality and
sustainable tourism competitiveness.
The first research paper, ‘Community Participation
in Sustainable Valorisation of Cultural Heritage: The
Case of the Municipality of Vrsar’ by Kristina Afrić
Rakitovac, Nataša Urošević and Nikola Vojnović, il-
lustrates the role of community participation as an
essential principle of sustainable tourism. It explores
the perspective of the local community in relation to
the sustainable valorisation of cultural and archaeo-
logical heritage and finds that local stakeholders are
interested in the sustainable development of cultural
tourism that opposes the mass tourism that currently
prevails. Furthermore, it confirms the aspiration of
the community to be actively involved and informed
in participatory models of heritage management. The
findings of the research point to the need for knowl-
edge capacity building and awareness raising among
stakeholders and destination management in order to
optimise the sustainable valorisation of heritage re-
sources.
The example of sustainable development of an is-
land destination based on iqm principles by Aleksan-
dra Krajnović, Ivica Zdrilić and Nikolina Miletić ex-
plores its extent and factors influencing it on the Island
of Pag among key tourism stakeholders. The research
4 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Ksenija Vodeb and Helena Nemec Rudež Sustainable Tourism
findings show unsatisfactory conditions of sustainable
development due to mass tourism, extreme season-
ality, excessive tourism construction and unbalanced
development. The situation urgently calls for profes-
sional destination management.
The article titled ‘A Destination’s Social Sustain-
ability: Linking Tourism Development to Residents’
Quality of Life’ by colleagues from Turistica, namely
Emil Juvan, Eva Podovšovnik, Miha Lesjak and Jas-
mina Jurgec, examines residents’ quality of life as a
fundamental aspect of sustainable tourism develop-
ment. The results show that interaction with tourists
can play a more important role in life satisfaction than
the level of tourism development. Besides this, the re-
sults indicate that neither the level of tourism develop-
ment nor the interactions with tourists predict the life
satisfaction of hosts and their emotional well-being.
The authors highlight that achieving social sustain-
ability is significantly context dependent and suggest a
mixed methodological approach for further research,
combining a quantitative and qualitative approach.
Tourismmanagement beliefs and attitudes towards
climate change are addressed by Aleksandar Racz,
Dora Smolčić Jurdana and Zvonimira Šverko Grdić,
colleagues from Croatia. They point out that signif-
icant change in sustainable development is possible
by understanding attitudes and beliefs of managers
in order to manage the risks and opportunities for
change in unsustainable practices. The research find-
ings have shown stronger pro-ecological attitudes and
higher levels of ecological awareness regarding climate
change among female managers, with tertiary educa-
tion, greater professional experience and environmen-
tally active individuals.
From the other side of the world comes ‘A Study
of Barriers of Environmentally Sustainable Practices
in the Hotel Businesses in Punjab, India: Preliminary
Findings’ by Baljit Kaur, with the aim of exploring
the barriers of environmentally sustainable practices
(esps) in the area of hotel business. The issue of sus-
tainability examined from the perspective of the hotel
industry points to the need for information sharing
and environmental awareness between policy makers
and managers, changing conventional work practices,
developing positive environmental attitudes, strict en-
vironmental legislation, and involving top manage-
ment in implementation strategies.
References
Bramwell, B., & Lane, B. (2012). Towards innovation in sus-
tainable tourism research? Journal of Sustainable Tour-
ism, 20(1), 1–7.
Budeanu, A., Miller, G., Moscardo, G., & Ooi, C.-S. (2015).
Sustainable tourism, progress, challenges and opportu-
nities: Introduction. Journal of Cleaner Production, 111
(b), 285–540.
Nunkoo, R., & Seetanah, B. (2019). Innovation in sustainable
tourism. Tourism Review, 74(2), 129–292.
Persson-Fischer, U., & Liu, S. (2021). The impact of a global
crisis on areas and topics of tourism research. Sustain-
ability, 13(2), 906. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13020906
Ruhanen, L., Weiler, B., Moyle, B. D., & McLennan, C. J.
(2015). Trends and patterns in sustainable tourism re-
search: A 25-year bibliometric analysis. Journal of Sus-
tainable Tourism, 23(4), 517–535.
Ruhanen, L., Moyle, C.-L., & Moyle, B. (2019). New direc-
tions in sustainable tourism research. Tourism Review,
74(2), 138–149.
Sharpley, R. (2020). Tourism, sustainable development and
the theoretical divide: 20 years on, Journal of Sustainable
Tourism, 28(11), 1932–1946.
Streimikiene, D., Svagzdiene, B., Jasinskas, E., & Simanavi-
cius, A. (2021). Sustainable tourism development and
competitiveness: The systematic literature review. Sus-
tainable Development, 29, 259–271.
Zhang, S., & Chan, E. S. W. (2020). A modernism-based in-
terpretation of sustainable tourism. International Journal
of Tourism Research, 22, 223–237.
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 5

Original Scientific Article
Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation
of Cultural Heritage: The Case of the Municipality
of Vrsar
Kristina Afrić Rakitovac
Juraj Dobrila University of Pula,
Croatia
kafric@unipu.hr
Nataša Urošević
Juraj Dobrila University of Pula,
Croatia
natasa.urosevic@unipu.hr
Nikola Vojnović
Juraj Dobrila University of Pula,
Croatia
nvojnov@unipu.hr
Sustainable tourism, as tourism that respects both residents and visitors, cultural
heritage and the environment, can offer appropriate models for sustainable cul-
tural heritagemanagement and local economy development. Community participa-
tion is one of the fundamental principles of sustainable tourism. It was introduced
in tourism studies more than three decades ago and elaborated through different
methodological approaches and research. The purpose of this paper is to elabo-
rate the local community perspectives regarding sustainable valorisation of cultural
and archaeological heritage. The research was realised within the framework of Ar-
chaeoCulTour, a recent scientific project whose main goal is to analyse the devel-
opment potential of archaeological heritage through sustainable tourism in Istria
County, Croatia. The research has considered the Municipality of Vrsar in Western
Istria, a typical Mediterranean tourist destination, characterised by mass tourism
and high seasonality, as a case study. The research has shown that the residents in
theMunicipality of Vrsar partially support the current tourism development model,
faced with different sustainability challenges and many infrastructural problems.
Residents are interested in being better informed and more involved in the tourism
planning process and the participatory heritage management models. They agree
that the main sustainability issues could be improved through sustainable valorisa-
tion of local cultural and natural resources by creating innovative tourism experi-
ences, and they are interested to participate in this co-creating process.
Keywords: tourism destinations, cultural heritage, sustainable cultural tourism,
community participation
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.7-22
Introduction
Tourism destinations, as places with complex eco-
nomic, urban and residential functions, are not passive
locations for tourism activities, but dynamic systems
and products of interactions between places and peo-
ple, whose transformations depend on a combination
of economic, social, political, cultural, historical and
ecological factors. Therefore, tourism development
planning and destination dynamics should consider
all sustainability dimensions and involve all key stake-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 7
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
holders. The analysis of dynamic relationships that in-
fluence tourism development should explore tourism
destinations as relational, intersectoral, collaborative,
networked, hybrid, transnational and multiscalar sys-
tems.
The main goal of proper destination governance
should be sustainable local development, the quality of
life for the local community and a high-quality expe-
rience for tourists through networking and coordinat-
ing all key stakeholders. In order for a destination to be
developed successfully, key stakeholders (public and
private sectors, local community and tourists) should
communicate, learn together, coordinate their devel-
opment visions and share responsibility. The most
challenging part of integrating all key stakeholders
in destination governance is their active involvement
in the planning process and implementation (Čorak,
2011). In this paper, the authors elaborate destination
dynamics in heritage tourism through the participa-
tory management model as one of the key principles
of sustainable tourism. The concept is based on the
four mutually interdependent pillars of sustainability:
the social, economic, environmental and cultural pil-
lars. Sustainable tourism should involve all relevant
stakeholders in a tourism destination to recognise and
valorise its specific, distinctive characteristics.
The dynamics between tourism destinations, natu-
ral and cultural resources and local stakeholders is the
most important issue in sustainable tourism develop-
ment. Since sustainable tourism is focused to benefit
local residents, respect local culture, valorise local re-
sources and educate tourists, as well as local residents,
all activities and practices of sustainable tourism are
directly connected to the four pillars of sustainable de-
velopment. According to the un World Tourism Or-
ganization (2016), tourism can be a powerful tool for
community development and for reducing inequali-
ties if it engages local populations and all key stake-
holders in its development, in the framework of the
17 Sustainable Development Goals (sdg) of the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development. The local com-
munity should benefit from tourismandbe actively in-
volved in the tourism planning and heritage manage-
ment process. Effective participation of local commu-
nities in heritage management, both in consultation
and decision-making, is the main topic of some key
strategic recommendations and conventions, such as
the Faro Convention and the European Cultural Her-
itage Strategy for the 21st century, whichwork together
as guides to social involvement, community collabora-
tion and awareness-raising to ensure ‘heritage for all’
(Picard, 2017, p. 83).
Destination communities have also come together
to resist, negotiate and/or co-create knowledge of their
heritage tourism worlds. Heritage tourism knowl-
edge production and distribution have increasingly
been considered as collaborative, networked, political,
transnational and multiscalar processes (Hollinshead,
1999; Ong et al., 2014; Winter, 2015).
The purpose of this paper is to present changing
dynamics in a typical Mediterranean destination, with
an emphasis on the role and attitudes of the local com-
munity in the collaborative processes of co-creating
knowledge of the local cultural heritage. The research
presented in this paper was conducted in the frame-
work of the current scientific project ‘The Archaeo-
logical Landscape in Sustainable Development of Cul-
tural Tourism in Vrsar Municipality – ArchaeoCul-
Tour.’ The project is based on the collection, analysis
and systematization of data on archaeological sites,
and their use in strategic development of cultural
tourism in the Municipality of Vrsar. Its objectives in-
clude the identification and analysis of archaeologi-
cal heritage on the basis of field research, analysis of
cartography, and aerial photographs; the preservation
of archaeological heritage and landscape by continu-
ousmonitoring; the valorisation of archaeological her-
itage in the sustainable development context; an opin-
ion survey among local residents, professionals and
tourists on cultural, and in particular archaeological,
heritage; the dissemination of the results for raising
awareness of cultural tourism by creating new ways
of presenting heritage; and the preparation of selected
sites for presentation. Themain aim of the project is to
develop a successful strategy for sustainable growth of
cultural tourism in Istria as the most developed Croa-
tian tourist region, characterised by an abundance of
archaeological sites, which are unfortunately still not
adequately presented, interpreted and valorised.
The authors analysed the situation and the poten-
8 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
tials for the sustainable valorisation of cultural and
archaeological heritage in the Municipality of Vrsar in
Western Istria, a typical Mediterranean tourist desti-
nation characterised by high seasonality,mass tourism
concentrated on the coast, and inadequately valorised
cultural heritage which is still not recognised as an
important and valuable tourism resource. The authors
combined qualitative and quantitative methodology
which have involved all interested stakeholders (ex-
perts, the local community and visitors). The research
was organised in three phases. The first phase, con-
ducted in March 2018, included interviews and focus
groups with 15 experts, with the aim of defining key
issues and collecting information for situational anal-
ysis. The local community survey was conducted from
March to May 2018, involving 200 inhabitants of Vr-
sar (with 182 properly completed questionnaires). The
third phase of the research, conducted from May to
September 2018, involved 820 tourists. In this paper,
the authors present the results of the second phase re-
lated to attitudes and expectations of the local commu-
nity regarding valorisation of local cultural heritage
through sustainable cultural tourism.
In the next section, the authors elaborate the theo-
retical framework and literature review concerning the
importance of community participation in sustainable
valorisation of local cultural heritage. This is followed
by a presentation of the results of empirical research
related to the attitudes and expectations of the resi-
dents of the Municipality of Vrsar regarding the po-
tentials of sustainable valorisation of local cultural her-
itage. The results are discussed in the concluding part
of the paper.
Conceptual Framework and Literature Review
Sustainable tourism, as tourism that respects both lo-
cal residents and visitors, the cultural heritage and the
environment, can offer appropriate models for sus-
tainable management of cultural heritage and local
economy development at the same time. As Goodwin
(2011) argues, there is not a unique blueprint for sus-
tainable tourism. The challenges, priorities and solu-
tions vary from place to place, depending on the level
of economic development, social conditions, local cul-
ture and cultural heritage, environmental factors, nat-
ural heritage, etc. From a destination perspective, the
planning and implementation of sustainable tourism
should involve and respect the long-term interests of
all relevant stakeholders.
As Richards and Hall (2003) noted, sustaining lo-
cal communities has become an essential element of
sustainable tourism. If the resources of the host com-
munity are not managed in a responsible way, tourism
development cannot be expected to be sustainable.
On the other hand, sustainability of heritage resources
cannot be achieved without the direct involvement of
the local community: if heritage is respected, used and
managed by the locals, it has better chances to be prop-
erly valorised. The rationale of sustainable tourism
usually rests on providing long-term economic, so-
cial and cultural benefits to the community and its
environment. A holistic approach to sustainability re-
quires the continuing/improved social, cultural and
economic well-being of human communities to be an
integral component of environmental renewal. The
balance between tourism development, sustainable
valorisation of unique and valuable local resources
and community well-being becomes a challenge in the
modern world.
The concept of community participationwas intro-
duced to tourism studies more than three decades ago
(Murphy, 1985 in Šegota et al., 2017). Informed stake-
holders’ participation and cooperation are some of the
most important requirements for the implementation
of sustainable tourism development (Mihalic, 2014).
The advocates of participatory governance suggest
that community participation can increase reliance
and public consensus, lead to tourism strategies that
correspond to local needs and contribute to destina-
tion sustainability (Byrd, Bosley and Dronberer, 2009;
Currie, Seaton andWesley, 2009). According to Gunn
(1994) and supported by several studies (Ioannides,
1995; Robson & Robson, 1996 in Šegota et al., 2017),
sustainable tourism development cannot be success-
ful without the support of citizens.
In this paper, the authors assumed that sustainable
tourism, as tourism that respects both local residents
and their visitors, the cultural heritage and the envi-
ronment, could offer appropriate models for the sus-
tainablemanagement of cultural heritage and commu-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 9
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
nity development at the same time. It is supposed that
cultural tourism, which ‘cares for the culture it con-
sumes while culturing the consumer’ (Richards, 2007,
p. 1), as a sustainable alternative tomass tourism, could
strengthen the identity and economy of the local com-
munity, create new jobs, and increase the quality of life
of local residents and a visitor’s enjoyment, preserving
the natural environment at the same time (Afrić Rak-
itovac & Urošević, 2017).
Community participation in the development of
sustainable cultural tourism is the main topic of many
studies in the tourism field, which focus on the dy-
namics between tourism development, (un)sustain-
able use of key resources and local communities’ reac-
tions to its consequences (Zolfani et al., 2015). Terzić
et al. (2014) have presented a methodology of cul-
tural tourism sustainability indicators (including 30
indicators related to sustainability of heritage resource
conservation, sustainability of tourism and tourism-
related sustainability of local community), elaborat-
ing studies (Xiang and Wall, 2005) which examined
residents’ attitudes towards tourism and the impacts
tourism can have on a community (Perdue, Long and
Allen, 1990; Ap, 1992; Lankford, 1994; Andereck &
Vogt, 2000; Gursoy, Jurowski and Uysal, 2002; McGe-
hee & Andereck, 2004; Andereck et al., 2005; Dyer et
al., 2007; Wang & Pfister, 2008; Anderleck & Nyau-
pane, 2011). According to these authors, opinions and
attitudes of local residents on the key values of cul-
tural heritage and their tourist valorisation are impor-
tant since they create a local perspective for evaluating
possibilities to involve geographically limited territo-
ries into wider social, cultural and tourism flows.
Models of sustainable tourism development con-
sider not only the aspects of the natural (physical)
environment and economic impacts, but the socio-
cultural dimensions of destinations as well. The most
important sociocultural effects of sustainable tourism
are the mutual influences and impacts between local
residents (community) and the broadest spectrum of
tourism activities of a destination. There are numerous
positive impacts in that relationship, such as increased
local participation in destination activities and events,
the strengthening of community values and the revival
of traditions, greater security presence, the creation of
new community space, exposure to new ideas through
globalisation and transnationalism, etc. On the other
hand, there are negative impacts such as changes in
community structure, loss of authenticity, exceeding
social carrying capacity, increases in criminal activ-
ity, etc. (Wall & Mathieson, 2005; Hall & Page, 2006;
Hall, 2007). Despite the positive sociocultural effects
of tourism development, the role of the local commu-
nity in the sustainable tourism of destinations is ne-
glected (Klarin, 2018). Furthermore, the satisfaction
of local inhabitants with tourism development is as-
sociated with their involvement in tourism planning
(Nunkoo & Ramkissoon, 2010; Choi &Murray, 2010).
Although scholars suggest and use various terms
and phrases in order to explain participatory devel-
opment strategies, in this research we used the con-
cept of community participation in the tourism de-
velopment process (cptdp) which is defined as an
adaptive and categorical (flexible) paradigm that al-
lows local communities in various tourist destinations
at different levels of development to participate in the
decision-making process of tourism development, in-
cluding sharing the benefits of tourism development,
and determining the type and scale of tourism devel-
opment in their localities (Tosun, 2000; 2005).
According to the analysed literature (Richards &
Munsters, 2010), the most appropriate methodologi-
cal tools of scientific research of the cptdp are ques-
tionnaires, participatory observation, focus groups
and interviews. Recognising the geographical, devel-
opmental and economic specificities of the destina-
tion of Vrsar during the situational analysis at the be-
ginning of the research, and the results of previous
researches, the authors decided to use survey (ques-
tionnaire) methods to measure specific local destina-
tion dynamics. In scientific and professional publica-
tions in Croatia and abroad, there are numerous re-
searches on local residents-tourism relationships and
connections. The most important are those in which
surveys, participatory observation, focus groups and
interviewswere used in order to consider the intercon-
nections between local populations, including partic-
ipatory models and the broadest aspects of tourism
activities, especially in regions similar to the Mu-
nicipality of Vrsar. Such researches consider the so-
10 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
cioeconomic and sociocultural impacts and transfor-
mations of tourism regions: Cape Cod (usa), Costa
Blanca (Spain), Crete (Greece), Arizona (usa), Victo-
ria (Australia), the Slovenian Coast (Slovenia), Inland
Istria, and the cities of Pula, Bjelovar and Čakovec
(Croatia).
Among the earliest research on the interconnec-
tion of the local population and tourism activities
and development was a study conducted in an at-
tempt to empirically examine the existence of nega-
tive impacts of tourism. The local residents and the
entrepreneurs of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, were in-
terviewed to measure their perception of how tourism
impacts the different domains of livelihood. Compar-
isons were made between the respondents’ attitudes
towards tourism and their dependence on tourism for
a livelihood (Pizam, 1978). Research by Selwyn (1992)
was to identify some of the reasons why tourism needs
to be taken seriously by those concerned with com-
munity development both in the Third World and in
Europe. The local political-economic issues and ques-
tions of tourism and the sociocultural change of des-
tinations were considered.
Numerous researchers and scholars of tourism in
the last two decades have considered the short- and
long-termviability of the tourismbusiness in receptive
tourist regions. Rebollo and Baidal (2003) use an op-
erative definition of sustainable tourism development
thatmakes possible the effective application of its prin-
ciples. From this basis, a system of sustainability indi-
cators is developed that can be applied to Torrevieja,
a Spanish Mediterranean destination that is notable
for the size of its tourism industry and for its supply
of holiday homes. The territorial and socioeconomic
transformations that have resulted from Torrevieja’s
tourism development, along with the new local poli-
cies in response to these transformations, highlight
both the contradictions and the chances of reconcil-
ing economic growth with sustainable development.
A similar research by Andriotis and Vaughan (2007)
focused on the identification and explanation of the at-
titudes of a sample of urban residents toward tourism
development on Crete and their grouping with re-
spect to these attitudes. Education and employment in
tourism were found to be the major single factors af-
fecting the attitudes of residents of the island of Crete.
Andereck et al. (2007) investigated the differences be-
tween Hispanic and Anglo residents of the State of
Arizona (usa) with respect to their perceptions of
tourism and quality of life in terms of their ethnic-
ity, framed with the context of ethnicity marginality
theory.
A valuable contribution in terms of spatial plan-
ning of tourism activities of a destinationwas provided
by the study in which researchers compare attitudes
of locals towards tourism development in the Otways
region of Victoria, Australia, using traditional survey
research questions and a contemporary method for
measuring spatial preferences for development (Ray-
mond & Brown, 2007). The results from the survey
data showed conditional support for tourism growth
and development in the Otway Hinterland and along
the Otway Coast, irrespective of residence geographi-
cal distance from the centre of tourist activities.
Scientific research in the neighbouring regions
similar to theMunicipality of Vrsar are significant, too.
Nemec Rudež and Vodeb (2010) considered the Slove-
nian coastal destinations of Koper and Piran using a
questionnaire. The findings reveal that the residents’
perceptions of tourism differ between municipalities
which have different tourism concentrations. In fact,
residents in the municipality with the higher tourism
concentration perceive more negative tourism im-
pacts, whilst, on the other hand, they do not perceive
more positive tourism impacts. Vojnović (2013) exam-
ined the selected sociocultural characteristics of sus-
tainable tourism in the nearest vicinity of Vrsar: inland
Istria. The following sociocultural indicators of sus-
tainable tourismwere selected: the density of the regis-
tered and protected cultural and historical heritage rel-
ative to area size of towns and villages, the proportion
of tourists who understand the language of the local
population, the overall security measured as the ratio
of criminal conducts and offenses of disturbing public
order committed by tourists against the total number
of such violations, the attitudes of the local population
and accommodation owners towards tourism, as well
as the attitudes of the municipal representatives. The
attitudes of the local population and accommodation
owners towards tourism were examined by adminis-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 11
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
tering the questionnaire which showed that tourism
is an acceptable and desirable activity. In her analy-
sis of the cultural tourism development potential of
the city of Pula, Urošević (2012) analysed the percep-
tions and attitudes of the key stakeholders, including
local residents, related to sustainable valorisation of
the key local cultural resources, using questionnaires
and interviews. The focus of Marković and Fuerst-
Bjeliš’s research (2015) is the identification of an indi-
vidual with the spatial identity of a region and investi-
gation of the effects on the sustainable development of
tourism, based on a case study of the cities of Bjelovar
and Čakovec in the Croatian Hinterland. The effects
of tourism on the local community’s quality of life are
significant, which depends on the quality of a destina-
tion itself and on its sustainable development.
Šegota et al. (2017) considered the impact of resi-
dents’ informedness and involvement on perception
of tourism impact, taking the case of the destina-
tion Bled. The main research instrument was a self-
administered questionnaire. The finding of their study
has shown that highly informed and highly involved
residents had better perceptions of tourism’s positive
impacts than all other groups, whereas those residents
who are poorly informed and weakly involved had
more negative perceptions of tourism impacts than
others.
The sustainability aspects which concern the local
community, and which could be analysed include: de-
cent livelihood opportunities; the number of tourism
businesses owned and operated by the locals; local
communities’ share of profits from tourism; training
of locals to acquire the competencies and skills for
participating in heritage tourism; respect for local in-
tellectual property; locals’ accessibility to heritage as a
tourism resource and use of tourism facilities; and the
local community’s participation in decision-making in
relation to tourism development of heritage resource
(involvement in the planning, research and decision-
making process, community satisfaction with tourism
practice and heritage conservation, etc.) (Xiang and
Wall, 2005; Terzić at al., 2014).
In the next section, the authors present the results
of empirical research related to the attitudes and ex-
pectations of the residents of theMunicipality of Vrsar
regarding the potentials of sustainable valorisation of
local cultural heritage.
Analysis of Local Population Attitudes
and Expectations
Research Methodology
Destination dynamics of Istria County, as Croatia’s
most developed tourist region, and theMunicipality of
Vrsar, as a typical Mediterranean destination, includ-
ing a comparative analysis of the European and Croa-
tian best practices regarding archaeological tourism,
as well as the analysis of the first phase of the research
which involved 15 experts through focus groups and
interviews, are elaborated in previous research (Afrić
Rakitovac et al., 2018).
The aim of the second phase of the conducted em-
pirical research was to analyse the attitudes of the lo-
cal population in the Municipality of Vrsar regarding
sustainable valorisation of cultural and archaeological
heritage.
The research involved the local community and
was carried out on a sample of 182 inhabitants, i.e.
8.5 of the total population in Vrsar (in 2015, there
were 2,149 inhabitants). The research instrument was
a questionnaire consisting of 15 questions, out of which
three were closed questions, while twelve were open-
ended questions. The questionnaire was previously
tested on a sample of 30 inhabitants involved in a
workshop organised as part of the project in April
2018. The final sample has embraced different groups
of inhabitants from the local community (persons em-
ployed in the public sector and private companies, and
members of civil organisations). The respondents’ an-
swers were collected by students as part of their prac-
tical education. The students were trained by the au-
thors. The research was conducted in May 2018.
The research hypotheses of the empirical research
were: (1): the local population supports tourism de-
velopment in the Municipality of Vrsar; (2): the local
population recognises potentials of cultural tourism
development as a sustainable alternative to the cur-
rent model of mass tourism; (3): the local population
is not well informed about the archaeological heritage
in themunicipality as a potential for sustainable devel-
opment or cultural tourism.
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Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
Table 1 Sample Structure by Gender, Age, Level
of Education, and Actual Position in the Labour
Market
Category Item f f ()
Gender Male  .
Female  .
Total  .
Age –  .
–  .
–  .
–  .
>  .
Total  .
Level of education Elementary school  .
Secondary school  .
University  .
Master study  .
Total  .
Actual position in
the labour market
Employed  .
Entrepreneur  .
Student  .
Retiree  .
Unemployed  .
Total  .
The paper presents selected questions and answers.
The data have been analysed bymethods of descriptive
analysis and the one-way anova analysis, processed
by means of the spss programme 24.0.
Sample Characteristics
The characteristics of the sample are presented in Ta-
bles 1 and 2. There were 59.9 male and 40.1 fe-
male participants. Concerning the age structure, the
largest was the age group from 40–49, followed by
those from 30–39, and the age group from 50–59. Re-
garding the levels of education, the largest group of
respondents were those with a secondary school de-
gree, followed by those with a university degree; to-
gether they comprise 88.5 of the sample. Concerning
the actual position in the labour market, the majority
of respondents (69.8) are currently employed, 17
Table 2 Sample Structure ba the Impact of Tourism
Earnings on Household Income
Options f f ()
Larger part of the household income is
realised through tourism-related activities
 .
Smaller part of the household income is
realised through tourism-related activities
 .
Household income is independent of
tourism-related activities
 .
Total  .
are entrepreneurs, 6.6 are unemployed, 4.9 are re-
tired and 1.6 are students. Regarding the impact of
tourism earnings on the respondents’ household in-
come, the majority of them (56.0) report that a large
part of their household income is related to tourism
activities, for 28.6of them such impact is small, while
for 15.4 of respondents their household income is not
affected by tourism activities.We can conclude that the
majority of the local population is engaged in tourism
and dependent on tourism-related activities.
Research Results
The first part of the questionnaire explored the lo-
cal population’s attitudes towards the proposed state-
ments related to the impacts of tourism on the local
community. As indicated in Table 3, the local popu-
lation was mainly satisfied with tourism development
in the municipality (arithmetic mean on Likert’s scale
higher than 4). The respondents expressed the high-
est levels of agreement with the following statements:
tourists are welcome regardless of their country of ori-
gin (4.68), tourism contributes to higher levels of em-
ployment in the Municipality of Vrsar (4.59), tourism
is themost important economic activity in themunici-
pality (4.47), tourism development benefits the major-
ity of the population in Vrsar (4.47), and tourists’ lan-
guage(s) are not a barrier for communication (4.14).
The respondents expressed the lowest levels of agree-
ment regarding the possibilities of active participa-
tion of the local population in the tourism planning
process (3.32), the contribution of tourism to environ-
mental protection (3.45), and levels of satisfactionwith
cultural attractiveness in the municipality (3.24).
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Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
Table 3 Local Population’s Attitudes Regarding the Proposed Statements
Statements Frequencies () () ()
    
Tourism contributes to higher employment in Vrsar      . . –.
Tourism is the most important economic activity in Vrsar      . . –.
Tourism develop. benefits the majority of the population in Vrsar      . . –.
Tourists do not hinder daily life and work in Vrsar      . . –.
I actively participate in the tourism planning process in Vrsar      . . –.
Tourism contributes to environmental protection in Vrsar      . . –.
Tourists’ language(s) are not a barrier for communication      . . –.
Tourists are welcome regardless of the country of origin      . . –.
Tourists contribute to the pres. of customs and cult. heritage      . . –.
Estimate the level of satisfaction with the cultural offer in Vrsar      . . –.
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) arithmetic mean, (2) standard deviation, (3) skewness.
Table 4 Statistical Differences Related to the Local Population’s Attitudes Regarding the Proposed Statements:
Gender and Age (Mean Values)
Statements Gender Age
() () P p – – – – > P p
Tourism contributes to higher
employment in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourism is the most important
economic activity in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourism development benefits the
majority of the population
in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists do not hinder daily life
and work in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
I actively participate in the tourism
planning process in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourism contributes to environ-
mental protection in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists’ languages are not a bar-
rier for communication
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists are welcome regardless of
the country of origin
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists contribute to the preser-
vation of customs and cultural
heritage
. . . . . . . . . . .
Estimate the level of satisfaction
with the cultural offer in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) female, (2) male. Tested by one-way anova.
14 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
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Table 5 Statistical Differences Related to the Local Population’s Attitudes Regarding the Proposed Statements:
Level of Education and Impact on Household Income (Mean Values)
Statements Level of education Impact on household income
() () () () P p Large Small No P p
Tourism contributes to higher
employment in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourism is the most important
economic activity in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourism development benefits the
majority of the population
in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists do not hinder daily life
and work in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
I actively participate in the tourism
planning process in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourism contributes to environ-
mental protection in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists’ languages are not a bar-
rier for communication
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists are welcome regardless of
the country of origin
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tourists contribute to the preser-
vation of customs and cultural
heritage
. . . . . . . . . . .
Estimate the level of satisfaction
with the cultural offer in Vrsar
. . . . . . . . . . .
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) elementary, (2) secondary, (3) university, (4) master. Tested by one-way anova.
The results presented in Table 3 were further anal-
ysed using the one-way anova analysis, as presented
in Tables 4 and 5. As indicated in Table 4, it can be con-
cluded that there were not statistically significant dif-
ferences in the respondents’ answers according to gen-
der, since all levels of significance are higher than 5
(p < 0.05). However, there were statistically significant
differences according to the respondents’ ages found
for five statements: regarding tourism contribution to
environmental protection (p = 0.001 < 0.05), regard-
ing tourism as the most important economic activ-
ity in the municipality (p = 0.009 < 0.05), regarding
the statement that tourists are welcome regardless of
the country of origin (p = 0.021 < 0.05) and regard-
ing tourists’ language(s) not representing a barrier for
communication (p = 0.034 < 0.05). Younger respon-
dents are more sceptical regarding the positive impact
of tourism on environmental protection and the im-
pact of tourism on preservation of customs and cul-
tural heritage.
As indicated in Table 5, there were statistically sig-
nificant differences in relation to the respondents’ lev-
els of education found for five statements: regard-
ing the contribution of tourism to higher employ-
ment rates in the municipality (p < 0.0,05), regarding
tourism as the most important economic activity in
Vrsar (p < 0,05), regarding the statement that tourists
are welcome regardless of the country of origin (p <
0.05), regarding the statement that tourism develop-
ment benefits themajority of the population (p= 0.001
< 0.05), and regarding the statement that tourists do
not hinder daily life and work in the municipality. It
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 15
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
Table 6 The Importance of Proposed Attractions of Vrsar as a Tourism Destination
Statements Frequencies () () ()
    
The vicinity of the Adriatic sea      . . –.
The weather and the climate      . . –.
The coast and islands      . . –.
Natural and rare land cover type      . . –.
The Lim Channel      . . –.
Parks      . . –.
The Kontija Forest      . . –.
St. Michael’s church      . . –.
Monte Ricco archaeological site      . . –.
Vrsar’s mosaics      . . –.
St. Mary’s of the Sea church      . . –.
Vrsar’s old city centre      . . –.
Dušan Džamonja’s Park of Sculptures      . . –.
The culinary tradition      . . –.
Cultural, sports and entertainment manifestations      . . –.
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) arithmetic mean, (2) standard deviation, (3) skewness.
can be observed that the respondents with a higher
level of education valuated tourism as an important
economic and social phenomenon more frequently
than those with a lower level of education.
As indicated in the same table, there were statis-
tically significant differences regarding the impact of
tourism on household income for four statements: re-
garding tourism contribution to higher employment
rates in the Vrsar municipality (p < 0.0,05), regarding
tourism as the most important economic activity in
Vrsar (p < 0,05), regarding the statement that tourism
development benefits the majority of the population
in Vrsar (p = 0.001 < 0.05) and regarding active par-
ticipation in the tourism planning process in Vrsar. It
can be observed that tourism is considered as more
important for respondents who have a larger impact
of tourism on their household income. Consequently,
those respondents aremore interested in active partic-
ipation in the tourism planning process.
Table 6 indicates the local population’s perceptions
of the proposed attractions of Vrsar as a tourism desti-
nation. As expected, considering the arithmetic mean
scores on Likert’s scale higher than 4, the local popu-
lation has recognised the following as the most signif-
icant attributes: the Adriatic coast and nearby islands,
the pleasant weather and climate, the Lim Channel,
Vrsar’s old city centre, etc. The local population con-
siders the following as less attractive: Vrsar’s mosaics,
St. Michael’s Church and theMonte Ricco archaeolog-
ical site.
The following question was related to the percep-
tion of the local population about the most common
tourist activities of tourists when visiting Vrsar (Ta-
ble 7). As expected, considering the arithmetic mean
scores on Likert’s scale higher than 4, the local popu-
lation has recognised swimming and other seaside ac-
tivities, visiting restaurants, walking trails and cycling
as themost attractive activities for tourists. Less recog-
nised were participation in the local community’s ac-
tivities, acquiring new experiences, visiting cultural
and historical monuments, visiting cultural manifes-
tations, visiting protected nature areas, and participa-
tion in sports and entertainment manifestations.
We can conclude that, according to the local popu-
16 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
Table 7 Local Population’s Perception of the Most Frequent Activities of Tourists Visiting Vrsar
Statements Frequencies () () ()
    
Swimming and other seaside activities      . . –.
Visiting protected nature areas      . . –.
Cycling      . . –.
Visiting restaurants      . . –.
Visiting cultural and historical monuments      . . –.
Visiting cultural manifestations      . . –.
Participation in sports and entertainment manifestations      . . –.
Participation in the local community’s activities      . . –.
Walking trails      . . –.
New experiences      . . –.
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) arithmetic mean, (2) standard deviation, (3) skewness.
lation attitudes, tourists still perceive Vrsar as the sun-
and-sea destination for relaxing active holidays, com-
plemented with enjoying the local food and recreation
(swimming, cycling, walking) in beautiful nature.
The second part of the questionnaire consisted of
ten open-ended questions aimed to determine the re-
spondents’ attitudes regarding the unique features and
development potentials of Vrsar as a cultural tourism
destination, as well as its greatest advantages and dis-
advantages. The respondents were asked about the
most attractive cultural attractions and manifesta-
tions and about their habits when it comes to visit-
ing cultural attractions and manifestations. They were
also asked to propose ways for improving presenta-
tion of cultural and archaeological attractions, as well
as the cultural tourism offer in general. In conclu-
sion, they were asked about the results of the previous
cultural tourism projects and expected results of the
project ArchaeoCulTour. The results are presented in
the swot matrix (Table 8).
When asked about the most recognisable and un-
ique characteristics/attractions of Vrsar, the respon-
dents emphasized the beauty of nature/archipelago/
sea (24.7 of respondents), and the unique cultural
heritage symbolised by the romantic/picturesque old
city core (10.9), as well as the importance of the
first and biggest naturist camp in Europe – Kover-
sada (10.9). The participants also mentioned the
Montraker quarry/sculpture school (5.5), the famous
lover, Giacomo Casanova, who visited Vrsar twice
(5.5), and the Lim Fjord (5.5) as important local
brands.
Themost frequent answers, regarding the fivemost
attractive cultural and archaeological sites in the area
of Vrsar, were: churches – St. Mary’s (35.7), Dušan
Džamonja’s Park (27.4), the old castle with the city
core (24.7), the Montraker quarry (16,5), Monte
Ricco (10.9), the mosaics (8.2), etc.
Themost frequent answers, regarding the fivemost
attractive cultural and tourist manifestations in Vrsar,
were: the fishermen fest (33.5) Casanovafest (26.4),
the Old Fair (stari samanj) (19.8), concerts (16.5),
the guitar festival (11.5), and theMontraker sculpture
school (8.2).
When asked how Vrsar could present its cultural
and archaeological attractions in a better way, the
respondents offered the following answers: through
mass media promotion/advertising/online marketing
(16.5), manifestations (9.9), innovative interpreta-
tion models/guided tours (8.2), investment in in-
frastructure, founding a new cultural institution, and
educating citizens (2.7), presentation through story-
telling and themed products/routes (5.5), interactive
interpretation centres (2.7), cooperation/inclusion
of the local community (8.2), destination branding
(2.7), etc.
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Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
Table 8 swot Matrix on the Sustainable Development Potential of Cultural Heritage in the Municipality of Vrsar:
Local Community Perspective
Strengths Weakness
• Favourable geographical position
• Proximity to emitive markets
• Favourable micro-climate
• Small, safe and quiet place
• Beautiful and preserved nature and environment
• Clean sea and nice beaches
• Best auto camps
• Proximity of the lime channel (protected natural area) and islands
• Preserved and rich cultural heritage (old city centre, churches, mosaics,
sculpture garden, traditional gastronomy, archaeological sites, etc.)
• Active tourism (bikes, trail and trekking, climbing, kayaking, diving)
• Proximity of Marina Vrsar, one of the best nautical ports in croatia
• Sun and sea tourism model
• Insufficient involvement of the local
community in tourism planning and
realisation of projects
• Insufficient valorisation of cultural heritage
• Cultural heritage is not recognised as a
motive for choosing Vrsar as a tourism
destination
• Lack of an institution for cultural and natural
heritage management
• Insufficient sport facilities
• Insufficient entertainment facilities
Opportunities Threats
• Connecting/networking the existing attractions into new routes and
cultural itineraries
• Adequate presentation and interpretation of the rich cultural heritage
• Adequate presentation and interpretation of the rich cultural heritage
• Investment in the key cultural and natural resources (the old city core,
Kontija, infrastructure), new festivals and manifestations
• Gastronomy
• Some specific cultural resources such as the mosaics
• Monterico, the Montraker quarry
• Džamonja’s park and museum
• Churches
• New museums and interpretation centres, creative workshops, open-air
theatre (Montraker),
• Diving at archaeological sites
• Competition of neighbouring tourism
destinations with similar tourism concept
based on sun and sea
• Decreased interest from tourists for the sea
and sun tourism development model
• Climate changes
Regarding their usual visiting of cultural manifes-
tations in Vrsar, 50 of participants answered nega-
tively, while another 50 said they visit the following
manifestations: the fishermen fest (15.9), theOld Fair
(stari samanj) (12.6), Casanovafest (12.6), concerts
(12.1), the guitar festival (4.9), the sculpture school
(3.3), etc.
When asked if they have suggestions for improv-
ing the cultural tourism offer in Vrsar, the respondents
mentioned the following: providing better informa-
tion and promotion, reducing fishermen fests and cre-
ating events related to the most specific elements of
the local identity, open-air museums, investing in the
most important cultural resources (the old city core),
improving signalisation and interpretation, as well as
the quality of the cultural tourism offer, creating new
cultural itineraries, educating tourist guides about lo-
cal attractions, networkingwith similar European des-
tinations, involving the local community in heritage
valorisation and interpretation, applying for the eu
projects and funds, etc.
Regarding their awareness about past cultural tour-
ism projects in Vrsar, most of our respondents an-
swered negatively, while only 20.9 of them men-
tioned some recent projects related to the new cycling
routes, workshops and manifestations. As positive ef-
fects of such projects, theymentioned investments and
better valorisation of cultural resources, a better im-
age of Vrsar as a cultural tourism destination, raising
awareness of local citizens about their heritage, the
18 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
preservation of monuments and old traditions, ex-
tended tourist season, new segments of tourists, etc.
Concerning their awareness about the Archaeo-
CulTour project, only 22.5 of respondents answered
positively, whilemost of themwere uninformed.What
they expect from the project is better networking and
coordination of key stakeholders, better media cover-
age, more satisfied tourists, better quality of cultural
tourism offer, the preservation of cultural, natural and
archaeological heritage, better presentation and inno-
vative interpretation, extended tourist season, etc.
When asked if they had further suggestions, there
were only 17 (9.3) positive answers, mostly related
to innovations in the cultural tourism offer (new and
more inclusive manifestations; new cultural infras-
tructure, suggestions related to the local infrastruc-
ture, signalisation and the role of the municipality in
the project, giving a chance to young people and ex-
perts, etc).
Discussion
The research has shown that the local population in
Vrsar is partially satisfied with the development of
tourism in the municipality. The respondents have
recognised the importance of tourism for the devel-
opment of the local economy and increasing the living
standards of the majority of the population. The re-
search has shown that younger respondents are more
sceptical regarding the positive impact of tourism on
environmental protection and the impact of tourism
on preservation of customs and cultural heritage. The
respondents with a higher level of education valuated
tourism as an important economic and social phe-
nomenon more frequently than those with a lower
level of education. In addition, tourism is considered
as more important for respondents who have a larger
impact of tourism on their household income. Al-
though most of the local population is professionally
engaged in tourism, they are not satisfiedwith the level
of inclusion of residents in tourism planning and in
heritage management.
According to local population attitudes, tourists
still perceive Vrsar as the sun-and-sea destination for
relaxing active holidays, complemented with enjoy-
ing the local food and recreation (swimming, cycling,
walking) in beautiful nature. Although aware of the
unique characteristics of the local natural and cultural
heritage, as well as the good geographical position and
proximity to emissive markets as the most valuable at-
tractiveness factors, the respondents emphasized the
neglect of the infrastructure, lack of quality cultural
manifestations (which also explains the fact that only
half of respondents visit the manifestations organised
mostly during the summer season) and the need for
better presented and interpreted cultural attractions
as the main problems in the planning of sustainable
cultural tourism. The research has shown that local
residents are well informed about themain cultural re-
sources and the possibilities of their sustainable valori-
sation through innovative interpretationmodels, such
as cultural routes, living history, workshops which
would include the local community, and interpreta-
tion centres. However, only a fifth of them were famil-
iar with past cultural tourism projects implemented
in the community, which indicates the need for better
visibility andmore active participation of the commu-
nity in existing and future projects.
The results of the community survey are in line
with the results of interviews and focus groups with
experts organised in the first phase of the research. The
authors expect the results of the tourist survey in the
next stage would confirm some of the most impor-
tant issues related to heritage management and sus-
tainable cultural tourism development, as well as the
need of capacity building and awareness raising about
the local cultural heritage in the process of knowledge
(co)creation.
Conclusion
The conducted research confirmed themain hypothe-
ses: (1) the local population supports tourism devel-
opment in the Municipality of Vrsar; (2) the local
population recognises potentials of cultural tourism
development as a sustainable alternative to the cur-
rent model of mass tourism; (3) the local population is
not well informed about the archaeological heritage in
the Municipality as a potential for sustainable cultural
tourism development.
Although themajority of the local residents (56 of
the sample) are directly employed in tourism, which
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 19
Kristina Afri Rakitovac et al. Community Participation in Sustainable Valorisation . . .
would imply they mostly support tourism develop-
ment, it is obvious that the community is saturated
with the still prevailing model of mass sun-and-sea
summer tourism, and that they are looking for a more
sustainable model which would involve the locals in
the tourism development and heritage management
processes. The local residents are also very interested
in presenting their local culture, traditions and her-
itage to their visitors, and they are actively engaged
in proposing certain innovative models of sustain-
able preservation, valorisation and interpretation of
the most recognizable cultural resources, such as her-
itage interpretation training.
Unlike the most recognisable cultural resources
in the Municipality of Vrsar, the local community is
still not aware of and adequately informed about the
value of the local archaeological heritage and its poten-
tial for tourism valorisation, which indicates the need
for innovative campaigns of awareness raising and ca-
pacity building. On the other hand, when asked, they
suggested organising educative interactive workshops
for the local community, networking and connecting
heritage sites through cultural routes and educational
paths, and interpretation centres for visitors. They also
emphasized the lack of culturalmanifestations and en-
tertainment facilities, both for the locals and their vis-
itors, as well as the need for investments in the cultural
infrastructure.
The conducted research indicated that the local
stakeholders are very interested in the sustainable de-
velopment of cultural tourism as a sustainable alter-
native to the current model of mass tourism, and that
they want to be involved in the tourism planning pro-
cess, better informed and included in the participa-
tory heritage management models. They agree that
the main sustainability issues in the Municipality of
Vrsar: high seasonality, mass tourism and infrastruc-
ture problems, could be resolved through sustainable
valorisation of local cultural and natural resources by
creating innovative tourism experiences, and they are
interested in participating in this co-creating process.
The authors are aware of some limitations of the
chosenmethodology, which could not include ormea-
sure all dimensions of sustainability of cultural and
tourism development. The comparative perspective
would also be useful. Therefore, the authors expect
that the results of the third and last phase of the re-
search – the tourist survey, would allow a better insight
into destination dynamics and more concrete propos-
als for innovations in the cultural tourism offer, and
an adequate presentation and interpretation of the ne-
glected archaeological heritage.
SinceVrsar represents themodel of a typical coastal
tourist destination in the Mediterranean, character-
ised by mass tourism and a remarkable seasonality, as
well as huge potential for sustainable cultural tourism
development through community involvement, the
authors believe the final results and recommenda-
tions will be useful and applicable in the broader
Euro-Mediterranean context. Research results con-
firm the need for capacity building and awareness
raising among the key stakeholders about the local cul-
tural heritage in the process of knowledge (co)creation
and distribution in documented dynamic destination
changes.
Acknowledgments
This work has been supported in part by the Croatian
Science Foundation under the project par-2017-02-1.
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22 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Original Scientific Article
Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist
Destination: Example of the Island of Pag
Aleksandra Krajnović
University of Zadar, Department
of Economics, Croatia
akrajnov@unizd.hr
Ivica Zdrilić
University of Zadar, Department
of Economics, Croatia
izdrilic@unizd.hr
Nikolina Miletić
University of Zadar, Department
of Economics, Croatia
nikolina.miletic94@gmail.com
The purpose of this paper is to explore the issue of sustainable development of
tourism in island destinations through the example of the island of Pag in Croa-
tia. This paper aimed to find out the extent of sustainable tourism development on
the island of Pag and to discover the factors influencing it. The primary research
sought to determine what are the opinions and views of key tourism stakeholders
about sustainable tourism on the island of Pag. The key research question in the pa-
per is: Which model of tourism development is optimal for the sustainable develop-
ment of the island of Pag as a tourist destination? The method of qualitative analysis
was used, as well as primary research that combined interviews with experts and
surveys. Furthermore, a comparative analysis of the research results has been per-
formed using interviews and survey results. The research took place during 2019 on
the island of Pag. Key stakeholders of tourism on the island of Pag were interviewed,
as well as an employee of the Tourist Board of the City of Pag. According to the em-
pirical research, it was found that sustainable tourism is developing poorly on the
island of Pag. Sustainable tourism development implies responsible management of
the area, with an emphasis on natural and cultural heritage, and aims to meet the
needs of tourists and needs of current and future local communities. Sustainability
and sustainable development of tourism, especially in the islands as extremely frag-
ile geographical, economic, and socio-cultural entities, are of particular importance.
In doing so, it is necessary to apply an integrated approach.
Keywords: sustainable tourism, mass tourism, sustainable tourist destination,
seasonability, sustainable tourism on islands, the island of Pag
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.23-37
Introduction
Sustainable tourism presents one of the major chal-
lengeswhen it comes to the social-economic and socio-
cultural development of each country and region fo-
cused on the development of tourism. However, this
term, so often mentioned in real life and presented
in strategic development plans, often remains at the
level of the formal principle, since its application en-
counters numerous difficulties. Sunara et al. (2013, p.
83) considered that ‘although sustainability is one of
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 23
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
the most common concepts in tourism, a problem oc-
curs when it is applied in real life.’ The same authors
state that the concept of sustainable development is
based on meeting the needs not only of the present
but also the future generation. ‘It is important for a
tourist destination to come up with a unique tourist
offer that will meet the needs of tourists, without pro-
ducing any negative impact on the environment, but
rather govern the protection and sustainability of all
tourism resources’ (Sunara et al., 2013, p. 84).
The main sustainability challenges occur precisely
at the local level, where different, often conflicting, in-
terests arise when it comes to a tourist destination.
Therefore, in this paper, the island of Pag in Croatia
was taken as a specific example of a rapidly developing
tourist destination on which to test the sustainability,
or, respectively. sustainable development of tourism.
The purpose of this paper is to explore the issue of
sustainability and sustainable development of tourism
in island destinations. The primary research sought
to determine what are the opinions and views of key
tourism stakeholders about tourism on the island of
Pag and about the level reached and key problems in
the development of island tourism on Pag. The re-
search questions posed in this paper are: What is sus-
tainable tourism, and what is its significance in the de-
velopment of tourism on islands? What are the goals
of sustainable tourism, and how are they related to
strategic planning in a tourist destination, based on
the principles of an integrated approach to manage-
ment?What are the geographical characteristics of the
island of Pag, and what are the specifics of the devel-
opment of tourism on the island? To what extent does
the island of Pag care about the sustainable develop-
ment of tourism? Which of the three key principles
of sustainability – economic, socio-cultural, and envi-
ronmental – do tourism stakeholders value the most
when it comes to sustainable tourism? How impor-
tant is it for the development of sustainable tourism to
unite the brand of the island as a recognizable tourist
destination?
The paper presents the results of the primary re-
search performed by the method of a combination of
expert interviews and surveys. Then, a comparative
analysis of the research results was performed using
interviews and survey results. The research was con-
ducted in 2019 on the island of Pag in Croatia. Key
stakeholders of tourism on the island of Pag were in-
terviewed, as well as an employee of the Tourist Board
of the City of Pag.
By researching the relevant literature, a research
gap can be noticed when it comes to the develop-
ment of tourism on the islands, especially when it
comes to theAdriatic islandswith their specifics.More
comprehensive research that holistically looks at the
issue of sustainable island tourism in the Adriatic
dates back to twenty or even thirty years ago (see,
for example, Mikačić, 1994; Vlahović, 2001). When
it comes to foreign literature, the theory offers in-
teresting case study analyses, such as Tioman Island,
Malaysia (Ng et al., 2017); Lakshadweep archipelago,
India (Kokkranikal et al., 2003); the Island of Do-
minica (Lambert, 2009); Cat Ba Island, Vietnam (Mai
& Smith, 2015) and others. An interesting study is pre-
sented in the book Island Tourism and Sustainable De-
velopment: Caribbean, Pacific, and Mediterranean Ex-
periences edited by Apostolopoulos and Gayle (2002),
that highlights the key problems of sustainable island
tourism based on the experiences of the Caribbean,
Pacific, andMediterranean islands. The same authors,
in the introductory part of the book, point out that,
‘as tourism is undoubtedly a vital component of the
Caribbean, Pacific, andMediterranean insular regions,
our understanding of the ways it operates in the com-
plex context of development is quite limited’ (p. 12). A
well-known theorist Cohen (2017, p. 7) speaks about
a similar research gap, stating: ‘Island studies and
tourism studies have overlapping interests, but there
was little interaction between them. [. . .] It is suggested
that greater attention to this issue might be a facili-
tating factor in the convergence of island studies and
tourism studies.’ This paper was also written as a con-
tribution to the research of these related phenomena
– island studies and understanding the sustainability
of island tourism.
Sustainable Development of Island Tourism:
Literature Review
Čavlek & Vukonić (2001) state that sustainable tour-
ism is the ability of a tourist destination to remain bal-
24 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
anced with the environment, i.e. the ability to remain
competitive in the market despite the emergence of
new and less-visited destinations and to attract both
returning and first-time visitors, thus achieving envi-
able economic results while protecting and enhanc-
ing natural resources. Back in 1969, Becker noted that
small islands exert a powerful attraction on tourists;
their characteristic ‘gestalt of remoteness, difference,
distance, distinct culture and heritage, wilderness en-
vironment, and small size [constitutes] an attraction’
(Brown&Cave, 2010, in Cohen, 2017, p. 8). On the ne-
cessity of a holistic approach to researching the prob-
lems of island tourism development, Lim and Cooper
(2008, p. 89) state that it is important to answer the
question: ‘How a complex and dynamic tourism sys-
tem can be developed that takes a destination towards
an optimal sustainable state to satisfy both visitors and
the local community.’
One of the key research questions in this paper was
whether tourism stakeholders believe that sustainable
tourism should develop more on an economic, socio-
cultural, or environmental basis. A similar approach
is taken by the editors of the book Island Tourism:
Towards a Sustainable Perspective, Carlsen and But-
ler (2011), who structured the book according to these
three principles. They point to the growing interest in
research on sustainable island tourism development
and state that the probable reason for this is ‘the fact
that islands form perfect “living laboratories” that en-
able researchers to isolate the causal and immediate
effects of tourism development on the community,
environment and economy of islands, and to study
them at a level of detail that is not possible in other
tourism destinations’ (Carslen & Butler, 2011, p. xii).
Among earlier authors, we should point out the the-
sis of the Mikačić, who in her 1994 work emphasizes
the essence of the issue of sustainable tourism on the
Croatian islands, stating: ‘Tourist facilities on the is-
lands account for one-fourth of the overall Adriatic
tourist offer. [. . .] Although its development has gen-
erally followed the coastal one, it took a more modest
form so that the islands escaped many negative effects
of mass tourism. In order to retain the existing advan-
tages, the islands’ development has to be harmonized
with the environment while qualitative factors have
to be given priority’ (Mikačić, 1994, p. 517). Vlahović
(2001, p. 229) states: ‘On the islands, it is necessary to
have long-term development programs, which auto-
matically include the elaboration from spatial plans to
the elaboration of implementing spatial plans in in-
dividual narrower tourist locations and zones.’ Advo-
cating for an integrated approach to management, or,
as the author himself defines: ‘measures and actions
for holistic and more harmonious development (“in-
tegrated development”),’ he defines island resources
as a ‘wealth of nature and culture’ and concludes: ‘In
fact, it is the most valuable spatial reserve for the de-
velopment of the highest quality types and forms of
tourism, of course, provided that natural and environ-
mental values are permanently preserved.’
When it comes to tourism on the island of Pag,
the research in this paper can be linked to earlier re-
search presented in the paper by Bašić et al. (2015).
In this paper, the authors, among other things, exam-
ined the opinions and attitudes of key stakeholders
in the tourism of Pag, related to the branding of Pag
as a spatial entity. Respondents answered that ‘the is-
land of Pag should be presented on the tourist mar-
ket according to a unique umbrella brand’ and further
stated: ‘It is necessary to jointly advertise the island as
a whole and not as before where each tourist commu-
nity “works for itself ”.’ They also believe that branding
the island of Pag would achieve better, higher quality
and sustainable tourism of the entire island destina-
tion. From the conducted research, the authors stated
that very little workwas done on branding the island of
Pag as a spatial unit back then (2015), since, as the au-
thors state, ‘there is no single master plan for tourism
development on the island of Pag and its dmo (Des-
tination Management Organization) that would put it
into practice’ (Bašić et al. 2015, p. 102).
Among the more recent literature, the research of
Krstinić Nižić and Fugošić can be highlighted, which
presented amodel of sustainable development of an is-
land destination on the example of Krk. They state that
‘it is possible to incorporate development strategies of
lower levels into a level covering a wider area, thus en-
couraging the development of all parts of the island of
Krk, not just the developed ones. This should serve as
an example to other units of local self-government in
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 25
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
the Republic of Croatia, as well as in theworld, to show
that it is possible to act in harmony and line with the
same objective by improving the quality of living for
the present generation, but also for the generations to
follow’ (Krstinić Nižić & Fugotić, 2019, p. 105).
Sustainable Tourism vs. Mass Tourism:
A Holistic Approach
Bramwell and Lane (1993) noted that tourism has
been increasingly turning towards sustainable devel-
opment. They conclude that it offers some solutions,
that is, it reduces misunderstandings and problems
among stakeholders such as tourists, the local commu-
nity, and the entire tourism sector. Krstinić Nižić and
Drpić (2013, p. 160) emphasize ‘the need to highlight
the systematic implementation of measures and activ-
ities in the tourism industry of the Republic of Croatia,
in ensuring sustainable development of a destination
and in strengthening environmental awareness of all
stakeholders.’ Krajinović (2015) makes a similar state-
ment, saying that sustainability is a very demanding
and complex term included in numerous strategies,
so every tourist destination should be engaged in its
implementation as much as possible and concludes:
‘The key factor in the sustainable development of a
destination is the cooperation precisely and has a sig-
nificant impact on the process performance success’
(Krajinović, 2015, p. 69). As stated by Vukonić (2010,
p. 37): ‘Tourist destinations are most often guided by
examples found in the professional literature, however,
these examplesmost often come fromunderdeveloped
areas that are sparsely populated, hence making sus-
tainability management simpler. For this reason, it is
impossible to accept such examples as an explanation
of sustainable tourism, and especially not as a modal-
ity to introduce andmanage sustainable development.’
In this way, he builds on similar earlier theses of Jafari
(1989) who asserted, ‘Some authors have stated that
the tourism biggest problem is its massive participa-
tion. However, when it comes to sustainable tourism,
the problem is not in its extent but in the effectiveness
of tourism management of a destination with an em-
phasis on its specificities.’ Jadrešić (1999) emphasized
even earlier the problemofmass tourism,which, in his
opinion, is still dominant, stating: ‘Although nowa-
Table 1 Difference between Mass and Sustainable Tourism
Mass tourism Sustainable tuorism
Unconstrained development Controlled development
Quantity Quality
Prominent seasonality Development of tourist
preseason and postseason
Reduced amount of
experience
Resources preservation –
higher level of
consciousness
Mass marketing
communication
Consumer direct
communication
Mass markets Specialized markets
Fast development Slow development
Large groups of people Individuals and families
Old tourist habits New tourist habits
Existent destinations Emerging destinations
Planned itinerary (travel
program)
Spontaneous itinerary
Short-term tourism form Long-term tourism form
Notes Adapted from Popesku (2011) and Butler (1999).
days tourists are starting to avoid mass tourism by
looking for preserved and untouched places for their
holidays, mass tourism is still not declining’ (Jadrešić,
1999, p. 63). Although he wrote about this problem
two decades ago, the problem of mass tourism is still
ubiquitous.With increasingmassive participation, the
destination begins to lose quality and attractiveness
and then competitiveness, so tourists are in pursuit
of new destinations. Therefore, tourist destinations
mustmake an effort to develop sustainable tourism for
many reasons. The tendency to achieve environmen-
tal and social balance is essential for the preservation
of the destination for the benefit of the local popula-
tion and future generations. The change frommass to
sustainable tourism is a long-term process of contin-
uous improvement, and the differences between the
two forms of tourism are shown in Table 1 (Popesku,
2011; Butler, 1999).
Principles and Goals of Sustainable Tourism
For sustainable tourism development, it is necessary
to have a quality strategy development by applying
26 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
three important principles of tourism sustainability:
environmental, economic and socio-cultural princi-
ples (Klarin, 2017):
1. Environmental sustainability: effective use of nat-
ural resources of a destination which are crucial
for the development of tourism. It is a question of
maintaining and protecting biodiversity and nat-
ural wealth.
2. Socio-cultural sustainability: above all, it concerns
building and preserving relationships of the local
community, tradition, and cultural heritage. In-
tercultural respect and providing satisfaction to
tourists is essential. Training and education pro-
grams to improve and manage heritage and nat-
ural resources are advised.
3. Economic viability: it is reflected in maintaining
the economy of a tourist destination, that is, en-
abling sustainable business activities, increasing
employment, and thus revenues for the purpose
of achieving economic welfare.
Breslauer et al. (2015, p. 99) state: ‘Local population
and community, tourists, providers of products and
services in the destination are some of the most im-
portant factors for sustainable development. Hence, it
is very important to emphasize the importance of sus-
tainable development and to encourage them to act
under its objectives. Only those tourist destinations
that know how to manage their tourist area and make
optimal use of its resources will be able to survive in
the future.’
Although the goals of sustainable tourism devel-
opment were looking at the broader perspective in the
past, today they are more oriented towards the local
community. They are focused on increasing tourist
satisfaction and social-economic benefits, preserving
natural and cultural heritage, and reducing the un-
pleasant impacts of tourismon the local community in
general. The publication of the umbrella tourismorga-
nization World Tourism Organization (2005) entitled
Making Tourism More Sustainable: A Guide for Pol-
icy Makers lists and describes 12 sustainable tourism
goals:
1. Economic viability: maintaining the competitive-
ness of tourist destinations and business entities
in order to achieve long-term economic advance-
ment of the local community, and thus the satis-
faction of the visitors;
2. Enhancing local prosperity: encouraging local en-
trepreneurship and increasing the positive social-
economic effects on the life of the local commu-
nity;
3. Improving quality of employment: ensuring and
improving the conditions of employment in tour-
ism, leading to an improvement in the quality of
service rendered to tourists;
4. Achieving social equity: the need to ensure so-
cial equity, that is, a fair distribution of the eco-
nomic and social benefits and opportunities aris-
ing from tourism throughout the destination;
5. Tourist fulfilment: ensure a satisfactory experi-
ence for tourists by providing security and no
discrimination of any kind whatsoever;
6. Increasing the quality of local governance: more
intense involvement of the local community in
decision-making, planning, implementation and
control of sustainable tourism goals;
7. Community well-being: improving and maintain-
ing the quality of life of local communities, avoid-
ing any form of social discrimination;
8. Cultural wealth: preservation and protection of
cultural wealth and tradition of the destination;
9. Ensuring physical integrity: preserving and im-
proving the quality of rural and urban space, tak-
ing care of protected areas, conducting education
on the importance of environmental protection;
10. Conservation of biodiversity: protection of pre-
served natural areas, biodiversity, and habitat,
flora and fauna while reducing the negative im-
pact of tourism on nature;
11. Efficient use of resources: reducing the use of
scarce and non-renewable resources in tourism
activities, and increasing the use of recyclingma-
terials and renewable energy;
12. Ensuring environmental purity: minimizing air,
water and land pollution, and more frequent use
of eco-friendly transportation and recycling.
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 27
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
From the foregoing, it can be concluded that all the
sustainable development goals are interconnected and
equally important for the implementation of a sustain-
able tourism development policy. They cover environ-
mental, economic, and social factors, meaning that to-
gether they form a strategy important for the further
progress of the destination. The islands have to be per-
ceived and strategically defined as a unique geograph-
ical, strategic, and marketing unity in tourism. The
sustainable development of tourism on the islands is
the only opportunity for their revival because should
tourism be unsustainable, it could destroy the natu-
ral and cultural heritage. Such a move would result in
tourists being uninterested in arriving and spending
holidays on the islands and thus damaging the quality
of life in the area.
Sustainable Development of Island Tourism in Croatia
‘The Croatian islands have great potential, not only for
the development of the area but also for the overall de-
velopment of the Republic of Croatia’ (Vlada Repub-
like Hrvatske, 2018, p. 3). The Republic of Croatia has
outlined in several strategic documents the principle
of sustainability as one of the basic principles of de-
velopment. However, the specific campaign ‘The Ini-
tiative of Islands’ is especially described in sequence.
‘The Initiative of Islands’ is a campaign launched in
2015, bringing together various companies, organiza-
tions and associations from theCroatian islandswhich
want to promote sustainable development and raise
the quality of life on the islands. Representatives of the
islands of Hvar, Šolta, Vis, Brač, Korčula, Olib, Las-
tovo, Mljet, Cres, Prvić, Lošinj, Krk and Silba are cur-
rently participating in this campaign.’ The goal of the
‘The Initiative of Islands’ is to primarily educate its
members on the importance of sustainable tourism
development, which is being sought through employ-
ment, reinvestment, linking tourismwith organic food
production, etc. One way is to create a virtual plat-
form that would provide the islanders with all the nec-
essary information in one place. It is a very interest-
ing and successful action, as evidenced by the fact that
the launching of similar campaigns in other countries
such as Greece and Spain is considered (Održivi tur-
izam u Hrvatskoj, n.d.).
The islands have numerous opportunities for the
development of sustainable tourism, but in the rest
of Croatia and on the islands, tourism shows notice-
able features of seasonality. Additional problems are
the emergence of depopulation, the abandonment of
traditional activities, and the reduced quality of life in
the area. ‘It is for this reason precisely that tourism is
an activity that needs to be developed there in order
to revitalize the islands and tourism and stimulate the
development or renewal of other economic activities’
(Zupanc et al., 2000, p. 134).
Vidučić (2007) states that Croatian island tourism
needs to address certain issues such as:
1. How to protect the space so far preserved?
2. What are the advantages for the development of
a particular region?
3. What are the limitations of development?
4. What role does government and local adminis-
tration play in the development?
5. Should the development be construed on cul-
tural, historical and economic acknowledgement
or some new assumptions made?
6. How to create development that will not bring it-
self into collapse?
In the same way, the author states: ‘Each of the
Croatian islands is special and offers unique content,
so for this reason, it is necessary to determine a devel-
opment strategy individually, provided that the nat-
ural and cultural heritage is preserved. All this can
be achieved slowly and with small investments, since
large investments, especially in infrastructure, could
adversely affect the life and environment of the island.
The cooperation of the local community, unique is-
land tourism supply and specific island entrepreneur-
ship supported by state incentives are what the sus-
tainable development of the Croatian islands should
be about. The task of the island’s tourist destination is
to maintain its authenticity, culture and tradition and
build its reputation upon, whereat sustainable devel-
opment should endorse such a way of life’ (Vidučić,
2007, p. 43). There are numerous benefits to sustain-
able tourism in the islands, and some of them are listed
in Table 2 according to the principles of sustainable
tourism.
28 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
Table 2 Benefits of Sustainable Tourism Development of the Island According to Its Principles
Environmental sustainability Socio-cultural sustainability Economic viability
Ensures coastal environment integrity Helps reduce depopulation Enables traditional island products
additional value
Ensures sustainable use of natural
resources
Restores island old cultural customs
and activity
Improves demographic structure
Protects natural protected areas Advocates shareholders’ collaboration Raises island destination standard
Controls and reduces pollution Helps to resolve misunderstandings Ensures better traffic connection
Cares for indigenous architecture and
rural island scenery
Improves life quality on the islands Reduces energy, transport and
communication costs
Notes Adapted from United Nations Environment Program (unep) (2010) and Faričić and Magaš (2004).
Island Of Pag as a Sustainable Tourist Destination
General Characteristics of the Island of Pag
‘The island of Pag is located between theVelebit Chan-
nel andKvarnerić, and its surface is 284.56 square kilo-
metres, making it the largest island in northern Dal-
matia’ (Faričić, 2003, p. 47). ‘Pag is part of the northern
Dalmatian island group, andwith the longest coastline
it is the fifth largest island in the Republic of Croa-
tia. The Pag Bridge connects the island to the main-
land, whereas the ferry connection between Prizna-
Žigljen and the catamaran route operating between
Novalja and Rijeka are essential for traffic connectiv-
ity’ (Lončar, 2009, p. 6).
‘According to the administrative-territorial divi-
sion, the island of Pag is the only island divided into
two counties, and the main administrative, economic
and transport centre of the island is the Town of Pag.
The County of Zadar covers the central and south-
ern parts of the island, which consists of the Town of
Pag and theMunicipality of Povljana, while the north-
ern part of the island belongs to the County of Lika
and Senj, i.e. the town of Novalja, with the settlements
of Metajna, Zubovići, Kustići, Vidalići, Caska, Gajac,
Stara Novalja and Potočnica’ (Magaš, 2000, p. 35).
The special features of the island of Pag are numer-
ous sources of drinking water streaming below the sea
level from Velebit mountain, and the proximity of the
mountain determines the climatic conditions on the
island. Namely, although theMediterranean climate is
predominant on the island, the eastern part of the is-
land is completely bare due to strong wind (Lončar,
2009).
Tourism Specificities of the Island of Pag
‘The tourist advantage of the island of Pag and the un-
derlying fundament on what [sic] Pag builds its brand
is precisely the diverse cultural and natural heritage
and numerous cultural and historical monuments.
Among the most important features that Pag can be
commended with appertain: the world famous Pag
cheese, lace and costume, Benedictine monastery, the
baškotin,1 PagCultural Summer, the SummerCarnival
and Pag Folk Drama. The island thus offers its visitors
numerous facilities for rest and enjoyment’ (Grad Pag
& Institut za turizam, 2015, p. 63). According to the
list of categorized tourist facilities from 2019 and is-
land of Pag data, there are 12 hotels with a total of 1053
beds, 1 apartment hotel with 32 beds and 4 campsites
with a total of 10,251 accommodation units on the is-
land of Pag (Ministarstvo turizma i sporta Republike
Hrvatske, n.d.).
The tourist boards of the Townof Pag and theTown
of Novalja are one of the main promoters of the is-
land, attracting potential tourists by organizing inter-
esting events. According to the author of this paper,
one of the most useful websites for visitors to the is-
land is Visit Pag Island, which in one place offers all
the services on the island that might interest tourists.
For example, it offers general information about the is-
land (economy, history and culture), possible accom-
modation, itineraries, activities and tours, interesting
events, excursions, and gastronomy of the island of
1 Type of sweet toast produced in the Benedictine monastery
where it can only be purchased (see https://pag.hr).
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 29
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
Table 3 Ranking of Novalja in the ‘Top 10’ Researches of
the Croatian National Tourist Board for July 2019
‘Top 10’ research Ranking
‘Top 10’ destination in Croatia by total tourist
turnover in July 2019
7th place
‘Top 10’ destination in Croatia by tourist camp-
ing turnover in July 2019
7th place
‘Top 10’ destination in Croatia by family ac-
commodation in July 2019
4th place
‘Top 10’ destination in Croatia by non-
commercial accommodation in July 2019
4th place
‘Top 10’ destination in Croatia by turnover of
domestic tourists in July 2019
4th place
‘Top 10’ destination in Croatia by turnover of
foreign tourists in July 2019
6th place
Notes Adapted from Hrvatska turistička zajednica (2019).
Pag. On Pag, there is a part of the island dedicated to
those seeking peace and quiet for their vacation, but
the island also offers numerous services for those ea-
ger for good fun. The world-renowned Zrće (Novalja)
‘party destination’ has been known for many years for
attracting an increasing number of tourists, which is
why it is a leader in occupancy of accommodations
over the rest of the island. This is confirmed by the
fact that according to the Croatian Tourist Board is-
sue on statistical indicators of tourist turnover for the
month of July (2019), Novalja is in almost every ‘Top
10’ research2 in the results by destination (Table 3).
‘The strategic goal of tourism development on the
island of Pag is to create a unique tourism product
based on rich culture and historical heritage in order
to diverge from other destinations. This is the origin
of a vision of Pag as a sustainable destination that,
according to the needs and expectations of highly seg-
mented buyers of tourism products, such as sun and
sea, sports and recreation, gastronomy, cultural, nau-
tical and health tourism, provides a healthy and dy-
namic holiday. In addition, the quality of life of the lo-
2 According to the information on the course of the season,
which shows the indicators of tourist turnover achieved at
monthly intervals, the Ministry of Tourism compiled a list
of the ‘Top 10’ destinations according to different criteria.
Table 4 Principles of Sustainable Tourism on the Island
of Pag
Principle Item
Spatial-environmental Viability
Use of responsible practice
Social sustainability Partnership
Preserving the spirit of the place
Economic viability Innovation and quality
Coordination
Notes Adapted fromGrad Pag & Institut za turizam (2015).
cal population, tradition and environmental concerns
must not be forgotten. The island also has numerous
opportunities to develop selective forms of tourism
such as hunting and fishing, health, rural tourism and
protected cultural heritage tourism’ (Grad Pag & In-
stitut za turizam, 2015, p. 24).
Principles of Sustainable Tourism Development
on the Island of Pag
‘The tourismof the island of Pag is based on raising the
quality and standard of living of the local population
by promoting activities based on tradition and sustain-
able use of natural resources [. . .] The development of
sustainable tourism on the island emphasizes environ-
mental protection, culture of quality, the uniqueness of
the destination, growth of entrepreneurship and stake-
holder partnership’ (Grad Pag & Institut za turizam,
2015, p. 53). The strategic plan for tourism develop-
ment of the town of Pag from 2016 to 2020 (Grad Pag
& Institut za turizam, 2015), defines the principles of
sustainable tourism on the island of Pag, which are de-
scribed below.
The environmental principle of sustainable devel-
opment of the island defines the optimal way of using
and managing the space, both natural and cultural
heritage. It also involves caring for the preservation of
development potential, the implementation of ‘green’
business practices, and encourages residents and vis-
itors to reduce adverse environmental impacts. Ac-
cording to the document of the Utility Company Pag3
Strategy of Development of the Utility Company Pag
3 Established in 1995, and performs activities such as collec-
30 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
llc from 2016 to 2020 (Komunalno društvo Pag, 2015),
the main objective of environmentally sustainable de-
velopment is the permanent preservation of original-
ity and biodiversity, the conservation of aquatic and
wetland habitats, and the avoidance and reduction of
waste generation.
The social and cultural principle of the island aims
to preserve the unique features of the local commu-
nity such as the traditional costume of the Town of
Pag, Pag lace protected by unesco, and various cul-
tural manifestations such as the Pag Cultural Summer.
The quintessence is the creation of a tourist offer in
compliance with the ‘spirit’ of the destination and the
life of the local community. At the core of the socio-
cultural principle is the principle of partnership, aimed
at stakeholders’ cooperation for the purpose of devel-
oping island tourism (Grad Pag & Institut za turizam,
2015). Precisely this cooperation between stakehold-
ers plays a very important role on the island since
Pag is divided into two counties and is the only island
where two different regional governments operate. In
the above-mentioned paper, Bašić et al. (2015) propose
the creation of a single destinationmanagement orga-
nization, that is, theDestinationManagementOrgani-
zation (dmo), whose taskwould be tomanage tourism
throughout the island. Such an approach would very
likely solve the problemof uneven development on the
island.
‘The goal of the economic principle is to increase
the number of investment projects and the positive ef-
fects of economic activity on the environment. The in-
novation and quality of all business entities are key el-
ements of competitive advantage. It is very important
to align public and private projects with the goal, vi-
sion, and mission of the island tourism development
and the focus is on several smaller sustainable invest-
ments’ (Grad Pag & Institut za turizam, 2015, p. 54).
According to the ‘Town of Pag Activity Plan,’ which
is described in the strategic plan for tourism devel-
opment of the town of Pag, some of the investments
are the improvement of the system of tourist infor-
mation centres, beach cleaning, development and im-
tion, treatment, distribution of water, etc. (see https://kd-
pag.hr/).
provement of the hotel offer, development of health
and tourist facilities, elaboration of detailed plans for
the most important tourist zones on the island and
others (Grad Pag & Institut za turizam, 2015).
Empirical Research
Research Objective and Methodological Framework
This part of the paper describes the results of primary
research that offer a holistic view on the issue of island
sustainability and island tourismon the example of the
island of Pag. Of particular interest is the question of
whether respondents believe that the sustainability of
the island develops under all three criteria/aspects of
sustainable development – economic, socio-cultural,
and environmental – and what importance they at-
tach to each of these aspects. Cohen (2017, p. 26) states:
‘Tourism researchers have related to the role of the is-
lands’ inhabitants in tourism development, but paid
scarce attention to the wider effects of tourism pen-
etration upon island societies. [. . .] Most tourism re-
searchers show little concern for the effects of tourism
on local socio-cultural change.’ In this sense, an inter-
view/survey questionnaire is structured, which con-
sists of the same questions in order to be able to per-
form a comparative analysis. They are structured in
such a way that the results of the research can be used
to determine the basic limiting factors of sustainable
tourism development on the island of Pag, and to as-
sess their importance, according to the respondents.
Furthermore, respondents were asked about the selec-
tion of the selective form of tourism that would most
contribute to the development of off-season tourism
in the function of sustainable development. The par-
ticipants were asked to assess the extent of sustainable
tourism development on the island of Pag, as well as to
choose the principle according to which they believe
that tourism on the island should be developed to the
greatest extent. The questionnaire/interview consisted
of 4 complex questions. The research has been carried
out in a broader sense as part of an internal univer-
sity project on the development of sustainable tourism
at the Department of Economics, University of Zadar,
Croatia, and in a narrower sense as part of the research
for the master’s thesis Island of Pag as a Sustainable
Tourist Destination (Miletić, 2019). The primary re-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 31
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
search has been conducted by a method of combin-
ing expert interviews and surveys. Then, a compara-
tive analysis of the research results has been performed
using interviews and survey results. The research was
conducted in August 2019 on the island of Pag. Key
stakeholders in tourism on the island of Pag were ex-
amined, employed in the following institutions and or-
ganizations: information centres, hotels, tourist agen-
cies and camps. An expert from the Tourist Board of
the City of Pag was interviewed. A total of 21 respon-
dents participated in the survey. The results of inter-
viewing experts from the Tourist Board of the City of
Pag are specifically separated and compared because it
was assumed, since the Tourist Board is the umbrella
organization for tourism development, its opinion ag-
gregates the opinions of many other stakeholders –
members of the Tourist Board. Since the aim of the
research was to look holistically at the issue of sustain-
ability on the Island, the opinion of the representatives
of the tourist community is of special importance for
the goal of the research. Therefore, according to the
authors, it should be singled out. The smaller number
of respondents – tourism experts on the island in the
survey can be partially justified by the fact that the is-
land of Pag does not have a large number of commer-
cial accommodation facilities, which makes the issue
of sustainable tourism even more challenging.
Research Results
This section of the paper displays results of the sur-
vey and especially analyses the feedback of respon-
dents from the Town of Pag Tourist Board. The first
part of the analysis explores the greatest problems fac-
ing islands that hinder the development of sustain-
able tourism. There were five problems offered: mass
tourism, lack of investment projects, uncontrolled
apartmentisation, loss of quality labour in tourism
anduneven tourist development of the island. Respon-
dents rated 1 to 5 on the importance of each problem,
noting that rating 1 meant that the problem was in-
significant on the island, and rating 5 indicating that
the problem was of the highest importance.
The first problemmentioned was mass tourism on
the island of Pag, and the results of the assessment of
importance by the respondents are shown in Figure 1.
Greatest importance 
Great importance 
Medium importance 
Small importance 
Unimportant 
Figure 1 Assessment of Mass Tourism Importance
on the Island of Pag
Greatest importance 
Great importance 
Medium importance 
Small importance 
Unimportant 
Figure 2 The Assessment of the Lack of Investment
Projects Problem Importance on the Island of
Pag
According to the results obtained, it can be con-
cluded that mass tourism does not pose a great threat
to the island of Pag. None of the respondents rated
the massive scale with 5, i.e. did not consider it to be
a problem of the utmost importance. A respondent
from the Town of Pag Tourist Board evaluated the
mass tourism on the island with rating 4, whichmeans
that such respondents considered this problem to be
of great importance. However, the majority of respon-
dents (55), who anonymously completed the survey,
consider that mass tourism as an island problem is of
little importance, i.e. their answers indicate they be-
lieve that there are bigger problems on the island than
mass tourism.
Figure 2 shows the information on the problem
of lack of investment projects on the island of Pag.
Opinions of anonymous respondents were divided,
as 43 rated this issue with 3 or of medium impor-
tance in scale, and 29 said the problem was almost
insignificant where the island of Pag is concerned. Of
the 21 respondents, 14 said that the lack of investment
projects is of the greatest importance on the island. A
respondent from the Town of Pag Tourist Board con-
siders this to be ofmedium importance, which implies
the need to solve it.
When it comes to the problem of uncontrolled
apartmentisation, the respondents generally agree that
this is one of the issues that need to be addressedmore.
32 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
Greatest importance 
Great importance 
Medium importance 
Small importance 
Unimportant 
Figure 3 Assessment of Uncontrolled Apartmentisation
Problem on the Island of Pag
Greatest importance 
Great importance 
Medium importance 
Small importance 
Unimportant 
Figure 4 Assessment of the Loss of Quality Labour
Problem in Tourism on the Island of Pag
38 say it is a problem of medium importance, while
29 say that its importance is the greatest. Only 5
of the respondents rated the problem of uncontrolled
apartmentisation with 1, meaning that such an issue
does not pose a major threat to the island of Pag. It is
very important to point out the answer of the respon-
dent from the Town of Pag Tourist Board, who rated
this problem with 5, that is, assigned the highest im-
portance to the uncontrolled apartmentisation among
all mentioned problems in the survey.
According to the results of an empirical study on
the loss of quality labour in tourism as a problem of
the island of Pag, 48 of respondents described it as a
problem of great importance, while 33 considered it
to be of medium importance. 5 of those interviewed
anonymously think that the problem is unimportant
on the island, while 5 of the 21 respondents think the
opposite, that is, the loss of good labour in tourism is
a great problem on the island of Pag. The rest of the
respondents, 9 of them, rated the problem of loss
of quality labour in tourism as of small importance.
The opinion of the respondent from the Town of Pag
Tourist Board is in accordance with the opinion of 33
of anonymous respondents, namely they consider it to
be a problem of medium importance on the island of
Pag. Recently, quality labour is leaving not only from
the tourism industry but from all economic areas.
The last problem in the questionnaire, rated by the
Greatest importance 
Great importance 
Medium importance 
Small importance 
Unimportant 
Figure 5 Assessment of the Uneven Tourist Development
Problem on the Island of Pag
respondents with a score from 1 to 5, was the problem
of uneven tourist development of the island of Pag, and
the results are presented in Figure 5.
When asked about the problem of uneven tourist
development on the island of Pag, 21 respondents pro-
vided an answer, 20 of them anonymously, 1 respon-
dent did not respond, and one respondent from the
Town of Pag Tourist Board answered. Figure 5 shows
that 40 of respondents think that this is an issue that
needs to be addressed as soon as possible, that is, they
described it as a problem of great importance on the
island. Likewise, 20 think that this problem is com-
pletely unimportant. It is very important to empha-
size the opinion of the respondent of the Town of Pag
Tourist Board, who agrees with the opinion of 5 of
anonymous respondents, that is, believes that the is-
land has an almost even development of tourism.
The pronounced seasonality is one of the biggest
tourism problems in the Republic of Croatia. Accord-
ing to the ‘Croatia 365’ project, tourist destinations
should be promoted with their specific features in
order to stimulate the off-season tourist movement.
Also, in solving the above-mentioned problem, it is
desirable to develop selective forms of tourism in des-
tinations. The survey included the question of what
point of advantage, or what endeavour, could reduce
the seasonality in tourism of the island of Pag.
Respondents were given the possibility ofmultiple-
choice, but a maximum of 3. In Figure 6, development
projects were ranked in order of importance by the
opinions of anonymous respondents. According to the
results, the advantage by which the island of Pag could
be promoted to reduce seasonality is the development
of rural tourism (61.9 of respondents). The respon-
dent from the Town of Pag Tourist Board cited the de-
velopment of health tourism, construction of bicycle
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 33
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
Other 
Developing business tourism 
Building higher cat. hotels with additional services 
Developing hunting and fishing tourism 
Building bicycle paths and promoting cycling 
Developing health tourism 
Using its cultural heritage and tradition 
Developing rural tourism 
Figure 6 Development Measures Aimed at Reducing the
Seasonality of Tourism on the Island of Pag
Economic Principle 
Social-cultural principle 
Economy principle 
Figure 7 Ranking the Importance of Sustainable Tourism
Principles on the Island of Pag
paths and cycling, cultural heritage and tradition as a
desirable way of promotion during the off-season pe-
riod.
Figure 7 lists the respondents’ answers on the im-
portance of a particular principle of sustainable tour-
ism development on the island of Pag.
According to the empirical survey, as many as 55
of respondents believe that the island of Pag should
be more environmental, 30 say it is a socio-cultural
problem, and 15 say that it is the economic principle
due to a problem of poor development of sustainable
tourism on the island of Pag. The respondent from the
Town of Pag Tourist Board agrees with the opinion
of most anonymous respondents and responded that
the environmental principle was one that the island
should pay more attention to. Environmental care is
an essential determinant for the further development
of the island, while preserving the quality of the en-
vironment is a prerequisite for long-term sustainable
development. The figure also indicates to what extent
sustainable tourism is currently developed on the is-
land of Pag.
According to the results of the anonymous survey,
47.6 of respondents stated that sustainable tourism
is developing poorly on the island, while 19 believe
that the island of Pag is doing very well in leading the
sustainable tourism development policy. None of the
respondents answered that sustainability is developing
Not at all .
Poorly .
Well .
Very good .
Excellent .
Figure 8 Development of Sustainable Tourism
on the Island of Pag
excellently on the island, and particularly interesting is
the response of the respondent from the Town of Pag
Tourist Board who believes that sustainable tourism is
not developing at all in this region.
Discussion
The conducted empirical research provided intriguing
answers, and the opinions of the respondents confirm
or respectively reject the hypothesis stated: The is-
land of Pag is successfully implementing a sustainable
tourism policy, regardless of the problems encoun-
tered as a tourist destination. According to the results
of the empirical research, the respondents described
the development of sustainable tourism on the island
of Pag as very bad, and this is further confirmed by the
respondent from the Town of Pag Tourist Board, who
believes that sustainability does not apply at all in the
process of island development. For this reason, the hy-
pothesis is rejected. In order to change this situation,
it is first of all necessary to solve issues such as uncon-
trolled apartmentisation, the loss of quality tourism
labour and inequalities in island development, which
were rated as of great importance by the respondents,
in order for sustainability to develop. By establish-
ing a unique organization of destinationmanagement,
these limitations could be resolved, and sustainability
could develop smoothly and properly. The backbone
of tourism sustainability is found in three principles
that must be equally promoted, namely, the environ-
mental, economic, and socio-cultural principles. Most
respondents (55) consider the environmental prin-
ciple to be the least developed principle on the island
of Pag. This is another argument confirming the poor
development of sustainable tourism in the area. How-
ever, in the period after the primary research, two sig-
nificant changesweremade. They are described below.
34 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
The first dmos as the central destinationmanage-
ment organizations have entered the legislation of the
Republic of Croatia. The amended ‘Law on Tourist
Boards and the Promotion of Croatian Tourism’ (‘Za-
kon o turističkim zajednicama i promicanju hrvatskog
turizma,’ 2020) states: (Art. 1): ‘This Law, according to
the model of destination management organization,
regulates the system of tourist boards, organization,
tasks, and manner of work of tourist boards and basic
principles of their financing and management.’ (Art.
2): ‘2. Destination management organization is de-
fined as an organization that brings together stake-
holders from the public, private and civil sectors for
the strategic and operational management of the des-
tination and the realization of a common, previously
agreed vision. 3. The principle of destination manage-
ment implies the tourism activities of stakeholders,
unitary purposeful business cooperation, to develop
an integrated and competitive destination product.’
Furthermore, key Pag tourist stakeholders have
united to uniquely brand the island, which they achie-
ved by activating the Visit Pag portal (http://www.visit
-pag.com), and to implement other integrated projects.
For example, the leaders of Pag’s tourist towns signed
an Agreement on the association of local tourist com-
munities from the island of Pag in the implementation
of the project ‘Development of Outdoor Tourism on
the Island of Pag’ which aims to develop and shape
the island into a unique, harmonized and market-
established destination. The media state: ‘It is, we can
freely say, a historical moment in which all the island’s
tourist boards signed such a multi-year joint project
for the first time, which is important for tourism and
quality offer of the entire island of Pag’ (Udruživanje
lokalnih turističkih zajednica u provedbi projekta ‘Raz-
voj outdoor turizma na otoku Pagu,’ n.d.). The signing
of this Agreement was approved by the Commission
of the Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Croatia,
which provided the preconditions for applying for the
Fund for United Tourist Boards of certain areas for
joint development of tourism products and destina-
tion promotion, established in 2020. The Agreement
presents, in detail, the activities that should, with the
financial support of the Ministry of Tourism of the
Republic of Croatia, be implemented by the end of
2023. ‘This is a logical continuation of the previous
continuous cooperation, since the tourist boards of
the island of Pag have more than three years ago set
out on a joint path of cooperation under the motto
“Pag Moon Island – A Common Vision”. This fully
respects the intention of the Ministry of Tourism of
the Republic of Croatia to encourage project associa-
tion of tourist boards in an area because tourism ex-
ceeds administrative boundaries and therefore legisla-
tive changes have been made to enable joint presenta-
tion and development of destinations which, although
special in their way, form a complete tourist story’
(Udruživanje lokalnih turističkih zajednica u provedbi
projekta ‘Razvoj outdoor turizma na otoku Pagu,’ n.d.).
Conclusion
Sustainable tourism development implies responsible
management of the area, with an emphasis on natural
and cultural heritage, and aims to meet the needs of
tourists and needs of current and future local commu-
nities.With the development of sustainability, destina-
tionsmaximize their potential while creating a balance
between three important principles: environmental,
economic and socio-cultural. For this reason, sustain-
ability has recently been one of the most commonly
used terms in tourism.
Croatia is a destination that repeatedly attracts
many tourists for its beauty. Still, a massive scale tour-
ism and seasonality problem emerges and hinders
the development of sustainability. Through various
projects, the most famous being ‘Croatia 365,’ Croa-
tia is struggling against the seasonality problem. Due
to its authenticity, the Croatian islands are one of the
great potentials in terms of tourism. One of its assets
is the island of Pag, building its tourist identity on
cheese, salt and lace as traditional elements. On the
other hand, the island brand is being also built by No-
valja, as a world-famous party destination.
According to the empirical research presented in
this paper, sustainable tourism is developing very poor-
ly on the island of Pag. It is so due to numerous limita-
tions, such as excessive apartmentisation, loss of qual-
ity labour in tourism, massive scale tourism, and oth-
ers. Among the significant problems that make sus-
tainable tourism poorly developed is the division of
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 35
Aleksandra Krajnovi et al. Sustainable Development of an Island Tourist Destination
islands in two counties and generally uneven devel-
opment. As many as 47.6 of the respondents who
participated in the primary survey presented in this
paper believe that sustainable tourism is developing
very poorly on the island. One of the important mea-
sures in the area of sustainability is the idea of estab-
lishing a dmo, an organization that would take care of
tourismdevelopment, based onwhich the above prob-
lems would be minimized, and the development of
sustainable tourism would proceed. Consequentially,
the dmo would have a broader perspective, and pay
attention to the balance among all the principles, espe-
cially the environmental one, which the respondents
rated as the least tended principle in the island of Pag.
The most important task of the dmo in Pag would
be to ensure a balanced development of tourism in
all parts of the island. By establishing such a unique
organization of destination management, sustainabil-
ity could be developed smoothly and properly. In this
sense, the Republic of Croatia has already taken cer-
tain steps, both in improving the legislation in the field
of destination management and on the island of Pag,
where tourism stakeholders have joined forces to unite
marketing activities for sustainable tourism develop-
ment.
As a major limitation of the primary research con-
ducted in this paper, the authors emphasize the fact
that the survey did not cover all tourist stakeholders
on the island. The authors recommend further similar
research and comparisons between the developments
of island tourism sustainability in Croatia with other
competitive island tourist destinations. As a scientific
implication of this paper, the authors point to the quest
for a unique model of sustainable tourism develop-
ment in island tourist destinations and a contribu-
tion to the scientific debate in this regard. As practi-
cal implications, the results of the research presented
here can serve policymakers at all levels, as well as the
strategicmanagement of tourism entities on the island
in formulating guidelines for further development.
Finally, it should be emphasized that the sustain-
ability and sustainable development of tourism themes,
especially in the islands as extremely fragile geograph-
ical, economic and socio-cultural entities, is of partic-
ular importance. The complexity of the term sustain-
ability is best described by a quote from the author
Smolčić Jurdana (2003, p. 161): ‘Sustainable develop-
ment is not a current state but a never-ending process.’
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Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 37

Original Scientific Article
A Destination’s Social Sustainability: Linking Tourism
Development to Residents’ Quality of Life
Emil Juvan
University of Primorska, Faculty
of Tourism Studies – Turistica, Slovenia
emil.juvan@fts.upr.si
Eva Podovšovnik
University of Primorska, Faculty
of Tourism Studies – Turistica, Slovenia
eva.podovsovnik@fts.upr.si
Miha Lesjak
University of Primorska, Faculty
of Tourism Studies – Turistica, Slovenia
miha.lesjak@fts.upr.si
Jasmina Jurgec
Sava turizem d.d.
jurgec.jasmina@gmail.com
Tourism positively contributes to quality of life (satisfaction with life and emotional
wellbeing) of the travelling population, but the question remains how tourism affects
quality of life of the host population. Residents’ quality of life is an essential aspect
of sustainable tourism development and offers an attractive destination attribute for
marketing. Research suggests that too much interaction with tourism may reduce
hosts’ quality of life. Low quality of life, typically demonstrated with a low level of
satisfaction with life and poor emotional wellbeing, leads to development of anti-
tourism beliefs and reduces residents’ support for tourism. This may impede local
policymakers and the tourism industry fromdeveloping tourism.High tourismmay
create income but may also induce public expenses on the account of social costs of
tourism. The present study investigates the association of hosts’ satisfaction with life
with objective (level of tourism development) and subjective (perceived interaction
with tourists) levels of tourism development. Results indicate that neither the level of
tourism development nor interactions with tourists predict hosts’ satisfaction with
life and their emotional wellbeing. These findings challenge the existing prevailing
assumption that a high level of tourism negatively affects residents’ quality of life, by
default. A call for empirical evidence on the threshold of quantitative (for example
frequency) and qualitative (for example, the nature of the interaction) tourism de-
velopment is needed to reveal how local authorities can better ensure positive social
impacts of tourism on the host population and tourism social sustainability.
Keywords: sustainable tourism, social sustainability, quality of life, residents,
destination
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.39-52
Introduction
Over the last couple of decades, tourism has under-
gone continuous expansion and diversification to be-
come one of the largest and fastest growing economic
sectors in the world (World Tourism Organization,
2017). Tourism is about movement and interaction of
people within and away from their everyday environ-
ment. This interaction affects how the interacting in-
dividuals perceive, feel and think about the social en-
vironment; consequently, tourism shapes ‘hosts’ and
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 39
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
visitors’ lifestyles’ (Sharpley, 2014, p. 2). While much
of our knowledge about tourism impacts pertains to
the aspects of visitors, little is known about the di-
verse impacts tourism has on the local population.
Knowledge of tourism development trends has essen-
tial meaning for the continuous prosperity of a desti-
nation. Destinations typically embrace existing mar-
ket demand, attract tourists’ attention and support
opportunities for tourist visitation. Tourist demand
changes over time, but one of the fastest-growing as-
pects of tourism demand is tourists’ awareness of the
need to protect the host environment (Buckley, 2011;
Peeters et al., 2018). Moreover, tourism sustainabil-
ity is becoming the paradigm of modern times and
with it the interest to preserve and even increase the
quality of the host environment (Peeters et al., 2018).
Green, healthy and active forms of leisure activities
are attracting an increasing number of people. Also,
high quality is increasingly present in all aspects of
tourism supply, especially in the area of social re-
lations between people involved in tourism (high-
quality, top-quality tourist service adjusted to the in-
dividual) (Vodeb, 2014). Tourist arrivals, tourism in-
frastructure and tourists’ experiences offered change
the destination’s landscape and inevitably affect res-
idents’ lives (Kim et al., 2013; Liang & Hui, 2016, p.
1). Kubickova et al. (2017, p. 1) argue that ‘individuals’
perceptions shape the quality of life, which is a mul-
tidimensional paradigm with many interpretations of
subjective or objective nature.’ The impacts of tourism
depend on the interaction with tourism and level of
tourism development, and hosts may perceive this im-
pact as added or reduced quality of life; the latter may
also bring to a serious level residents’ irritation over
tourism (Doxey, 1975).
Given the tourism trends (World Tourism Organi-
zation, 2019) we anticipate that the tourism industry
will have a massive expansion in the future, which will
bring much appreciated economic benefits to tourist
destinations; however, growing tourism also brings
a number of negative impacts, including unwanted
changes in hosts’ lifestyles (Peeters et al., 2018). While
investigating the relationship between tourism at vari-
ous levels of development and residents’ quality of life
is not new (for example, Doxey, 1975; Murphy, 1985;
Perdue et al. 1990), the generalizability of the relation-
ship remains under-investigated. The present study
discusses the social aspects of tourism development,
more specifically the perceived quality of life among
residents of destinations in different stages of tourism
development. It is aimed at contributing to the knowl-
edge about social impacts of tourism for the host res-
idents and within that deriving empirically supported
practical implications for the destinations’ organiza-
tions andpolicymakers about how to develop tourism,
which will increase not only tourist satisfaction with
life but also contribute to the life satisfaction of the
host population.
Theoretical Background
Tourism impacts tourists and locals in many ways. A
number of different approaches and aspects investigat-
ing tourism impacts were adopted in the past; never-
theless, it appears that researchers have ‘traditionally
assessed the utilitarian attributes of tourism products
and services’ (Lin et al., 2014, p. 1) in spite of the fact
that tourism experiences include a strong affective (i.e.
emotional) component (Gnoth, 1997). More attention
should therefore be paid to understanding the source
of emotions and behaviour, as they play an important
role in shaping attitudes not only for tourists, but also
for locals. Through a number of consequences which
tourism brings to the local community, tourism affects
locals’ perceptions and actual quality of life. Tourism
should focus on the emotional interaction between the
host and the guest, as there is still a lack of research
into the impact of residents’ emotions and consequent
impact on their beliefs about and behaviour towards
tourism (Ribeiro et al., 2017).
Individuals express their thinking in words, which
are based on the emotional experiences at a given time.
Thus, the formation of emotions can be influenced by
a particular situation, surroundings or events, in con-
nection with the individual’s perception. Guests and
hosts can build a (strong) contact, allowing them to
share experiences, advice, and maybe later develop an
emotional attachment. Allport (1961) defines person-
ality ‘as a dynamic organization within an individual’s
psychological and physical systems based on patterns
of actions, thoughts, and feelings.’ An individual’s per-
40 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
sonality is influenced by a number of factors that are
shaped by a variety of perceptions. A positive percep-
tion of the environment, events and people can lead to
positive feelings (including being fulfilled and happy),
which is an important factor of quality of life (Dol-
nicar et al., 2012). Emotions form emotional wellbe-
ing, which is the actual or perceived quality of one’s
everyday life, typically expressed via feelings of joy,
stress, sadness, anger, and fear (Kahneman & Deaton,
2010) and is one of the seven domains of quality of
life (Cummins, 1993). Emotional wellbeing is affected
by the level of tourism development (Williams, 1979).
More specifically, diverse and rich tourism infrastruc-
ture and experiences (for example, events) improve
or reduce the emotional wellbeing of residents (Uysal
et al., 2012). It is suggested that provision of tourist
attractions based on local culture, tradition, lifestyle
and history, which are readily available to the local
population, will ‘foster the emotional well-being of
the resident community’ (Uysal et al., 2012, p. 440).
Different levels of tourism development and inter-
action with tourists, which are both alleviated with
an increased level of tourism development (Butler,
1980), affect one’s emotional wellbeing. More specif-
ically, an extended level of interaction with tourists
may make local residents irritated. Such interaction
may be materialized either through employment in
tourism (Pizam, 1978) or simply by living closer to
tourist concentration areas (Belisle & Hoy, 1980). This
clearly shows that the level of tourism development
and interaction with tourists will have an impact on
residents’ emotional wellbeing.
Happiness is a personal state derived from posi-
tive and negative emotions following one’s life events
(Sirgy & Lee, 2006). A number of life events and
one’s personal or situational characteristics may im-
pact one’s feeling of happiness (Rivera et al., 2016, p.
1). Given this view, tourism should be considered as a
situation having a different level of impact on an indi-
vidual’s life. For example, at destinations with a larger
number of tourists a chance of waiting in queues at a
local grocery store or experiencing difficulties with
parking a car is by far greater than at destinations
with a lower level of tourists; not finding a car park
or waiting in long queues will reduce one’s feeling of
happiness and lower one’s perceived satisfaction with
life. On the other hand, tourism may also positively
affect locals’ perception of happiness, given that it is
one of the largest start-up trading companies for cre-
ating happiness on the planet (Pearce et al., 2011). For
example, a well-developed tourism industry provides
opportunities for high quality recreation or culinary
experiences, which should increase locals’ feeling of
happiness and satisfaction with life. Hence, no doubt,
that tourism industry may be making tourists happy,
but the question remains how the tourism industry
affects residents’ emotional wellbeing and life satisfac-
tion.
Happiness enhances people’s personal satisfaction,
which contributes to satisfaction with life. Countries
with happier residents may benefit more from resi-
dents’ satisfaction, which may become an intangible
destinations asset for managing and marketing with
international visitors (Gholipour et al., 2016). Happi-
ness is a major contributor to one’s perceived quality
of life and a sense of happiness encourages factors of
pleasure and achievement (Mohit, 2014). One of the
approaches for measuring quality of life is the Gross
National Happiness Index aimed at assessing nations’
overall happiness (Pratt et al., 2016). Pratt et al. argue
that economic indicators do not affect happiness of the
residents, but emotional indicators do. More specif-
ically, life satisfaction is a combination of psycho-
logical wellbeing, time use, community vitality, cul-
tural diversity, ecological resilience, living standard,
health, education, and good governance (Pratt et al.,
2016).
Happiness is the basis for quality of life formation
and can be perceived differently because of the value of
different dimensions within the concept. With the de-
velopmental stages, tourism changes from positive to
negative and consequently affects a sense of happiness
and life satisfaction of local residents. More specifi-
cally, tourism has an indirect relationship with qual-
ity of life, affecting various economic, socio-cultural
and environmental attributes of the host community
and thus aspects of locals’ life (Rivera et al., 2016), for
some in a positive but for others in a negative way
(Lee, 2013; Stylidis et al., 2014). Understanding hosts’
perceived satisfaction with life is an essential driver
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 41
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
of tourism development, at the operational and policy
level. More specifically, when seeking hosts’ support
and insights into the directions of tourism develop-
ment, policy makers must understand how the local
population perceives tourism and its impacts on their
satisfaction with life. Using such an approach, tourism
policy makers and destination organizations have the
best possible starting point for preventing negative
impacts of tourism and maximizing its benefits, thus
achieving greater support for local residents (Prayag et
al., 2013; Stylidis et al., 2014). At the operational level,
the tourism industry should understand how locals
feel about tourism for successful development of so-
cially responsible tourism operations.
Individuals perceive tourism in a subjective way,
according to their emotions and living environment.
Areas that encompass the everyday life of residents,
and acceptance of them, are shaped into a quality of
life that is also heavily influenced by different levels of
tourism development. More specifically, various lev-
els of tourism development influence levels of resi-
dents’ interaction with tourists, their involvement and
dependence on tourism as well as access to tourism-
related infrastructure and leisure opportunities (Mur-
phy, 1985).
The most adopted approach to study destination
tourism development was proposed by Butler (1980).
The Tourism Area Life Cycle (talc) is used in at-
tempts to understand the process of the development
of tourist destinations in a wide variety of settings
(Butler, 2006). The model originally hypothesized six
stages of destinations development based on a number
of indicators; for example, number of tourists, visita-
tion growth over certain time, accommodation oc-
cupancy rate, number of beds, tourists per capita ex-
penditure and similar (Uran Maravić & Juvan, 2009).
Although the model has been widely adopted and ref-
erenced in many academic and professional resources
(Ho &McKercher, 2015) it is assumed that most of the
empirical evidence is of limited validity. Nevertheless,
the model is still a valid approach in defining the de-
velopment stage of a tourism destination for various
reasons, including policy making, strategic develop-
ment and even scientific purposes (Ho & McKercher,
2015). As per the authors’ best knowledge, no attempt
has beenmade so far to classify Slovenian tourism des-
tinations using the talc model; however, a few pub-
lications have touched the different stages of tourism
development in Slovenia (for example, Uran Maravić
& Juvan, 2009).
This literature review allows concluding that (1) the
impact of tourism development plays an important
role in the emotional aspects of the host’s life satisfac-
tion. Overall, research shows that tourism has a posi-
tive and negative impact; (2) not all residents perceive
similar impacts of tourism – those who benefit di-
rectly from tourism through employment are likely to
be better supporters and report higher levels of satis-
factionwith different aspects of life than residents with
no specific connection to tourism; and (3) the level of
positive emotions depends on the level of tourism de-
velopment; predictably people are happier and more
satisfied with life in cities with early stages of tourism
development (Uysal et al., 2016).
Following the theoretical implications of the rela-
tions between different stages of tourism development
and the quality of life discussed above, we hypothesize
the following:
h1 Level of tourism development predicts residents’
satisfaction with life.
h2 Interaction with tourists predicts residents’ sat-
isfaction with life.
h3 Level of tourism development predicts residents’
emotional wellbeing.
h4 Interaction with tourists predicts residents’ emo-
tional wellbeing.
Methodology
The quantitative approachwas adopted to test the pro-
posed hypotheses. Data was collected via an online
survey tool 1ka, using a survey questionnaire. The
survey was distributed among survey participants us-
ing a snowball sampling technique (for example, par-
ticipants who completed the survey were asked to rec-
ommend participation to their peers) and gatekeep-
ers were typically well-known and networked within
observed destinations (for example, local tourist in-
formation centres, local societies and social clubs).
The survey involved participants living in three dif-
42 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
ferent municipalities in Slovenia, with different levels
of tourism development.
The surveymeasured several aspects of life with the
following being an interest of the current study:
• Satisfaction with life (Pratt et al., 2016) was mea-
sured using a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 – not
satisfied at all, and 5 – completely satisfied) for
six different aspects of life: health, life standard,
work, family relations, balance betweenwork and
free time, and relationships with members of the
community.Dependent variable satisfactionwith
life was factor analysed for further regression
analysis with hypothesized predictors. Pearson’s
correlational coefficients were computed to de-
tect multicollinearity and check for internal va-
lidity and Cronbach’s Alpha was used to assess
the reliability. The results show there are statis-
tically significant (at the 0.05 level) correlations
among the pairs of indicators of satisfaction with
life, suggesting a high level of internal validity;
correlational coefficients f 0.491 or lower indi-
cate acceptablemulticollinearity. The value of the
Cronbach Alpha of 0.739 shows an acceptable re-
liability (George & Mallery, 2003).
• Emotional wellbeing (Pratt et al., 2016) was mea-
sured for the frequency of experiencing three
negative (fear, anxiety, depression) and three pos-
itive (calmness, contentment, and pleasure) emo-
tions. Participants were asked to express the fre-
quency of experiencing emotions using four cat-
egories of answers (frequently, sometimes, rarely
and never). To keep the survey instrument as
short as possible and thus avoiding respondent
fatigue (Dolnicar et al., 2011), the original set of
emotions from Pratt et al. (2016) were reduced to
six emotions in total. This procedure was done
using a qualitative pre-study involving 23 par-
ticipants. Participants, randomly intercepted in
public areas of researched communities, were
asked to list three positive and three negative
emotions which they remember experiencing
most frequently. The emotions most frequently
mentioned by interviewees were included in the
quantitative survey.
Table 1 Key Tourism Area Life Cycle Indicators
for the Observed Destinations
Year/destination () () () () ()
 d    . 
d    . 
d    . 
 d    . 
d    . 
d    . 
 d    . 
d    . .
d    . .
 d   – . 
d   – . 
d   – . 
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) arrivals, (2)
overnights, (3) beds, (4) t/r, (5) people per m2.
• Level of tourism development was assessed as an
objective measurement of tourism development
using the talc tourism development model,
with a number of talc indicators for three ob-
served destinations. More specifically, following
recommendations from UranMaravić and Juvan
(2009), we observed tourist arrivals, number of
nights, number of beds, number of tourists per
local resident and number of people per square
meter of land (see Table 1). Given that no em-
pirical evidence exists on the threshold of dif-
ferent talc indicators specific for the particu-
lar talc stage it was impossible to determine
the actual talc stage for the observed destina-
tions. However, empirical indicators of tourism
development allowed the arbitrary decision to
split the three communities into two extremely
different talc stages: the high and low level of
tourism development. The destination with high
talc is in the later stages of tourism develop-
ment, and the destination with low talc is in
the earlier stages of tourism development. While
the selected dimensions of tourism development
are not exhaustive, they do indicate the level of
tourism development (e.g. Buttler, 1980) andmay
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 43
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
affect residents’ emotional wellbeing and satisfac-
tion with life (Pratt et al., 2016).
• Interaction with tourists was measured as a sub-
jective and objective measurement. Subjectively,
the interaction with tourists was assessed by ask-
ing participants about the perceived extent of
their interaction with tourists in the last 2 years.
Responses were captured on a numerical scale
with endpoints labelled 0 – no interaction with
tourists at all and 100 – a lot of interaction with
tourists. Respondents from high talc (m =
76.87, sd = 25.06) report significantly (t(546) =
–14.352, p < 0.001) higher levels of interaction
with tourists than their counterparts from low
talc (m = 44.05, sd = 28.50). Objectively, this
concept was measured by asking respondents
whether or not they work in the tourism indus-
try. Responses were captured with binary cat-
egorical measure (yes, no). Significantly more
(X2(1) = 82.393, p = 0.000) respondents from
high talc work in tourism.Given the aim of the
study, to determine the association between the
interaction with tourists and satisfaction with life
and emotional wellbeing, we limited ourselves to
the quantitative dimensions of interaction with
tourists as strong factors of hosts’ satisfaction
with life (Murphy, 1985; Perdue et al., 1990).
• In addition, a number of socio-demographic char-
acteristics were measured using categorical (for
example, education was measured with four re-
sponse options: elementary school or less, voca-
tional or high school education, college or uni-
versity degree, postgraduate degree) or with or-
dinal scale (for example, length of living at the
destination was measured with the following re-
sponse options: less than a year, from 1 to 5 years,
from 5 to 10 years, more than 10 years).
Overall, 627 valid surveys were completed (see Ta-
bles 2 and 3), of which 295 (47) are from the destina-
tion in a consolidated talc stage and 332 (53) from
that in the involvement talc stage. 71 of the final
sample are female participants and between 16 and 90
years old (m = 39.53, sd = 14.3). The majority (79)
of respondents have lived in their respective destina-
Table 2 Sample Characteristics: Categorical Variables
Category Item f f ()
Gender Male  .
Female  .
Destination High talc  .
Low talc  .
Highest level
of education
Elementary school or less  .
Voc. school, high school  .
College, university degree  .
Postgraduate degree  .
Working in the
tourism sector
Yes  .
No  .
Table 3 Sample Characteristics: Scale Variables
Item () ()
N Valid  
Missing  
Mean . .
Stdandard deviation . .
Skewness . –
.
Std. error of skewness . .
Kurtosis –. .
Std. error of kurtosis . .
Minimum  
Maximum  
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) age, (2) length
of living at the destination.
tion formore than 10 years. Almost half of respondents
(49) have completed vocational or a higher level of
education, and 40.3 of participants completed col-
lege or a university degree. On average, (m = 59.77;
sd = 31.5) respondents perceive themselves to have a
moderate level of interactions with tourists. Research
hypotheses were tested using the regression analysis.
Results
This section provides empirical testing of the research
hypotheses, beginning with a descriptive presentation
of the key dimensions of satisfaction with life.
44 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
Table 4 Descriptive Statistics on Dimensions
of Satisfaction with Life
talc () () () () () ()
Low (a) . . . . . .
(b)      
(c) . . . . . .
(d) –. –. –. –. –. –.
(e) . . . . . .
High (a) . . . . . .
(b)      
(c) . . . . –. .
(d) –. –. –. –. –. –.
(e) . . . . . .
Total (a) . . . . . .
(b)      
(c) . . . . –. .
(d) –. –. –. –. –. –.
(e) . . . . . .
Notes Column/row headings are as follows: (1) health, (2)
living standard, (3) work, (4) family relations, (5) balance of
work and free time, (6) community relations, (a) mean, (b)
N, (c) kurtosis, (d) skewness, (e) standard error of mean.
Satisfaction with Life
Results show (see Table 4) that, on average, respon-
dents are satisfied with family relations (M = 4.05; sd
= 0.935), health (M = 3.74; sd = 1.002) and relation-
ships with members of the community (M = 3.67; sd
= 0.847). On average, respondents are neither satis-
fied nor dissatisfied with work (M = 3.5; sd = 0.976),
balance between work and free time (M = 3.45; sd =
1.021) and life standard (M = 3.44; sd = 0.92). In all
cases, skewness and kurtosis fall in the interval |–2; 2|,
suggesting a distribution close to a normal one. All the
indicators of satisfactionwith life were kept for further
statistical analysis.
In the following, the Pearson’s correlational coef-
ficients were computed (see Table 5), in order to de-
tect multicollinearity and check for internal validity.
The results show there are statistically significant (at
the 0.05 level) correlations among the pairs of indica-
tors of satisfaction with life, suggesting a high level of
internal validity. Since the highest correlational coeffi-
cient is 0.491, there is no evidence of multicollinearity.
The Cronbach Alpha coefficient was computed, in
order to check for reliability. The value of the Cron-
bachAlpha is 0.739, showing a reliable research instru-
ment in the case of satisfaction with life.
Factor analysis with principal axis factoring was
conducted to linearly reduce the number of dimen-
sions of satisfaction with life. The computed com-
munalities (see Table 6) have high extraction scores
(> |0.3|) for life standard, work and balance between
work and free time. For other indicators the extraction
scores fall slightly outside the interval, but communal-
ities support keeping them as indicators of satisfaction
with life. The factor analysis (principal axis factoring)
suggests a single factor solution with the initial eigen-
value higher than 1 (2.623). The one-factor solution
explains 43.722 of total variance (see Table 7). The
factor matrix (see Table 8) supports the one-factor so-
lution, since all the factor scores are higher than |0.3|,
confirming a high importance of the indicator on the
factor. The suggested one-factor solution was kept for
further statistical analysis.
Research hypotheses h1 and h2 were tested using
the regression analysis. Results (see Table 9) show no
statistically significant association (at the 0.05 level)
between talc and/or number of interactions with
tourists and satisfaction with life. The determination
coefficient is 0.004. The regression model is not sta-
tistically significant (F = 0.283; sig. = 0.838).
Emotional Wellbeing
Over half of respondents (see Table 10) often feel calm-
ness (54.7 of respondents) and contentment (58.9
of respondents), but a third of respondents feel the
two emotions only sometimes (35.3 for calmness
and 34.4 for contentment). 44.7 of respondents feel
pleasure often and 45.1 of them feel pleasure some-
times. Regarding the negative emotions, the majority
feels them rarely (fear 45.6 of respondents and de-
pression 47.6 of respondents) or sometimes (46.7
in the case of anxiety). All the indicators of psycholog-
ical wellbeing were kept for further statistical analysis.
Regression analysis (see Table 11) was performed
to test statistically significant relations between the
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 45
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
Table 5 Pearson’s Correlational Coefficients among Indicators of Satisfaction with Life
Factor () () () () () ()
() Health Pearson correlation  .** .** .** .** .**
Sig. (-tailed) . . . . .
N      
() Living standard Pearson correlation .**  .** .** .** .**
Sig. (-tailed) . . . . .
N      
() Work Pearson correlation .** .**  .** .** .**
Sig. (-tailed) . . . . .
N      
() Family relations Pearson correlation .** .** .**  .** .**
Sig. (-tailed) . . . . .
N      
() Work and free time balance Pearson correlation .** .** .** .**  .**
Sig. (-tailed) . . . . .
N      
() Community relations Pearson correlation .** .** .** .** .** 
Sig. (-tailed) . . . . .
N      
Notes ** Sig. < 0.01.
Table 6 Communalities in Factor Analysis, for Indicators
of Satisfaction with Life
Factor Initial Extrac.
Health . .
Living standard . .
Work . .
Family relations . .
Work and free time balance . .
Community relations . .
Notes Extraction method: Principal axis factoring.
level of tourism development and interaction with
tourists and emotional wellbeing. Results suggests
that tourism development as well as interaction with
tourists have no significant relationship with a par-
ticular emotion; the percentage of the explained vari-
ance is very low (between 0.3 and 2.2). All the regres-
Table 7 Total Variance Explained with Factor Analysis,
for Indicators of Satisfaction with Life
Factor Initial eigenvalues Extraction sums*
() () () () () ()
 . . . . . .
 . . .
 . . .
 . . .
 . . .
 . . .
Notes *Of squared loadings. Extractionmethod: Principal
axis factoring.
sion models are not statistically significant at the 0.05
level. There is no evidence of any statistically signifi-
cant impact (at the 0.05 level) of the level of tourism
development or interaction with tourists on residents’
emotional wellbeing.
Finally, the overall regressionmodel (enter meth-
46 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
Table 8 Factor Matrix, for Satisfaction with Life
Factor Value
Health .
Living standard .
Work .
Family relations .
Work and free time balance .
Community relations .
Notes Extraction method: Principal axis factoring. 1 factor
extracted, 6 iterations required.
Table 9 Associations between Satisfaction with Life,
Level of Tourism Development and Interaction
with Tourists
Item B se β t Sig.
(Constant) . . . .
talc . . . . .
Work in tourism . . . . .
Interac. with tourists –. . –. –. .
Notes Dependent variable: Satisfaction with life (factor).
od) was computed where Satisfaction with life is used
as the dependent variable and other concepts as pre-
dictors. The results (see Table 12) show that the re-
gression model explains 25.8 of the total variance
in Satisfaction with life. The model’s fit is good (F =
6.432; sig. < 0.001). Statistically significant (at the 0.05
level) regression coefficients suggest that contentment
(β = –0.174; sig. = 0.03), pleasure (β = –0.181; sig. =
0.019) and the highest level of education (β = 0.247;
sig. < 0.001) significantly predict satisfaction with life.
The local residents that more often feel contentment
and pleasure and have a higher level of education are
more satisfiedwith life compared to their counterparts
who never feel contentment and pleasure, and have a
lower level of education. The hypothesized prediction
of tourism development and interaction with tourists
indicates no significant direct association with resi-
dents’ emotional wellbeing or satisfaction with life.
Findings and Conclusion
Ensuring residents’ emotional wellbeing and satisfac-
tion with life is an important indicator of sustainable
Table 10 Descriptive Statistics on Emotional Wellbeing
at Destinations with Different Levels of Tourism
Development
Emotion Item talc Total
Low High
Calmness Often (a)   
(b) . . .
Sometimes (a)   
(b) . . .
Rarely (a)   
(b) . . .
Total (a)   
(b) . . .
Contentment Often (a)   
(b) . . .
Sometimes (a)   
(b) . . .
Rarely (a)   
(b) . . .
Never (a)   
(b) . . .
Total (a)   
(b) . . .
Enjoyment Often (a)   
(b) . . .
Sometimes (a)   
(b) . . .
Rarely (a)   
(b) . . .
Never (a)   
(b) . . .
Total (a)   
(b) . . .
Continued in the next column
development, because it seeks to maintain the psy-
chological capacity of the destination (Mowforth &
Munt, 2003) and because satisfied and happy residents
may become an important destinations attribute for
tourism marketing (Pyke et al., 2016). It is widely ac-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 47
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
Table 10 Continued from the previous column
Emotion Item talc Total
Low High
Fear Often (a)   
(b) . . .
Sometimes (a)   
(b) . . .
Rarely (a)   
(b) . . .
Never (a)   
(b) . . .
Total (a)   
(b) . . .
Worry Often (a)   
(b) . . .
Sometimes (a)   
(b) . . .
Rarely (a)   
(b) . . .
Never (a)   
(b) . . .
Total (a)   
(b) . . .
Sadness Often (a)   
(b) . . .
Sometimes (a)   
(b) . . .
Rarely (a)   
(b) . . .
Never (a)   
(b) . . .
Total (a)   
(b) . . .
Notes (a) Count, (b) percentage within talc.
cepted that vacations add to one’s quality of life but
links between tourism development and hosts’ satis-
faction with life remains unclear. The present study
aims at adding empirical evidence about the links be-
Table 11 Association between Emotional Wellbeing, Level
of Tourism Development and Interaction with
Tourists
R2 F Sig. () () ()
Calmness . . . –.
(.)
.
(.)
.
(.)
Contentment . . . .
(.)
.
(.)
–.
(.)
Enjoyment . . . .
(.)
.
(.)
–.
(.)
Fear . . . .
(.)
.
(.)
–.
(.)
Worry . . . .
(.)
.
(.)
–.
(.)
Sadness . . . .
(.)
.
(.)
–.
(.)
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) talc β, (2) in-
teraction with tourists, (3) working in tourism; p-vales in
parenthesis.
Table 12 Overall Regression Model for Satisfaction
with Life
Item B se β t Sig.
(Constant) –. . –. .
talc . . . . .
Working in tourism –. . –. –. .
Interac. with tourists –. . –. –. .
Calmness . . . . .
Contentment –. . –. –. .
Enjoyment –. . –. –. .
Fear . . . . .
Worry . . . . .
Sadness . . . . .
Gender . . . . .
Age . . . . .
Highest educ. level . . . . .
Notes Dependent variable: Satisfaction with life (factor).
tween tourism and residents’ emotional wellbeing and
satisfaction with life. Following the theoretical back-
ground and previous empirical research, four research
hypotheses were tested. First, we hypothesized that
48 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
the level of tourism development predicts residents’
perceived level of satisfaction with life. The analy-
sis section does not allow accepting this hypothesis
because no significant association was identified be-
tween self-reported satisfaction with life and the level
of tourism development. This study empirically as-
sessed the satisfaction with six different aspects of life
at destinations with different levels of tourism devel-
opment. The city with high talc is actually a rather
small coastal city where locals can hardly avoid in-
teraction with tourists. On the other hand, cities with
low talc are larger in area and have a substantially
lower population (tourists and locals) per square me-
ter; hence, it is hard to detect crowds, and tourists in
particular, as well as tourism infrastructure and ex-
periences. This finding challenges the prevailing as-
sumption that higher levels of tourism by default lead
to lower satisfaction with life of local residents and
their low emotional wellbeing. Given that it is the in-
teraction with tourists which may play a higher role
in life satisfaction rather than the level of tourism de-
velopment, we tested how interaction with tourists, at
the subjective and objective level, predicts life satis-
faction. Again, this study finds no statistically signif-
icant association between the two. The finding that
no significant association exists between employment
in tourism and satisfaction with life is extremely in-
teresting. Employment in tourism brings at least eco-
nomic benefits, hence some link to satisfaction with
life should exist; especially given that residents work-
ing in tourism are more likely in support of tourism
than those not working in this industry (McGehee &
Andereck, 2004). Nevertheless, it may be that results
are very context dependent and that other factors (for
example, emotions, family cycle) cause the gap be-
tween levels of tourism development and satisfaction
with life, which would call for more research into the
two concepts.
Secondly, we hypothesize (using separate hypothe-
ses) that residents’ emotional wellbeing depends on
the level of tourism development and residents’ in-
teraction with tourism. Both hypotheses must be re-
jected, as empirical results demonstrate no significant
association between the concepts. The two hypotheses
followed the premises (1) that working in tourism is
extremely demanding, which influences one’s life sat-
isfaction (Baum, 2007) and (2) higher level of interac-
tion with tourists should affect (negatively) one’s feel-
ing of calmness or even fear (Peeters et al., 2018). The
context in which the present study took place does
not allow accepting this hypothesis, but the data also
does not provide insights into why interaction with
tourists does not affect any of the most typically expe-
rienced emotions. It is well accepted that a higher level
of tourism development leads to less favourable res-
idents’ attitudes towards tourism (for example, Mur-
phy, 1985; Teye et al., 2002); the present study demon-
strates that the same logic does not hold for emotions
or satisfaction with life.
Education, as a socio-demographic characteristic,
and feelings of enjoyment and contentment as ele-
ments of emotional wellbeing are the only three signif-
icant predictors of residents’ satisfactionwith life. This
finding challenges previous empirical insights about
the negative impacts of tourism on local residents’ sat-
isfaction with life and emotional wellbeing. There ex-
ists the possibility that even in a context with a high
level of tourism development, local residents may still
have a chance to isolate themselves from tourism, thus
preventing tourism from negatively impacting their
everyday life. Empirical findings show that, irrespec-
tive of the perceived level of interaction with tourists,
residents report similar levels of satisfaction with life.
Interaction with tourists was measured as a subjective
(perceived level of interaction) and objective (work-
ing in tourism industry) measurement, but results of
this study show that neither significantly adds to nor
reduces the level of life satisfaction.
Although emotions appear less frequently associ-
ated with tourism, they are the basis for expression of
individuals and an important factor in creating satis-
faction for both hosts and guests. A high level of sat-
isfaction is the foundation for happiness, and because
tourism is recognized as a means of generating hap-
piness (Pearce et al., 2011) it is reasonable to interpret
tourism as a tool for achieving happiness for tourists as
well as residents. However, our study points out that
the existing believed association of tourism and life
satisfaction and emotional wellbeing cannot be gen-
eralized across different contexts or even cultures.
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 49
Emil Juvan et al. A Destination’s Social Sustainability
Tourism success is measured beyond typical in-
come and arrivals numbers, which echoes the prin-
ciples of sustainable yield. By creating a welcoming
atmosphere, locals contribute to a positive tourism ex-
perience but they only can do this if they themselves
feel satisfied and happy. Quality of life has to be main-
tained, with special attention given to improvements,
with a view to achieving mutual effect; quality of life
of local residents and tourists. Interweaving good re-
lationships, coherence and careful planning is the key
to successful, healthy tourism development that com-
plements the lives of locals. The empirical findings
of this study are somewhat surprising, given that the
emotionalwellbeing and satisfactionweremeasured at
destinations with extremely opposite levels of tourism
development. Nevertheless, findings do reflect current
understanding that achieving social sustainability is
context dependent (Font & McCabe, 2017) and that
research is needed around quality of life and tourism
(Liburd et al., 2012).Wehope that the present studyhas
shed more light on the aspects of social sustainability,
as a concept involving residents’ emotional wellbeing
and satisfaction with life, and their dependence on
different contexts.
Practically, this study contributes to the body of
knowledge on managing residents’ emotional wellbe-
ing and satisfaction with life. We empirically high-
light that feelings of contentment and enjoyment act
as drivers of satisfaction with life, dependent on the
level of tourism development. Destination organiza-
tions and tourism providers should monitor the levels
of contentment and enjoyment as well as investigate
which aspects of tourism lead to higher levels of the
two emotions. In addition, when assuring high levels
of contentment and enjoyment, these two emotions
should be used as destination attributes marketed to
the tourists. Marketing campaigns must demonstrate
that locals are content and enjoy their lives at the des-
tination. In addition, a high level of education appears
as a significant driver of life satisfaction and emo-
tional wellbeing. This implies that tourism organiza-
tions shouldworkwith educational institutions to help
build knowledge about tourism impacts at the destina-
tion to improve positive emotions about tourism and,
finally, higher perceived satisfaction with life.
More research into dimensions of life satisfaction,
emotional wellbeing and tourist interaction is needed
to guide destination management policies and opera-
tions in ensuring social sustainability of tourism. Em-
pirical findings in this study come by surprise and ac-
tually call for more specific studies into the levels or
thresholds of interaction with tourists and its impact
on residents’ life satisfaction and emotional wellbe-
ing. This would empirically determine how many and
which kind of interactions with tourists are manage-
able or tolerable for the local population without sac-
rificing their satisfaction with life. While dimensions
of interaction with tourism are beyond the scope of
the current study, we believe it may play an impor-
tant role in emotional wellbeing and satisfaction with
life. Hence, future research should look into different
context-destination specific dimensions of interaction
with tourists and its role in hosts’ emotional wellbeing
and satisfaction with life, most likely, using a mixed
method approach, where a qualitative approachwould
identify different dimensions and a quantitative ap-
proach would test the relevance and potential gener-
alizability across similar destinations. This would im-
prove the managerial ability of destination manage-
ment organizations to benefit from emotional wellbe-
ing and satisfaction with life of the local population.
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52 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Original Scientific Article
Managers’ Perspectives about the Relationship
between Tourism and Climate Change:
Case of the Republic of Croatia
Aleksandar Racz
University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia
aleksandar.racz@zvu.hr
Dora Smolčić Jurdana
University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Croatia
doras@fthm.hr
Zvonimira Šverko Grdić
University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Croatia
zgrdic@fthm.hr
Assuming a two-way relationship between climate change and tourism, it is very im-
portant to know the beliefs and attitudes of tourist managers. Research of beliefs and
attitudes of touristmanagers is a key problemof this research. Beliefs and attitudes of
tourist managers are affected by different factors such as: sociodemographic charac-
teristics, especially gender; level of education; length of service in the tourism sector;
membership in ecological ngos; and beliefs and attitudes about climate change. To
investigate managers’ opinions, the authors created a survey which focused on all
managers who manage categorized facilities by type in the Republic of Croatia. The
results have shown significant differences in the beliefs and attitudes about the inter-
influence of climate change and tourist accommodation. Managers who are female,
who have completed tertiary education, who are members of ecological ngos and
who consider themselves activists, and those who have more years of work experi-
ence, showed stronger pro-environmental attitudes and higher levels of ecological
awareness.
Keywords: attitudes, beliefs, climate change, management, tourism, destinations
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.53-70
Introduction
Climate change has become the biggest challenge and
threat to the survival of human civilization, withmany
consequences for virtually every aspect of human life.
There is a two-way relationship between tourism and
climate change as tourism is largely dependent on the
climate and is influenced by climate change in real
time (Mahadew & Appadoo, 2019).
It is estimated that tourism is the source of at least
8 of global CO2 emissions which is why great ef-
forts are being made on the global and national levels
to mitigate the consequences of climate change (Wa-
jahat et al., 2020). This also involves planning and
taking measures to prevent further negative conse-
quences that might become irreversible in the future
(Kocak et al., 2020; Becken et al., 2020). Many authors
agree that climate change originates in nature, ‘but has
causes in an economic, cultural and political system
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 53
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
that is spreading around the world’ (Ančić et al., 2016).
On the theoretical level this research has started
from basic principles derived from the Theory of
Planned Behaviour (tpb) that looks at ‘intentions to
behave,’ and not necessarily actual actions of individu-
als. It argues that attitudes, subjective norms and per-
ceived behavioural control affect intentions to act and
these in turn predict behaviour. tpb starts from the
premise that individuals make logical, reasoned deci-
sions to engage in specific behaviour by evaluating the
information available to them. The performance of a
behaviour is determined by the individual’s intention
to engage in it (influenced by the value the individual
places on the behaviour, the ease with which it can be
performed and the views of significant others) and the
perception that the behaviour is within his/her con-
trol (Ajzen, 1985). The theory was intended to explain
all behaviour over which people have the ability to
exert self-control. The key component to this model
is behavioural intent; behavioural intentions are in-
fluenced by the attitude concerning the likelihood
that the behaviour will have the expected outcome
and the subjective evaluation of the risks and ben-
efits of that outcome. Rosenberg’s three-component
structure was discussed when developing the research
plan, in the sense that an attitude is a whole made up
of cognitive (what an individual thinks of an object
of attitude), emotional or affective (what an individ-
ual feels about an object of attitude) and conative or
behavioural components (how an individual intends
to behave towards an object of attitude) (Alessandri
& Vecchione, 2015). This model of attitude structure
is also called the abc model (affect, intention of be-
haviour, cognition) (Stern & Oskamp, 1987).
The theoretical concept on which this research of
beliefs and attitudes leans is the theory of the mode
model developed byFazio (1993) andMyers andTwen-
ge (2016). The model broadens the one-dimensional
approach to attitudes by emphasizing the undisputable
connection between beliefs, attitudes and intention of
behaviours, withMyers and Twenge aware that ‘the re-
lationship of individual components of attitude is not
simple and unambiguous’ (Ajduković et al., 2005).
The mode model (‘motivation and opportunities
as determinants’) assumes that attitudes can influence
intention of behaviour either through the conscious
implications that they have on the intention of be-
haviour or by automatic selective processing for the
posture of significant information. Specifically, a more
precise mode model is based on the assumption that
attitudes, in addition to referring to certain objects,
have their ‘strength,’ and that we can locate it on the
so-called ‘strength scale’ accordingly, where zero is the
complete indifference to the object of attitude. Only
strong attitudes are stable and reliable in predicting
behaviour. Attitudes also represent a link between the
object of attitude itself and the individual’s evaluation
of the object. Attitudes are based on experience that
in this case forms the basis of the evaluation. In the
mode model, the authors emphasize the importance
of the so-called concept of activation of the aforemen-
tioned object connection and the existing evaluation,
and link it to the scale of power where relative indif-
ference is found at the lower part of the strength scale.
In order for the attitude-behaviour process to be acti-
vated, theremust be an external influence that can also
represent a simple question posed about the object it-
self. At the opposite end of the scale where attitudes
are strong, this activation can occur and automatically,
without external stimuli, is already sufficient percep-
tion of the object to initiate the attitude-intention of
the behaviour process.
Authors Sinatra et al. (2012) measured attitudes to-
ward climate change caused by anthropological ac-
tivity and found that respondents who had a more
accepting attitude toward climate change were more
likely to express a willingness to act. Authors Garay et
al. (2018) explored cognitive mechanisms that moti-
vate managers to introduce sustainability practices in
their businesses. They concluded that managers’ sub-
jective norms explained more of their behavioural in-
tentions than their attitudes or perceived behavioural
controls.
The starting point for this paper was the assump-
tion of a two-way relationship between climate change
and tourism, and the importance of knowing the be-
liefs and attitudes of multiple stakeholders – man-
agers in the entire tourist accommodation industry
as key persons in tourism management and decision-
making, and key actors in implementing environmen-
54 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
tal protection, as well as implementing and develop-
ing business policies in the area of sustainable devel-
opment (Bohdanowicz, 2005). The main objective of
this paper was to analyse the influence of four different
sociodemographic characteristics among managers
concerning beliefs and attitudes on climate change:
gender, level of education, length of service in the
tourism sector and membership in ecological ngos
or activism in ecological actions and initiatives (Racz,
2019). The researchers’ intention was to provide a se-
ries of insights that might be relevant for the devel-
opment of sustainable practices in the tourism sec-
tor, and particularly the hotel industry in general, as
they contribute to understanding the attitudes of key
decision-makers. This can also provide the basis for
predicting their intention of behaviour in relation to
the application of environmental protectionmeasures.
Literature Review
Climate change poses a unique challenge to the en-
tire human civilization and affects all aspects of hu-
man life, including tourism. The Earth is currently
0.7°C warmer than in 1900, and if all emissions are
stopped today, the Earth will warm by a further 0.5–
1°C in the next decade. Research shows that the biggest
impact on these changes is the release of carbon diox-
ide into the atmosphere, which due to its properties
enhances the greenhouse effect on Earth. Interest in
climate change has increased in recent years, especially
after the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Con-
ference held in Copenhagen (Scott & Becken, 2010;
Gössling et al., 2012; Rosselló-Nadal, 2014; Rutty et al.,
2017). Dogru et al. (2019) explore the extent to which
vulnerability and resilience to climate change affect
tourism and the overall economy. The results indi-
cate that tourism is both more vulnerable and more
resilient to climate change compared to the economy
in general. Scott et al. (2019) argue that vulnerability
is highest in many countries where tourism represents
the largest percentage of gdp, as well as regions where
tourism growth is expected to be the strongest over the
coming decades.
Tourism depends on having a favourable climate,
preserved environment and rich flora and fauna (Buck-
ley, 2011; Müller & Weber, 2008). To a degree, climate
elements such as temperature, total hours of sunshine
and rain periods define international tourism flows in
Europe (Joop et al., 2015). Numerous key tourism fac-
tors are affected by climate change (Scott & Lemieux,
2010; Kozak et al., 2008; Hamilton & Tol, 2007).
Rising sea levels, changing ecosystems, changes
in the water system on Earth, various health effects
and more frequent extreme weather events will af-
fect tourism not only in terms of reducing comfort,
but also in terms of reduced safety (Michailidou et
al., 2016). Tourism is extremely sensitive to climate
change and it can endure many negative or positive
effects (Joop et al., 2013; Wong et al., 2013; Schliephack
& Dickinson, 2017).
The tourism sector has seen significant growth in
the last four decades (Gössling et al., 2013) and it is
also a significant factor in the economic development
of both developed and developing countries (Cannon-
ier & Burke, 2018; Dogru & Bulut, 2018: Becken, 2019;
Hall, 2019; Jentos et al., 2012; Saarinen & Rogerson,
2014; Scheyvens & Hughes, 2018). Some authors have
focused on exploring the impact of climate change on
tourism demand based on ipcc (Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change) climate change projections
(Hindley & Font, 2017; Hall et al., 2016; Amelung et
al., 2007; Scott & Brenda, 2007). These projections en-
compass the global level, the country level, and des-
tinations such as coastal areas and islands, as well as
skiing destinations (Wyss & Abegg, 2014; Dawson &
Scott, 2007).
There are not, however, many studies focused on
the beliefs and attitudes of managers in tourism con-
cerning the impact of climate change, especially when
it comes to the interdependence between climate chan-
ge and accommodation in tourism. Research focused
on manager beliefs and attitudes regarding climate
change and tourism, or research of a single aspect, is
typically conducted for a particular country or desti-
nation. Trawoger (2014) analysed climate change per-
ceptions of winter tourism stakeholders in Tyrol (Aus-
tria). He concluded that growing awareness of climate
change is limited to perceiving the issue as a global
phenomenon. Hall et al. (2016) presented a systematic
overview of tourism accommodation providers and
consumer attitudes, intention of behaviour and prac-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 55
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
tices pertaining to sustainable development, sustain-
ability in general and climate change. Legrand et al.
(2012) hypothesized that the hotel industry is respon-
sible for CO2 emissions into the atmosphere and thus
responsible for the intensifying climate change. They
concluded that hotels have recognized how important
sustainability and its principles have become and that
green investments are on the rise. Yu-Ping, Hall & Oz-
zane (2012) proposed that hotels and the hotel industry
are the most vulnerable to climate change as a conse-
quence of their primary resources. Their research re-
sults encompass attitudes, awareness and intention of
behaviour of Taiwanese hotel managers with regard to
climate change, its potential impact and their ecolog-
ical practices in general. Authors Dube and Nhamo
(2020) used a method approach; their study sought
to document tourist perceptions and attitudes regard-
ing the impact and future of the Victoria Falls World
Heritage Site. Authors Torres-Bagur et al. (2019) con-
ducted interviews with owners and managers to un-
derstand perceptions and identify the main problems
associated with climate change in order to design ef-
fective mitigation and adaptation strategies to guaran-
tee the sustainability of tourism and natural resources.
Tourism needs to introduce certain adjustment
measures to boost the positive and mitigate the neg-
ative effects of future climate change (Perić & Šverko
Grdić, 2017). However, it must be emphasized that cli-
mate change will have a different effect on different
destinations and, consequently, on the economic ben-
efits of tourism.
Mitigating Tourism-Induced Climate Change
There are two primary strategic approaches when it
comes to climate change – mitigation and adapta-
tion. The two should not be observed separately, they
are not an either/or choice. Instead, they are con-
nected, alternative strategies that can achieve the best
results through the use of well-developed instruments
and measures for the simultaneous implementation
of both. The goal of mitigation is to slow down cli-
mate change, while adaptation involves lowering cli-
mate change vulnerability (Jopp et al., 2015).
Another aim of the mitigation strategy is to reduce
harmful emissions into the atmosphere, thus reducing
the greenhouse effect. Mitigation strategies in general
include enhancing, restoring, creating, or preserving
current standards in order to offset unavoidable ef-
fects (Dogru et al., 2019). Climate resilience and the
need for decarbonization are highlighted in commu-
nication in the tourism sector, but there is little evi-
dence of significant action being taken regarding mit-
igation (Gössling & Scott, 2018). All economic sectors
will be required to contribute to reducing emissions in
order to achieve the objective set by the Paris Climate
Agreement – to limit global warming to 2°C above
pre-industrial levels. Any increase in emissions from
specific sectors or countries will mean that there is a
widening gap between trajectories and mitigation ob-
jectives. For tourism, in a business-as-usual scenario,
this would correspond to more than 2.5 Gt of CO2 per
year by 2050 (European Travel Commission, 2018).
Adaptation andmitigation are very important strat-
egies for responding to climate change and they are
equally important (Hambira & Saarinen, 2015). With-
out early and timelymitigation, the costs of adaptation
will rise, and the ability of countries and individuals
to adapt effectively will be constrained. Understanding
the nature and consequences of climate change is the
basis of any serious mitigation or adaptation policies
(Galeotti & Roson, 2012). In order to be able to im-
plement mitigation and adaptation, it is important to
assess what the cost of inaction would be, i.e. the eco-
nomic impact of climate change in a baseline scenario
in which no policies are implemented. The greening of
accommodation establishments (Hoogendoorn et al.,
2015) and attempts at creating carbon-neutral tourism
destinations could potentially be viable and address
both adaptation and mitigation strategies.
Methodology
The study included managers from 1,084 individual
tourist accommodation establishments from the terri-
tory of the entire Republic of Croatia, included in the
list of categorized objects on the Ministry of Tourism’s
website on March 7, 2019. The survey included cate-
gorized hotels and apart-hotels, hotel and apartment
complexes, categorized campsites, and marinas. It was
conducted using online surveys and was completely
anonymous, with targeted distribution of survey ques-
56 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
tionnaires, i.e. calls through professional associations
and competent bodies and chambers in the period
from April to June 2019. To determine beliefs and at-
titudes about climate change and the impact of cli-
mate change and tourist accommodation, a question-
naire prepared for this research was used, which was
based on the Euro Barometer Questionnaire 300 and
459 (European Commission, 2009, 2017). Further-
more, the questionnaire included a selection of modi-
fied questions used in previous research, but targeted
with regard to the target population – top managers
in tourist accommodation facilities in Croatia (Bo-
hdanowicz, 2005, 2006; Leiserowitz et al., 2018). The
final form of the survey questionnaire was obtained by
including a series of original questions aimed precisely
at the goals of this research and the target population,
thus creating an original questionnaire.
Attitudes and beliefs were explored using the at-
titude measurement scale. The expressed degree of
agreement with the proposed claims and the stan-
dardized manner of assessment determined the re-
spondent’s position. The first part of the questionnaire
used a series of 30 statements related to global warm-
ing and climate change, and the relationship between
tourism and climate change, according to which re-
spondents had to express their degree of agreement
with each statement on a 7-point Likert scale, with
grade 1 meaning ‘strongly disagree,’ 4 meaning ‘nei-
ther agree nor disagree’ and 7 meaning ‘strongly agree’
with the statement. The scale examined the cognitive,
intention of behaviour and affective components of
attitude. In the second part of the questionnaire, re-
spondents were offered 6 terms related to the parent
term ‘climate change and global warming,’ in which
they were asked to indicate the position best matching
their feelings about climate change and global warm-
ing on a 7-point scale, which additionally examined
the affective component of attitude. The action com-
ponent of attitude was examined through a series of
8 statements, each related to individual personal in-
volvement or intent to participate in any of the afore-
mentioned adaptation measures or measures for re-
ducing the negative impact of global warming through
personal actions, expressed on a 7-point scale.
Post hoc comparisons of p-values were performed
in each of the three component domains (cognitive,
affective, and conative) for each of the observed so-
ciodemographic characteristics. In order to analyse
the share and contribution of each component of the
attitude to the overall expressed level of environmental
awareness, some total factor scores (given the differ-
ent number of questions involved) were converted to
a scale from 0 (least agreement/no agreement with
each factor) to 100 (complete agreement with a factor)
according to the formula in which the numerator is
formed by the difference of the scores of the ladder of
each factor, reduced by the smallest possible amount
of the ladder of the factor, the denominator represents
the possible range of the ladder of factors, and the
result is multiplied by one hundred. Orientation to
the right (higher score) denotes ecologically friendly
intention of behaviour or understanding of the pat-
tern, consequences, and correlation of phenomena
with global warming and climate change.
ibm spss Statistics software version 25.0 was used
in the analysis. Data processing was performed using
Microsoft Excel. In the entire survey the Kolmogorov-
Smirnov test was used to analyse the distribution of
continuous numerical values, and corresponding non-
parametric tests were applied according to the ob-
tained data. Categorical and nominal values were pre-
sented using corresponding frequencies and shares.
Continuous values were presented using medians and
interquartile ranges, and the differences between them
were analysed by the Kruskal-Wallis test, and pre-
sented in a box and whisker plot showing median
values, interquartile ranges, minimum and maximum
values, and extreme values which differ from the me-
dians by more than 1.5 interquartile ranges.
Results and Findings
From the total of 1,084 categorized tourist accommo-
dation establishments, the survey collected a total of
283 fully completed questionnaires, which represents
a response rate of 26.1. The study included 283 par-
ticipants of different genders, of which 168 (59.36)
were male and 115 (40.64) were female. Analysing
the highest achieved level of education has shown that
among the 283 participants there were 77 participants
(27.20) with secondary school education, 66 partici-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 57
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
Table 1 Descriptive Statistics: Numerical Data for Cognitive Component
Category Item N sv sd Min Max Perc.  Median Perc.  P
Gender Male  . . . . . . . <.
Female  . . . . . . .
Educational level Secondary  . . . . . . . <.
High  . . . . . . .
University  . . . . . . .
Postgraduate  . . . . . . .
ngo membership No  . . . . . . . <.
Yes  . . . . . . .
Working experience
in tourism
< years  . . . . . . . <.
– years  . . . . . . .
> years  . . . . . . .
Table 2 Descriptive Statistics: Numerical Data for Affective Component
Category Item N sv sd Min Max Perc.  Median Perc.  P
Gender Male  . . . . . . . <.
Female  . . . . . . .
Educational level Secondary  . . . . . . . <.
High  . . . . . . .
University  . . . . . . .
Postgraduate  . . . . . . .
ngo membership No  . . . . . . . <.
Yes  . . . . . . .
Working experience
in tourism
< years  . . . . . . . <.
– years  . . . . . . .
> years  . . . . . . .
pants (23.32) with higher education, 124 participants
(43.81) with a university degree and 16 (5.67) with
postgraduate education. Regarding the length of em-
ployment or, to put it another way, the length of work-
ing experience in tourism, 65 (22.97) of respondents
have been working in tourism for less than 5 years,
133 (46.99) have been working for 5–15 years, and 85
(30.04) for more than 15 years.
For the visual presentation of obtained data a box-
plot was used as a standardized way of displaying the
dataset based on a five-number summary: the mini-
mum, the maximum, the sample median, and the first
and third quartiles. A boxplot, is a method for graphi-
cally depicting groups of numerical data through their
quartiles. For further analysis we addedTables 1–3 that
numerically show the elements of descriptive statistics
for each individual component of the attitude on the
basis of which the graphs were made.
Cognitive Component
The study found statistically significant differences in
the cognitive component of attitudewith respect to the
gender of managers, with female managers showing
statistically significant greater acceptance of the pro-
58 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
Table 3 Descriptive Statistics: Numerical Data for Conative Component
Category Item N sv sd Min Max Perc.  Median Perc.  P
Gender Male  . . . . . . . <.
Female  . . . . . . .
Educational level Secondary  . . . . . . . <.
High  . . . . . . .
University  . . . . . . .
Postgraduate  . . . . . . .
ngo membership No  . . . . . . . <.
Yes  . . . . . . .
Working experience
in tourism
< years  . . . . . . . <.
– years  . . . . . . .
> years  . . . . . . .
Figure 1 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Gender for the Cognitive
Component of Attitude
ecological claims offered compared to male managers,
or higher levels of environmental awareness (see Fig-
ure 1).
The post hoc comparisons showed that there is a
statistically significant difference in the attitudes of
managers depending on the level of education com-
pleted, and in each of the comparisons made between
the compared 4 groups, except when comparing the
attitudes ofmanagerswith a high school diploma com-
pared to those of postgraduate students. From the data
presented in Figure 2, it can be concluded that the
Figure 2 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Level of Education
for the Cognitive Component of Attitude
highest degree of acceptance of the claims, and thus
the highest level of environmental knowledge, was
shown by the managers with the highest level of edu-
cation. The lowest scores were recorded in the group
of respondents whose highest level is secondary edu-
cation, which confirmed the importance of the com-
pleted level of previous education in the formation of
the cognitive component of attitudes (see Figure 2).
Membership of respondents in non-governmental
(ngo) environmental associations was expected to
prove to be a statistically significant differentiating
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 59
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
Figure 3 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box and Whisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Membership in ngo
for the Cognitive Component of Attitude
factor for the cognitive component of managerial atti-
tude.Managers involved in the work of environmental
ngos are expected to express significantly more pro-
ecologically affirmative attitudes than socially non-
engaged respondents, relative to those who are not
active members of the ngo scene (see Figure 3).
Work experience has emerged through post hoc
comparisons as a factor leading to a statistically sig-
nificant difference in attitudes when comparing three
groups of respondents: those with less than five years
of work experience compared with those with 5–15
years of experience or compared with those respon-
dents with over 15 years of experience. Differences
were also confirmed when comparing the attitudes of
respondents with 5–15 years of experience compared
to those of respondents with more than 15 years of ex-
perience. The data shows that the group of managers
with the most seniority shows, in the cognitive atti-
tude component, the highest degree of acceptance or
agreement with the statements offered, compared to
the other two groups of respondents, related to the
most developed level of environmental awareness (see
Figure 4).
Affective Component
The study found statistically significant differences in
the affective, emotional component of attitudewith re-
spect to manager gender. Female managers showed a
Figure 4 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Years of Work Experience
in Tourism for the Cognitive Component
of Attitude
Figure 5 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Gender for the Emotional
Component of Attitude
statistically significant greater acceptance of the pro-
environmental assertions offered than male managers
(see Figure 5).
The conducted post hoc comparisons showed that
there is a statistically significant difference in the at-
titudes of managers depending on the level of their
highest completed education, and in each of the com-
parisons conducted between each of the 4 groups.
From the data presented in Figure 6, it can be con-
cluded that the highest degree of acceptance of the
60 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
Figure 6 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Level of Education
for the Emotional Component of Attitude
claims, and thus the highest degree of environmental
sensitivity in the affective, emotional component, was
shown by the managers with the highest completed
education, while the lowest results were recorded in
the group of respondents with the lowest, i.e. sec-
ondary education, thus confirming the importance of
the completed level of previous education in the atti-
tude formation process (see Figure 6).
Respondents’ membership in ngos, as expected,
proved to be a statistically significant differentiating
factor for the affective component of managerial atti-
tude. Managers involved in the work of environmen-
tal ngos are expected to have significantly more pro-
ecologically affirmative views than respondents not
engaged in the work of environmental ngos (see Fig-
ure 7).
Work experience has emerged through post hoc
comparisons as a factor that leads to a statistically sig-
nificant difference in managerial attitudes when com-
paring the attitudes of managers classified into three
groups: managers with less than five years of service,
managers with 5–15 years of service, and those with
over 15 years of service.
Differences were also confirmed when comparing
the attitudes of respondents with 5–15 years of experi-
ence with those of over 15 years of experience. The data
shows that the group of managers with the most years
of experience shows, in the affective, emotional com-
Figure 7 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Membership in ngo
for the Emotional Component of Attitude
Figure 8 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Years of Work Experience
in Tourism for the Emotional Component
of Attitude
ponent, the highest degree of acceptance or agreement
with the statements offered compared to the other two
groups of respondents (see Figure 8).
Behavioural, Conative Component
The study found statistically significant differences in
attitudes for the conative, behavioural component of
attitudewith respect to the gender ofmanagers, graph-
ically presented in Figure 9.
It can be concluded that female managers showed
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 61
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
Figure 9 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box and Whisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Gender for the Conative
Component of Attitude
a statistically significant greater acceptance of the pro-
ecological claims offered compared to male managers.
This points to the conclusion that women managers
are more sensitive to participating in environmental
actions and implementing environmental strategies
and plans (see Figure 9).
The post hoc comparisons showed that there is a
statistically significant difference in attitudes of man-
agers depending on the level of education completed,
and in each of the comparisons between the 4 groups,
except when comparing the attitudes ofmanagers with
completed university education with those with post-
graduate education.
From the data presented in Figure 10, it can be con-
cluded that the highest degree of acceptance of the
claims, and thus the highest degree of environmen-
tal sensitivity in the intention of behaviour component
was shown by the managers with the highest qualifi-
cations, while the lowest results were recorded in the
groupwith the lowest, i.e. secondary education. In this
way, the importance of the completed level of previous
education in forming the intention of behaviour com-
ponent of attitudes was confirmed (see Figure 10).
Respondents’ membership in ngos proved to be
a statistically significant differentiating factor for the
conative, intention of behaviour component of the
managers’ attitudes. Managers involved in the work of
ngos are significantly more pro-ecologically active
Figure 10 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box and Whisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Level of Education
for the Conative Component of Attitude
Figure 11 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Membership in ngo
for the Conative Component of Attitude
in practice, and thus exhibit significantly more pro-
ecologically affirmative attitudes than non-engaged
respondents.
The results presented in Figure 11 could perhaps
be explained by the assumption that there is positive
feedback between respondents’ engagement in envi-
ronmental actions organized by ngos and their pro-
environmental intention of behaviour in the tourism
business entity in which they hold a managerial posi-
tion (see Figure 11).
62 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
Figure 12 Differences in Respondents’ Attitudes Shown
in a Box andWhisker Plot with Respect
to Respondents’ Years of Work Experience
in Tourism for the Conative Component
of Attitude
Work experience has been shown through post hoc
comparisons as a factor that leads to a statistically sig-
nificant difference in attitudes when comparing three
groups of respondents depending on length of service,
or when comparing attitudes of those with less than
five years of service compared to those with 5–15 years
or with views of those with over 15 years of service.
Differences were also confirmed when comparing
the attitudes of respondents with 5–15 years of expe-
rience compared with those with more than 15 years.
The data presented in Figure 12 shows that the group
of managers with the most years of experience also
shows in the intention of behaviour component the
highest degree of acceptance or agreement with the
offered statements. This, in practice, means that the
highest pro-ecological intention of behaviour can be
expected from this group in comparisonwith the other
two groups of respondents (see Figure 12).
Discussion
Taking into account all other environmental problems,
climate change has become the biggest challenge and
threat to the survival of the human civilization, with
far reaching consequences and a wide influence on
and relationship with virtually every aspect of human
life. The 2014 International Panel on Climate Change
stated that ‘it is confirmed with near certainty that
human activities are the dominant cause of global
warming, leading tomultiplemanifestations of climate
change’ (ipcc, 2014). This paper is focused on the
beliefs and attitudes of tourism managers on the in-
terplay between climate change and tourism, because
the selection of a sustainable tourism development
strategy, and particularly its implementation, is closely
linked to the beliefs and attitudes of key decisionmak-
ers. That is, the views, beliefs and attitudes of topman-
agers, the decision makers, is what the success of the
implementation of the selected strategies depends on
(Schliephack &Dickinson, 2017). Attitudes and beliefs
are formed in the processes of socializing and are ac-
quired directly, based on experience with the object
of the attitude, or indirectly, through interaction with
the social environment. At the same time, attitudes,
as an acquired tendency to react either positively or
negatively to external persons, objects or situations, or
to one’s own qualities, ideas, or actions, are connected
to certain sociodemographic characteristics. This has
once again been confirmed by our results. Managers’
attitudes and beliefs are essential in planning how to
minimize or mitigate the negative impacts of climate
change on the tourist accommodation industry, be-
cause several authors suggest that unfortunately, no
prevention of negative tourism impact is possible, but
it is possible to manage impact better and/or to har-
monize it with the positive. It is always a matter of
optimizing the impact of the tourism, which is real-
ized through the effective management of the impact
(planning and developmental process) (Gursoy et al.,
2019).
At the same time, their attitudes are important for
implementing measures aimed at minimizing the im-
pact of how tourism contributes to global warming
through greenhouse gas emissions, especially hotel ac-
commodation and lodging, as well as transportation
(Gössling et al., 2012).
If we desire to make significant changes to en-
sure sustainable development, understanding man-
agers’ attitudes and beliefs is important in order to
understand the risks and opportunities for changing
the ‘business as usual’ practice which has become un-
sustainable (Becken & Hay, 2007). Considering the
sociodemographic characteristics of the respondents
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 63
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
and their correlation with the views expressed, previ-
ous studies, e.g. the results of the Eurobarometer sur-
vey, have also shown that more educated respondents
feel well-informed about climate change (its causes,
consequences andways of fighting it), ormore actively
perceive the phenomenon of climate change as a very
serious problem. They believe that the process may
be halted, that alternative fuel can be used to combat
it, and that climate change will have a more positive
impact on the European economy. This is in contrast
to respondents who spent a shorter time in education
who do not think climate change is a serious problem
(European Commission, 2009).
The importance of higher levels of completed ed-
ucation for developing environmental awareness and
connecting the cognitive with the conative compo-
nent has been previously shown by other researchers
(Bradley et al., 1999). They found that increasing en-
vironmental knowledge in some individuals results in
more positive attitudes and environmentally respon-
sible intention of behaviour towards the environment
(McMillan et al., 2004). The results of this study are in
agreementwith the results of a study conducted on the
general population in Croatia, which showed that the
level of education is a significant independent factor,
as the results indicate that the lower the level of edu-
cation, the lower the level of environmental concern
(Landau et al., 2009).
Since both consumers and service providers need
to develop pro-environmental attitudes and pro-envi-
ronmental intentions of behaviour, the role of in-
formed tourism managers as leaders of change is very
important for the further development of tourism.
Empirical research should identify, isolate, and cre-
ate holders of positive change. The first step is learn-
ing about their attitudes and beliefs, as well as con-
necting the cognitive, affective, and conative intention
of behaviour components, to which this research has
contributed. The most important limitations of the
survey are a relatively poor response rate of managers
to the call for participation in the survey, and a pos-
sible selection bias, as it could be assumed that more
managers who havemore pro-environmental attitudes
participated in the study because they value environ-
mental issues more.
Conclusion
Managers’ attitudes and beliefs are important in or-
der to anticipate, plan and direct the use of mitiga-
tion measures and to manage the negative impacts
of climate change and the tourist accommodation
industry. This research showed that there are very
few managers who are either personally engaged in
an environmental ngo or accept environmental ac-
tivism as their commitment, despite the strong link
between tourism, industry and ecology. The mem-
bership of respondents in an environmental associa-
tion or self-determined engagement in environmental
activism was analysed and 39 (13.78) active mem-
bers of different ngos were observed among the re-
spondents, compared to 244 (86.22) who did not re-
port membership or activist engagement in any ngo
or initiative. When comparing the three components
that are constituents of attitudes in accordance with
the theory of the threefold structure of attitudes, the
managers have shown that the most powerful and
positively-oriented was the intention of behaviour
component, followed by the cognitive and finally the
equally positively oriented conative component. It has
also been confirmed that the beliefs and attitudes of
managers in tourist accommodation differ based on
their various sociodemographic characteristics. The
results have confirmed that managers in tourist ac-
commodation facilities have established beliefs and
attitudes about the interinfluence of climate change
and tourist accommodation. After scoring the stated
degree of acceptance of individual claims according
to the seven-point Likert scale, it showed the specific
influence of various sociodemographic characteristics
on all three components of attitude. The presented
results have shown stronger pro-ecological attitudes
and higher levels of ecological awareness concerning
climate change amongmanagerswho are of the female
gender, who have completed tertiary education, who
havemore years of work experience and who consider
themselves as environmental activists. The results of
this paper provide insight that may be relevant for the
development of sustainable practices in the tourism
sector and particularly in the hotel industry, as they
contribute to understanding the attitudes of key deci-
sion makers and can provide the basis for predicting
64 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
their intention of behaviour in relation to implement-
ing environmental protection measures.
In future research, it is important to start from the
limitations of this research in two directions: it is nec-
essary to conduct a new study on a representative sam-
ple of managers and achieve full turnout in order to
avoid the selection bias present in this research. In
particular, an attempt should be made to compare the
stated intentions of behaviour with the field research
regarding the measures actually implemented in the
accommodation facilities themselves.
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Appendix: Exploring Attitudes and Beliefs of Leading
Managers in Tourism about the Reciprocal Impact of
Climate Change and Tourism and the Effect of Climate
Change on Shaping the TourismOffer
Greetings,
Your participation will enable insight into the attitudes and
beliefs of leading managers in tourism, who are exception-
ally important for implementing measures for adapting the
tourism sector to climate change. This research is conducted
for the purpose of preparing a doctoral thesis within the
scope of theManagement of SustainableDevelopment at the
Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management in Opatija.
As the research is oriented towards manager attitudes, we
kindly ask that the questionnaire be filled by a person at a
manager position in your company and/or object (owner or
member of the executive or oversight board, director, head of
the department for environmental protection or department
of quality or similar). We guarantee that the results will only
be used for academic purposes. Participation in the research
is anonymous and voluntary, and the results presented will
not be able to be traced to any person or company that fills
in the questionnaire. Filling in the questionnaire takes about
15minutes. Taking into consideration how precious time can
be, we thank you for participating and for your contribution.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Below are multiple statements concerning climate change,
global warning, and the relationship between tourism and
climate change. Please express the degree to which you agree
or disagree with each given statement on a scale from 1 to
7, where 1 means ‘I completely disagree,’ 4 means ‘I neither
agree nor disagree,’ and 7 means ‘I completely agree with the
statement. Pleasemark only one response to each statement.
1. Climate change is a serious global issue
2. Economy and tourism can be strengthened and em-
ployment increased by fighting climate change and a
more efficient use of energy
3. The impact of tourism accommodation on pollution
is negligible compared to the benefit it brings to the
local community
4. Climate change in the near future will have a signifi-
cant effect on shaping and developing the tourism of-
fer in Croatia
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 67
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
5. Global warming is predominantly caused by human
activity
6. Global warming is caused by activities related to nat-
ural causes and climate variation regardless of human
activity
7. The total impact of tourism on global warming and
climate change is significantly lower than the impact
from other economic activities
8. Climate change and globalwarmingwill endanger fu-
ture generations
9. Global warming is not actually happening at all
10. The hotel and tourism industries are big spenders
when it comes to energy and other resources
11. The tourism industry depends on a preserved envi-
ronment as a resource, while, paradoxically, it nega-
tively affects the environment at the same time
12. Environmental protection, in the sense of reducing
global warming, is paramount for the sustainable de-
velopment of tourism
13. It is important that the Government sets national
goals for increasing the use of renewable energy such
as wind or solar energy
14. Implementing the principles of sustainable develop-
ment in business practices is an important source of
competitive advantage
15. Scientists do not have a clear answer regarding what
causes global warming
16. It is important that the Government continuously se-
cures resources on the national level to support pro-
grammes for raising energy efficiency
17. Climate change is already significantly defining and
changing the development of tourism offers world-
wide
18. Climate change could endanger myself personally or
my family
19. Climate change causes insecurity regarding success-
ful business in tourism
20. An individual is powerless and helpless in the battle
against climate change
21. Pollution is an unavoidable consequence of develop-
ment
22. Even if climate change is happening, changes in the
environment, such as a rise in average temperature,
are so slow that there is no reason to be concerned
23. Over the last six months, I personally supported or
participated in activities focused on mitigating cli-
mate change
24. When making a choice for purchasing a new vehicle,
low fuel consumption and ecological parameters are
more important to me than the vehicle’s price
25. When building a new object or refurbishing an ex-
isting object, it is important for me to be guided by
the concept of low energy consumption, regardless of
higher initial investments
26. When choosing an energy supplier, if I had the choice,
I would choose the supplier providing a higher per-
centage of power from renewable sources, regardless
of higher prices
27. I try to reduce packaging waste by buying products
with recyclable packaging
28. I try to buy local food products from local producers,
even though themarket offers cheaper products from
other producers or imported products
29. When buying a new electronic or household appli-
ance, I choose primarily based on energy efficiency
and energy class
30. Every day I try to reduce water and energy consump-
tion
On a scale from 1 to 7, please mark to which degree think-
ing about climate change and global warming causes you to
feel the stated emotions, where a mark of 1 means ‘does not
cause the stated emotion at all,’ while amark of 7means ‘very
strongly causes the stated emotion.’
31. Fear
32. Anger
33. Helplessness
34. Indifference
35. Anxiety
36. Excitement
Here are some statements regarding global issues around the
world, including climate change. Please answer the following
questions by selecting one or more of the answers provided.
37. Which of the following problems do you consider to
be the currently most serious issue that the world is
facing? (Note: Please select only one answer.)
a) Climate change
b) International terrorism
c) Poverty, famine and lack of drinkable water
d) Spread of infectious diseases
e) Economic crisis
f) Proliferation of nuclear weapons
g) Armed conflicts and the refugee crisis
h) Global increase of population
i) None of the above
j) I cannot answer the question
38. What else, in addition to your answer to question 37,
do you consider to be serious issues that the world is
68 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
currently facing? (Note: Please select no more than
three answers from options 1–9, or one answer from
options 10 or 11.)
a) Climate change
b) International terrorism
c) Poverty, famine and lack of drinkable water
d) Spread of infectious diseases
e) Economic crisis
f) Proliferation of nuclear weapons
g) Armed conflicts and the refugee crisis
h) Global increase of population
i) Recession and economic crisis
j) None of the above
k) I cannot answer the question
39. According to your opinion,who in the eu is themost
responsible for the struggle against climate change?
(Note: Please select only one answer.)
a) National governments
b) European Union
c) Regional and local governments
d) Individual people
e) Environmental groups and movements
f) Global corporations
g) Someone or something else
h) All of the above
i) None of the above
j) I cannot answer the question
40. The following list contains procedures and activities
that can be done to reduce energy consumption and
affect climate change. Please select all options that . . .
what?
a) Primary waste selection and separation for collec-
tion
b) Automatic air conditioning control when opening
windows in accommodation units
c) Limiting the temperature in accommodation units
during the day and at night
d) Reducing external ambient lighting late at night
e) Reducing energy consumption (sauna tempera-
ture, jacuzzi, air temperature and similar) in well-
ness and spa zones at times when there are no
guests
f) Driving vehicles that use renewable energy sources
for transporting guests and goods within the ac-
commodation complex
g) Availability of bicycles and similarmeans of trans-
portation to reduce the use of cars in place of res-
idence
h) Limiting the use of chemical productswhenmain-
taining property
i) Implementing a programme for reusing bed linen
and towels in agreement with guests
j) Installing reduction valves, sinks and showers that
save time and water
k) Securing a part of the energy requirements from
own sources (solar panels and similar)
l) Encouraging guests to reduce waste generation
concerning unused food and leftovers from meals
m) Recycling and reusing waste whenever possible
n) Purchasing food products from local suppliers
whenever possible
o) Donating scrapped equipment, technology, furni-
ture, consumable supplies and similar to the local
community
p) Redistributing excess food to employees or the lo-
cal community
q) Designing leaflets to remind guests to use re-
sources (energy, food, water, . . .) responsibly
Please describe the characteristics of the tourism object in
which you hold the manager position
• Location of object
1. Adriatic Croatia
2. Continental Croatia
• Type of business
1. Seasonal business
2. Year-round business
• Size of object
1. Small (≤50 rooms/units)
2. Medium (51–100 rooms/units)
3. Big (>100 rooms/units)
• Available pool, fitness, spa and/or wellness or similar
1. Yes
2. No
• Category
1. 2-star
2. 3-star
3. 4-star
4. 5-star
• Type of object
1. Hotel or resort hotel
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 69
Aleksandar Racz et al. Managers’ Perspectives
2. Holiday village
3. Camp
4. Marina
• Primary reason for guests coming to your object
1. Congress/business tourism
2. Rest and recreational tourism
3. Health and wellness tourism
4. Other
• Type of guests
1. Individual guest
2. Family guests
3. Organized groups
4. Other
• Type of ownership
1. Individual object
2. Part of a larger chain of tourism objects (part of
domestic or international corporation or group)
3. Other
• Having a written Environmental Protection Policy,
either as an individual document or as part of a cur-
rently valid quality assurance certificate.
1. Yes
2. No
Sociodemographic information about the participant
• Gender
1. Male
2. Female
• Education level
1. Middle
2. Higher, undergraduate
3. High
4. Postgraduate degree
• Membership in pro-environmental organization or
active environmental activism
1. Yes
2. No
• Years of work experience in tourism
1. Less than 5 years
2. 5–15 years
3. More than 15 years
• Participant’s level of responsibility
1. Executive or Oversight Board member/Member
of object’s strategic management or owner group
2. Director/Object manager/Member of object’s op-
erative management
3. Head of Quality/Head of Environmental Protec-
tion
4. Middle management
5. Other
70 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Original Scientific Article
A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable
Practices in Hotel Businesses in Punjab, India:
Preliminary Findings
Baljit Kaur
kc Institute of Hotel Management, Punjab, India
baljitkr01@gmail.com
This primary study was aimed at exploring the critical barriers to environmentally
sustainable practices (esps) and suggestions to overcome them in the context of ho-
tel businesses. The study used a quantitative research technique, and the question-
naire was developed with the help of a thorough literature review, content analysis,
and pilot study. A total of 221 responses were collected from the managers and ex-
ecutives of 88 classified hotels in Punjab. The 202 usable responses were analysed
by descriptive analysis and Kendall’s W test. The results indicated that initial im-
plementation cost, high cost of certification, complicated certification process, lack
of awareness of the concept, weak legislation, change of routines and management
style, existing non-supportive structure, and low top-management commitment sig-
nificantly affect the adoption and implementation of esps. Kendall’s W test found a
statistically significant agreement among the respondents. This study recommended
some practical implications to overcome the barriers to esps, such as hotel compa-
nies startingwith small initiatives that require low initial investment, hotels lobbying
with regional hotel associations and government to get financial support, dissemi-
nating environmental communications to employees, firm environmental monitor-
ing methods and reward schemes by the government. This study is conducted in a
small geographical area that is otherwise awell-known tourist destinationworldwide
and results are consistent with the findings of previous studies that were conducted
globally. Future studies are suggested in larger geographical areas with a comparison
of two or more states.
Keywords: hotel businesses, environmentally sustainable practices, barriers,
suggestions, Punjab, India
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.71-86
Introduction
The tourism business is termed as ‘resource hungry’
(Sharpley, 2009) as it requires a significant amount of
natural resources both at the developmental and op-
erational levels (Knowles et al., 1999; Michailidou et
al., 2015). Hotels and other accommodation sectors
are the main components of the tourism sector and
they leave a visible impact on the surrounding envi-
ronment due to their distinct operating characteristics
and functions. Hotels are often accused of environ-
mental malpractices (Weaver, 2006).
The growth of hotel businesses is associated with
many adverse effects on destinations, such as exces-
sive use of energy, water, and local commodities, huge
waste production, exhausting the natural environ-
ment, etc. (Hsieh, 2012; Jones et al., 2014). These ef-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 71
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
fects are producing challenges to natural environmen-
tal conditions at the destination.
Besides being associatedwith the above-mentioned
negative impacts, the hotel industry is considered im-
portant by states for economic purposes and the de-
velopment of the quality of life of their peoples. How-
ever, developed nations have restricted the expansion
of hotel businesses, keeping in view the growing con-
sumption of water and energy and restricted natural
resources. Meanwhile, in developing countries, this
growth is enormous because of the abundant avail-
ability of human resources and natural wealth, in ad-
dition to less strict environmental laws (Ganiyusu-
foglu, 2013). The need to get economic benefits along
with reducing the negative environmental effect has
introduced the concept of environmental sustainabil-
ity in hotel businesses. The main motivational fac-
tors behind the environmental initiatives of hoteliers
are financial benefits (Musavengane, 2019), environ-
mental concern, legislation, competitiveness, and de-
mand fromgreen customers asmentioned byNair and
Anantharajah (2012). Previous studies have reported
the legislation and financial benefits as the most crit-
ical motivational factors for hoteliers (Rahman et al.,
2012). This concept of greening is not as successful as
eventually expected and is adversely affected by many
barriers (Jabbour et al., 2016). Many studies have fo-
cused on barriers to operations and green operations.
However, no research study has addressed the bar-
riers to green operations in the current study area of
Punjab, India. It is important to mention that Punjab
is a famous tourist destination for domestic as well as
international tourists. In 2019, the total tourist arrival
in the state was 48,486,730, which included 47,385,387
domestic tourists and 1,101,343 international tourists
(Punjab Tourism, n.d.). However, the hotel industry
in Punjab is responding significantly slowly even after
recognizing the proven benefits of going green. There-
fore, this study was conducted to study the barriers to
environmentally sustainable practices in the hotel in-
dustry of Punjab.
The study contributes to earlier research in three
ways. First, it provides theoretical and empirical trans-
parency about the critical barriers that hinder the
growth of esps in hotel businesses. Second, the study
area of Punjab is understudied by researchers in re-
lation to the dull growth of esps in the region. The
knowledge of barriers that are pre-shaping environ-
mental behaviour in the state will help in environmen-
tally sustainable decision-making while contributing
theoretical suggestions required for the strong and
fundamental basis of individual decisions (Lawhon
et al., 2013; Vagias et al., 2014 as cited by Van Riper
et al., 2020). Finally, this study discloses a significant
concern of the environmental research area by finding
the reasons behind the gap in the intentions of pro-
environmental organizations and the actual adoption
and implementation of environmentally friendly ac-
tivities in their operations (Kollmuss & Julian, 2002;
Schultz, 2011 as cited by Van Riper et al., 2020, and
Aragon-Correa et al., 2015; Law et al., 2014; Kim et al.,
2015, as cited in Chan et al., 2018).
The findings of this study also contribute ideas for
stakeholders to find a way past these barriers.
Literature Review
Efforts to save the environment started in 1970, but
were formally recognized during the Earth Summit
in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. During this sum-
mit, 172 countries decided to work with an environ-
mentally sound framework to reduce the negative im-
pact of businesses on the environment (Grubb et al.,
2019). The concept of sustainability is defined as ‘de-
velopment that meets the needs of the present with-
out compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their demands’ (Butlin, 1989). The concept of
sustainability was introduced in the hospitality indus-
try in later stages, as initially this industry was con-
sidered harmless to the environment. The pressure
of customers and stakeholders has encouraged hotels
to adopt green practices in context to save the envi-
ronment. Green Hotels Association (n.d.) has defined
green hotels as, ‘Environmentally-friendly properties
whose managers are eager to institute programs that
save water, save energy and reduce solid waste, while
saving money to help protect our only earth!’ Initially,
these green practices were associated with energy, wa-
ter, and waste reduction but now hoteliers have ex-
panded their initiatives in the area of sustainable site
planning, green construction, green purchasing, in-
72 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
door air quality, green transportation, noise control,
and community involvement.
Previous studies have reported that the environ-
mental initiatives of hotels are self-regulatory and vol-
untary to sustain the environment, energy conserva-
tion, water management, recycling, waste reduction,
and social welfare (Hsiao et al., 2014; Hoogendoorn et
al., 2015). However, Sharma and Mathur (2020) stated
that there is a gap between hoteliers’ environmental
good intentions and actual action. Hotels are found to
face difficulties in adopting environmentally sustain-
able initiatives due to some barriers (Chan et al., 2018;
Chan, 2020; Kaur, 2020).
Advantages of Environmentally Sustainable Practices
As adoption and implementation of environmentally
sustainable practices are considered as the most im-
portant recent practices in all types of businesses, their
influence on efficiency needs to be investigated. The
key reason behind participation in a sustainable ap-
proach is to attract some sort of benefits to the or-
ganization. A study of hotels in Kuala Lumpur in
Malaysia reported enhanced brand image and pro-
viding a healthy and safe ambiance to the guests as the
major advantage of esps (Zaiton et al., 2016). This
study observed that Malaysian hotels emphasize the
developing positive image of the company among cus-
tomers to attract financial gains. The study of hotel
businesses in developing countries shows a direct link
between the implementation of environmentally sus-
tainable practices and enhanced energy efficiency and
waste management techniques, environmental sus-
tainability, and competitive advantage by cost differen-
tiation of services (Aragon-Correa et al., 2015; Molina-
Azorín et al., 2015; Singjai et al., 2018; Kularatne et al.,
2019).
Studies of sustainable practices in construction,
clothing, and leather companies by Resta et al. (2018)
and Shurrab et al. (2019) also reported similar benefits
such as enhanced business image, competitive edge,
and increased fit to customers’ demands. Indian phar-
maceutical companies reported some other additional
benefits such as the satisfaction of stakeholders, a drop
in employees’ turnover rate, positive feedback of cus-
tomers, etc. (Gujar & Attarwala, 2020).
The Gap in the Study
The barriers to esps are studied by Chan (2008),
Jauhari and Rishi (2012), Kamalul Ariffin et al. (2013),
Van Riper et al. (2020) and many more. However, no
study tried to explore the barriers to esps in the con-
text of the Punjab hotel industry. Researchers and aca-
demicians never paid attention to the slow progress
of esps in the survey state of Punjab. The concept of
esps in the hotel businesses is flourishing in other
states of India, while Punjab is crawling with only one
Ecotel certified hotel in the state. Therefore, this study
was conducted to fill this existing gap by exploring the
aspects that negatively affect the implementation of
esps among the hotels in Punjab.
Theoretical Background: Barriers to ESPs
in the Hotel Industry
Previous researchers have classified the barriers as ex-
ternal and internal under the implementation of esps
(Oelze, 2017; Álvarez Jaramillo et al., 2019). Accord-
ing to Hillary (1998), the deficiency of knowledge of
environmental issues in association with lack of in-
formation and backing from government and man-
agement are a major hurdle in the implementation
of esps, mainly in small and medium-sized organi-
zations. Graci and Dodds (2008) stated in their study
that, hotels being different in size and category, cases of
going green are not readily shared among the industry.
Further, this study stressed the need to share informa-
tion on environmental issues and best environmental
practices among different categories of hotels.
The high initial implementation cost of esps was
found to be a major barrier in implementing the esps
in hotels in addition to an existing non-supportive
building structure that makes it difficult to implement
esps because of the need for major infrastructural
changes (McNamara & Gibson, 2008). Also, Micioni
(2009) reported that this initial high implementation
cost provides financial benefits in the long run. He
suggests startingwith small changes initially and grad-
ually incorporating larger changes. He further stated
that these changes should be incorporated to make
the environment better at the destination where the
hotels exist. Hotels also face barriers such as a lack
of engineers, vendors, housekeepers, landscapers, and
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 73
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
managers who are familiar with the green concept.
Another major barrier to going green is the lack of
demand from the customer side. The customer de-
mand for green services can directly influence the
hoteliers’ intention to go green (Satchapappichit et al.,
2020). Most of the customers are not conscious of the
green initiatives of hotels (Han et al., 2010). Many cus-
tomers associate green hotels with a lack of luxury
services (Ginsberg & Bloom, 2004; Nadia et al., 2020).
The green initiative of linen reuse is often linked to
the cost-cutting tool of concerned organizations and
affects guests’ experience, and theymight select to stay
in another hotel next time. The studies of environmen-
tal management in hotels and customers’ attitudes to-
wards these green practices by Amazonas et al. (2018)
and Jauhari and Manaktola (2007) reported that hotel
organizations are afraid to implement these practices
as they believe that the initial high operational cost
could not be charged to customers. A study of barriers
and drivers of environmental management systems in
the Lebanese food industry states that themain barrier
behind the implementation of esps is the absence of
government support and stakeholders’ demand. The
other reason is that iso 14001 and other such accred-
itations are not a legal requirement to run a food busi-
ness (Massoud et al., 2009).
In conclusion, many previous studies have recog-
nized common items of barriers as deficiency of envi-
ronmental knowledge (Saleh & Jawabreh, 2020), lack
of government support (Nyide & Lekhanya, 2016; Tan
& Teo, 2000), deficiency of pro-environmental atti-
tude (Kaur, 2020), deficiency of experienced human
resources (Chan, 2008), initial high implementation
cost and non-supporting infrastructure (McNamara&
Gibson, 2008; Chan, 2020), lack of customer demand
for green services (Jauhari & Manaktola, 2007), em-
ployees’ resistance to change, weak legislation (Bhal,
2014) and the high cost and complicated procedure of
green accreditation (Chan, 2020).
Research Methodology
The main objective of this study was to discover the
barriers to esps in the hotel industry of Punjab, India.
A total of 88 classified hotels were selected to meet the
objective. This study used a quantitative method. The
official letter about the objective of this surveywas sent
to all the concerned hotels in the survey area. This re-
search paper has adopted the survey technique to col-
lect firsthand information from the hoteliers.
Research Questionnaire Development
The research questionnaire was developed in four
stages. Firstly, the researcher developed the draft of a
questionnaire with 16 items to measure the construct
of barriers, keeping in view the items applied in pre-
vious studies (Ayuso, 2006; Park & Kim, 2014; Mittal,
2014). Secondly, the questionnaire was pretested in
two stages to check the content validity. In the first
stage, the questionnaire was evaluated by three doc-
torate academicians. In the second stage, the ques-
tionnaire was evaluated by twomanagers from the ho-
tel industry. The researcher took prior appointments
frommanagers according to their convenience so that
feedback could be gathered. The respondents were
encouraged to put remarks against the variables that
were not clear to them.Most of the experts mentioned
that the research questionnaire is easy to understand,
but some recommended a few modifications in some
questions. Overall, some problems were identified in
common in both stages. Therefore, some changeswere
made in the wording of some questions.
In the third stage, the research instrument was pi-
lot tested with 25 respondents. The reliability test was
applied to these responses to ensure the reliability of
statements and the Cronbach alpha coefficient value
of 0.864 indicated satisfactory reliability for all items.
A value above 0.7 is considered reliable (Pallant, 2005)
and acceptable (Sekaran & Bougie, 2016). Based on
Veal (2018), the purpose of the pilot study was to test
the questionnaire wording, questionnaire sequencing,
questionnaire layout, understanding of questions by
respondents, response rate, response time, test survey
arrangements, and test analysis methods. Finally, the
researcher developed the final version of the research
questionnaire with 14 items to measure the barriers.
Study Area and Sample
The research study selected Punjab in India as a study
area. Punjab is a famous tourist destination for reli-
gious and business purposes. This state has a range
74 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
of hotel establishments, ranging from basic economy
class to luxury class.
Thorough consideration was given to decide that
the sample for the study as the selection of the entire
population of all classified hotels was not feasible. The
current authentic list of classified hotels was not avail-
able for the state.
At first, it was decided to select the hotels that were
formally classified by the Hotel and Restaurant Ap-
proval and Classification Committee (hracc), but in
India, hotels enjoy the voluntary decision to get a clas-
sification from hracc, Ministry of Tourism. Most of
the hotels classify themselves according to facilities
and services provided to customers. In Punjab, there
are only eight hotels that are classified by hracc (as
of 10th March 2019). The data from eight hotels was
not enough to develop the generalization of the result.
Finally, a list of hotels was taken from the Hotel &
Restaurant Association of North India (hrani) web-
site by including as the sample all the 49 classified ho-
tels that were registered with the organization in 2018.
In addition to the census of these hotels, 39 additional
hotels (having more than 10 rooms) were selected on
the judgmental sample technique to collect more re-
sponses for generalizing the results.
hrain is the northwing of the Federation ofHotel
& Restaurant Associations of India (fhrai).
fhrai is a very reputable association of the hospi-
tality industry in India. It was established in 1955 with
the commitment to the progress of the hospitality in-
dustry through education, training, professional help,
research, and publications. It provides an interface be-
tween industry, government, and stakeholders.
Data Collection
The responses were collected on a 5-point Likert scale
ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly
agree. The respondents were asked to rate their agree-
ment or disagreement with the item based on the sig-
nificance they assign to an item (Veal, 2018), to explore
the positive or negative trend towards the proposition.
Responses were collected from managerial level per-
sonnel only. Following the purposive sampling tech-
niques suggested by Creswell (2016), these respon-
dents were selected because of their high level of par-
ticipation in policy formulation and strategy planning
and their awareness of esps. A total of 350 question-
naires were distributed in 88 classified hotels, 221 re-
sponses were obtained, and 202 responses were found
usable for conducting the data analysis.
The data collectedwas edited, coded, and evaluated
with the help of Statistical Package for Social Scientists
(spss) 22.0 for Windows.
Potential Items to Measure the Barriers
Manyprevious researchers (Levy, 2000; Bohdanowicz,
2006; Tzschentke, 2008; Bergin, 2010; Ustad, 2010;
Mittal, 2014; Chan et al., 2018; Chan, 2020) have re-
ported barriers to esps that are hindering the adop-
tion and implementation of esps in hotel businesses.
The barriers mentioned in previous studies have re-
ported the obstructing of the execution of esps in the
hotel business.
The identification of the final items to measure the
barrier was a careful and difficult task as the identifi-
cation of well-adopted variables from previous studies
was observed to be helpful for the respondents in re-
plying more conveniently (Rowlinson, 1988).
After the literature review, content validity, pilot
study, and reliability check, 14 possible barriers to
esps were identified for this study that are listed in
Table 1.
The Result Analysis and Discussions
The statistical outputs and analysis of this research
study are presented in the tables on the next pages.
Profile of Respondents of Punjab Hotel Businesses
The 88 hotels that were selected for the collection of
data include hotels having varying types of ownership,
category, sizes, and age of the property. The response
rate according to the profile of hotels has been pre-
sented in Table 2.
The small size hotels with rooms between 10 and 50
responded in great number and contributed 64.8 of
responses. The two-star, three-star and four-star prop-
erties contributed 81.7 of responses. In the category
of the type of ownership, locally owned and operated
contributed 42.6 of responses. In the category of the
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Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
Table 1 List of Potential Items for Barriers
Barrier Factors References
Initial implementation cost Levy (2000); Tzschentke
(2008); McNamara and
Gibson (2008); Ustad (2010)
Certification is costly Ustad (2010)
Complicated certification
process
Ustad (2010)
Lack of awareness of the
concept
Levy (2000); Bohdanow-
icz (2006); McNamara
and Gibson (2008); Bergin
(2010); Mittal (2014)
Weak legislation Doody (2010); Mittal (2014)
Change of routines and
management style
Ayuso (2006)
Existing non-supportive
structure
McNamara and Gibson
(2008); Ustad (2010)
Low top-management com-
mitment
Mittal (2014)
Little guest concern Hillary (2017)
Guests are uncooperative McNamara and Gibson
(2008)
Lack of professional help Barnes (2007); Ustad (2010);
Mittal (2014)
Limited green technology Ustad (2010)
Uncertain and/or insignif-
icant economic advantage;
slow return on investment
Revell and Blackburn
(2007); Ustad (2010)
Ineffective and/or non-
enforcement of laws; cor-
ruption; inadequate moni-
toring mechanism
Mittal (2014)
age of respondent hotels, the properties aged between
3–10 years contributed 61.38 of responses.
In conclusion, it is found that locally owned, small,
and medium sized hotel businesses from two to four-
star categories in the age group of three to ten years
contributed maximum responses to the data.
Ranking of Barriers
Each item is evaluated by combing the responses of
hoteliers on a 5-point Likert scale where 1 = strongly
Table 2 Response Rate According to Profile of Hotel
Businesses
Category Item f f ()
Number of
rooms in
respondent
hotels
–  .
–  .
–  .
–  .
>  .
Total  
Category of
respondent
hotels
One star  .
Two Star  .
Three Star  .
Four Star  .
Five Star  .
Five Star Deluxe  .
Total  
Type of
ownership
of
respondent
hotels
Part of an international chain
or group
 .
Part of a locally operated
chain or group
 .
Locally owned and operated  .
Total  
Age of
respondent
hotels
 years or less  .
 to  years  .
 to  years  .
 to  years  .
 to  years  .
 to  years  .
 years or more  .
Total  
disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = neither agree nor disagree,
4 = agree, 5 = strongly agree. Each result is evaluated
by the mean and normalized values that represent the
respondents’ view of each item.
Those hotels that were following esps in opera-
tions as well as those that had yet to implement them
reported the following significant barriers. The ini-
tial implementation cost was reported as the most sig-
nificant barrier with a mean value of 4.40 and sd =
0.65, followed by the cost of certification with a mean
76 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
Table 3 Ranking of Barriers Concerning the
Implementation of esps
Barriers () () () ()
Initial implementation cost . .  .*
Certification is costly . .  .*
Complicated certification
process
. .  .*
Lack of awareness of the
concept
. .  .*
Weak legislation . .  .*
Change of routines and
management style
. .  .*
Existing non-supportive
structure
. .  .*
Low top-management com-
mitment
. .  .*
Little guest concern . .  .
Guests are uncooperative . .  .
Lack of professional help . .  .
Limited green technology . .  .
Uncertain and/or insignif-
icant economic advantage;
slow return on investment
. .  .
Ineffective and/or non-
enforcement of laws; corrup-
tion; inadequate monitoring
mechanism
. .  .
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) mean, (2) stan-
dard deviation, (3) Rank, (4) normalized value.
value of 4.27 and sd = 0.79. The thirdmost influential
barrier was the complicated certification process with
a mean value of 4.25 and sd = 0.74. Lack of aware-
ness of concept remained in 4th place with a mean
value of 4.24 and sd = 0.80. The following four bar-
riers remained in 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th place respec-
tively: weak legislation with mean value 4.17 and sd =
0.81 (place 5), change of routine andmanagement style
with mean value 4.12 and sd = 0.80 (place 6), exiting
non-supportive structure with mean value 4.11 and
sd = 0.88 (place 7) and low top-management com-
mitment with mean value 4.05 and sd = 0.82 (place
8). The remaining barriers were not found to be sig-
Table 4 Kendall’s W Test Statistics
N 
Kendall’s W* .
Chi-square .
Degrees of greedom 
Asymp. significance .
Notes * Kendall’s coefficient of concordance.
nificantly important in hindering the implementation
of esps in the survey area.
Kendall’s W Test
Kendall’sW test is a normalization of the statistic of the
Friedman test and is applied to evaluate the tendency
of agreement between the respondents. Kendall’s W
ranges from value 0 to value 1 where value 1 rep-
resents complete agreement among the respondents
and value 0 denotes complete disagreement. Interme-
diate values indicate the greater or lesser degree of
agreement among the respondents. The Kendall’s W
value 0.101 and the significance level of Kendall’s W at
0.000 indicate statistically significant agreement be-
tween respondents about the barrier items to esps.
The Kendall W test and mean ranking of barriers to
esps yielded some very interesting results in context
of the actual adoption and execution of esps in the
hotel businesses of Punjab. Some barriers were not
found to be critical in the actual implementation pro-
cess of esps while others played a vital role behind it,
as per the reporting of respondent hoteliers.
Discussion
The identified critical barriers consistent with previ-
ous studies are discussed below.
Initial Implementation Cost
The result of this study reported the initial high imple-
mentation cost as the most influential barrier behind
the implementation of esps. According to Ann et al.
(2006), the implementation cost includes document
completion, the process of modification, adoption,
and implementation of the concept, hiring of profes-
sional staff, training of existing staff, procuring of re-
lated computer software, etc. It is difficult to go green
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 77
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
without a sound financial foundation. Thus, the initial
implementation cost was ranked among the top eight
barriers. The findings are consistent with a previous
study (Rowe, 2018) that also reported a high imple-
mentation cost as a significant barrier to esps.
Chan (2008 as cited by Calvache & Evra, 2008) re-
ported the opinion of hoteliers about the cost related
to greening the organizations as follows:
• ‘It is too expensive to install energy and water ef-
ficient equipment.’
• ‘Our financial resources have a significant influ-
ence on the type and scale of pro-ecological ini-
tiatives undertaken.’
• ‘Pro ecological initiatives are too expensive, al-
though profitable in the long run. That is, in
well-organized countries there are special finance
schemes available, such as grants, loans, tax re-
ductions, and other economic incentives. These
are economic aspects that play decisive roles in
the decision-making process concerning envi-
ronmentally oriented solutions.’
The adoption and implementation of esps were
found to be associated with the availability of financial
resources. According to previous studies as discussed
in earlier chapters, the infrastructure cost goes up by
10 to 15 if the building is to be made green to meet
the accreditation guidelines of certifying agencies.
The above findings indicate that there are signif-
icant costs associated with start-up as well as main-
tenance of the Environmental Management System
(ems) and this is the most significant barrier behind
the application process. To overcome this barrier, fi-
nancial institutions and banks should provide easy and
flexible grants and loans for implementing sustainable
technologies in the business. For example, in Hong
Kong, the banks are providing easy loans for the de-
velopment of green projects (Gou et al., 2013). It is also
necessary to intimate here that the initial cost of im-
plementation of esps must be compared against the
tangible and intangible payback in the future.
Certification is Costly
The certification cost is found to be the second most
influential barrier by the managerial responses. The
respondents were guided to mark the answers on a
Likert scale and most respondents agreed that get-
ting the green accreditation certificate is a costly affair.
The studies of Ayuso (2006) and Verma and Chandra
(2018) reported that different green certifying agen-
cies have different processes and fees for getting the
accreditation and there is a lack of standardized pro-
cess. In addition to this, recertifying is also very costly
and some certifications need to be renewed every year.
In conclusion, it is found that getting the green certi-
fication is a costly affair and even the renewal cost
is so significantly high that it is beyond the limit of
medium and small organizations. In Punjab, most of
the hotels are under the category ofmedium and small
businesses and face a lack of financial resources in the
context of getting the green certification.
Complicated Certification Process
In this study, the third most reported barrier was
the complicated process of getting a green certifica-
tion. The green concept is a continuous process that
needs regular management and evaluation for the ef-
fective implementation and actual environmental sus-
tainability at the destination. The research studies of
Chan and Wong (2006) and Ann et al. (2006) stated
five basic principles for the effective implementation
of esps in the organization: (1) commitment towards
environment and policy formulation, (2) planning the
environmental actions, (3) adoption and practicing
of environmental actions, (4) evaluation and correc-
tion of action, (5) management review. All the above-
mentioned principles require lots of paperwork, time
devotion, and commitment of topmanagement for ef-
fective working. Thus, it is concluded that getting the
certification and maintaining its effective working is
a complicated and difficult process that requires extra
time devotion of management and other concerned
staff, making it difficult to adopt and implement in
addition to routine working.
Lack of Awareness of the Concept
According to the result of this study, less awareness of
the green concept and the benefits associated with its
implementation was the fourth most reported barrier.
Inconsistent with this result, Chan (2008) and Graci
78 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
and Dodds (2008), in their studies, found a lack of
knowledge of the green concept to be a critical barrier.
As the concept of environmental sustainability is at a
growing stage in India, most of the hotels’ managers
reported a lack of knowledge of the concept.
Educating customers and industry people about
the environmental issues and benefits of implement-
ing esps in business would help to boost the accep-
tance and actual execution of environmental sustain-
ability in the companies. For achieving this purpose
there is a requirement of disseminating the environ-
mental information among the stakeholders employ-
ing research literature, seminars, conferences, and
print media, etc.
Weak Legislation
In this study, weak legislation is found to hinder the
implementation of esps. The findings reported that
hotel managers observe weak legislation to be an im-
portant barrier behind the implementation of esps.
Most of the respondents reported that hotel businesses
do not take environmentally sustainable initiatives be-
cause of the lack of environmental legislation and reg-
ular environmental inspection by government agen-
cies. This observation is consistent with the results of
Mittal (2014), who reported weak legislation as the
most important barrier behind the implementation of
esps. According to Chan et al. (2018), the hotel busi-
nesses would meet the terms of expectations regard-
ing environmental sustainability if well defined in the
form of legislation requirement.
The findings suggest that government agencies,
through legislation and power to pressurize the hotels
to implement the esps, can stimulate the environ-
mental decisions of organizations. Hotel businesses
that are lacking in the effective implementation of
esps should be suitably punished by imposing penal-
ties for the same.
Change of Routine and Management Style
Another significant barrier behind esps’ implemen-
tation is the resistance to change of deep-rooted old-
style routine andmanagement. This barrier is found to
have a close association with other barriers such as ini-
tial implementation cost, the lack of awareness of the
concept, lack of professional experts, etc. In the con-
text of this study, this factor is considered as a mod-
erately critical (not the utmost critical) barrier. This
factor received an average response from managers,
and the reason may be associated with the fact that
respondents were not willing to accept this factor to
be associated with them.Most hotel managers work in
conventional ways and are not comfortable in chang-
ing their way of working. Moreover, the hotel industry
is a completely commercial sector and managers are
paid to earn profits for the organizations. Therefore,
managers do not propose changes to top management
that require huge investments and change in conven-
tional routine work. The findings are consistent with
the previous studies of Köseoglu et al. (2018) andOku-
mus et al. (2017) which stated that change-resistance is
a significant barrier in the environmental sustainabil-
ity process.
Existing Non-Supportive Structure
This factor received an average response, neither too
high nor very low by the respondent managers. The
implementation of environmentally sustainable ac-
tions requires many infrastructural alterations in the
existing buildings, such as installation of water and
energy conservation fixtures and equipment, solar
energy systems, rainwater harvesting, installation of
vacuum-sealed double-glazed windows, etc. These in-
frastructure changes are also associated with signifi-
cant expenses. In this study, 13 percent of sample hotel
properties were more than fifteen years old with con-
ventional infrastructure features. The reason for the
average response for this barrier might be the lack of
awareness in the respondents about the infrastructure
changes required to introduce the esps in the organi-
zation. The significance of this barrier is also reported
by Mak and Chang (2019).
Low Top Management Commitment
The item ‘low topmanagement commitment’ received
an average response by the managers of respondent
hotels. Respondents do not feel that top management
is less devoted to the adoption of esps in the organi-
zation. The slow progress of the green hotels may be
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 79
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
linked to the non-popularity of the concept in the re-
gion rather than associating it with low support of top
management.
Summary: To sum up, it is stated that the accep-
tance and implementation of esps in hotel organiza-
tions have gained a high level of attention globally.
However, the adoption of this concept in Asian coun-
tries like India is still at the beginning stages and facing
many barriers. These barriers should be overcome to
boost the growth of the environmental sustainability
concept in the hotel industry. This research study was
an attempt to identify the barriers which are hindering
the acceptance and actual implementation of the en-
vironmental sustainability concept in the region. The
study applied a survey method to collect the overall
202 responses. There are two categories of barriers,
significant and non-significant. The variables having
Normalized Value more than 0.50 were considered
significant and variables having Normalized Value
lower than 0.50 were considered as non-significant.
The findings reported that 8 out of 14 barriers were
significantly hindering the acceptance and execution
process of esps in the hotel businesses. The most sig-
nificant barriers were identified as initial implemen-
tation cost; the cost of certification; complicated cer-
tification process; lack of awareness of the concept;
weak legislation; change of routine and management
style; existing non-supportive structure; and low top
management commitment towards the concept.
However, the rest of the barriers such as little guest
concern; guests are un-cooperative; lack of profes-
sional help; limited green technology; uncertain and/
or insignificant economic advantage; slow return on
investment; ineffective and/or non-enforcement of
laws/corruption/inadequate monitoring mechanism
were not found to be significant in hindering the pro-
cess of adoption and implementation of esps.
Suggestions to overcome these barriers are pro-
vided in Table 5.
Managerial Implication
It is clear from the findings that knowledge of critical
barriers is important to ensure the effective implemen-
tation of esps and to sustain the natural environment.
The barrier of initial investment and high cost of certi-
fication is important during esps’ adoption and hotel
businesses need to focus on the development of finan-
cial resources.
The implication of this study will help the local
government and hotel businesses in Punjab to under-
stand the critical barriers that might hinder the pro-
cess of establishing the actual esps. The stakehold-
ers can prepare strategies well in advance to overcome
these barriers. It is also necessary to enhance the en-
vironmental knowledge of hoteliers. This research can
be extended to understand the difficulties faced by dif-
ferent categories of hotels in implementing the esps
in their organizations.
The findings of this study help to adopt and im-
plement the esps more easily in hotel businesses in
the small tourist states. This research can be very in-
formative to the businesses that need to change their
conventional way of operations to esps. However, all
the barriers cannot be removed at the same time but
should be removed one after another.
Opportunities for Implementation
of Environmentally Sustainable Practices for Hotel
Business in Punjab, India
The adoption and implementation of esps are un-
derstood not only as having high initial cost but po-
tentially associated opportunities also. These results
indicate that esps’ benefits go further beyond the ini-
tial high implementation costs. Regulatory compli-
ance is found as the most important benefit in addi-
tion to awards and appreciations at different levels and
favourable guest behaviour. The reduced health risk
and accidents are also reported by Sangle and Shitole
(2017). Previous research studies have identified nu-
merous opportunities associated with the implemen-
tation of esps in organizations, such as competitive
edge, cost savings, customer loyalty, employee reten-
tion, legal compliance, social responsibility and risk
management, etc. Punjab has a huge array of hotels
located in the state that cater to the needs of tourists.
According to an article of The Hindustan Times (a
renowned newspaper of India), Punjab holds 12th po-
sition in India in the context of overall tourist arrival
in the state as cited by Sharma (2017). This sample
state earned 224 million usd in 2012 from tourists,
80 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
Table 5 Possible Approaches to Overcome the Barriers
Barriers Possible approaches
Initial implementation cost Hotel companies can start with small initiatives that require low initial investment
such as using energy-efficient lighting, low-pressure taps and showerheads, reduce
and reuse waste, etc. The active involvement of the engineering department can also
help minimize the implementation cost (Chan et al., 2018).
Certification is costly Hoteliers to work with hotel associations to lobby with the government to suggest
financial support for the adoption and implementation of esps (Cheung & Fan,
2013).
Complicated certification process esps consulting is suggested (Miles et al., 1999).
Lack of awareness of the concept Hotel organizations should share environmental knowledge with counterparts (Chan
et al., 2018).
Weak legislation The government should introduce some effective and firm environmental laws for
businesses and offenders should be punished strictly. In India, the Environmental
Impact Assessment (eia) 2006 needs to be more effective (Bhal, 2014).
Change of routines and manage-
ment style
Develop an environmental vision by disseminating information on environmental
issues of non-sustainable behaviour as suggested by Yuriev et al. (2018).
Existing non-supportive structure The green certification of existing buildings (Indian Green Building Council, n.d.)
does not require major infrastructural changes.
Low top-management commit-
ment
Managers can convey the tangible benefits of implementing esps to owners/top
management (Chan et al., 2018).
while it devoted only 0.19 of the state budget to-
wards tourism activities. The domestic tourist arrival
in the state was 2.57 crores in 2015 as compared to
1.05 crores in 2010. Similarly, the international tourist
arrival has also seen a rise and was 2.42 lakh as com-
pared to 1.37 lakh in 2010 (Sharma, 2017). The research
study of Singh and Singh (2017) observed a signifi-
cant contribution of the service sector to the Gross
State Domestic Product (gsdp) in the state, and hotel
and restaurant businesses were found to play an im-
portant role within this service sector’s contribution.
As this sector plays a significant role in the economy
of the sample state, its growth cannot be suggested to
stop. So, it is found that the implementation of esps in
hotel businesses in Punjab is of foremost importance
for the achievement of both the survival of the indus-
try and maintaining the sustainability of the environ-
ment.
Limitations and Suggestions
This empirical study has some limitations also. Data
was collected by a quantitative research questionnaire
from hoteliers in Punjab and thus are not broadly gen-
eralizable. The data collected was limited to the hotel
managers’ views on the barriers to esps.
Despite the small size sample, this research study
should be seen as a primary step in exploring the ob-
served barriers behind the implementation process
of esps, and that stimulates the curiosity of other
researchers to carry out confirmatory research with
larger geographical area and sample size to validate
the conclusions of this study.
This study has not explored the effect of the size
of hotels, ownership style of hotels, or category of ho-
tels as barriers to esps. Further studies can evaluate
the effect of these characteristics on the adoption and
implementation of esps.
The barriers identified in this study have proven in-
fluence on the adoption and implementation of esps
but not on environmental attitudes. Future research is
thus suggested to explore whether these barriers affect
hoteliers’ environmental attitudes and if so, the ways
to overcome them should be studied.
The recommendations given in this study to over-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 81
Baljit Kaur A Study of Barriers to Environmentally Sustainable Practices
come the various barriers need more details that are
possible with additional research. Future research sho-
uld explore the success rate of these recommendations
and build strong execution plans for businesses that
want to incorporate esps in their organizations.
Conclusion
The tourism or the hotel industry is a people-oriented
industry and thus the impact of the individual hotel
is not the direct focus of the environmentalist or re-
searchers and this results in the slow adoption rate of
esps. Besides this, hotel businesses vary in sizes and
star classification, thus business cases of esps are not
voluntarily shared among businesses. The same prob-
lem has been discussed in many international con-
ferences such as The Responsible Travel and Tourism
Forum 2008, The International Ecotourism Society
Eco and Sustainable Tourism Summit 2008, and The
Tourism Industry Association of Canada Sustainabil-
ity Forum 2008.
To make the Punjab hotel industry more environ-
mentally sustainable, many barriers need to be over-
come, such as financial crunches, weak legislation, low
top management commitment, existing infrastruc-
ture, lack of organized information, and conventional
work methods.
There is a need to share information about best
green practices by established businesses with small
and medium-sized hotel organizations to guide them
tomove forward towards greening the business. There
is a need for a top-down approach starting from strict
environmental legislation to involvement of top man-
agement to final implementation strategies. The hotel
managers need to change their conventional methods
of work and realize that some esps are practical, easy
to implement, and cost-effective, and can reduce envi-
ronmental impact and attract financial gains to orga-
nizations, too. Besides this, because the composition
of the Punjab hotel businesses is complex and uneven
due to various sizes, clientele, type of ownership, loca-
tions, and influences of stakeholders, an action plan of
information-sharing regarding best esps and bene-
fits associated is required for effective implementation
of the green concept. Policymakers, managers, and
other operational staff need to develop a positive envi-
ronmental attitude and work collectively to achieve a
country-wide environmental commitment. Currently,
hotel businesses are self-driven towards environmen-
tal sustainability rather than demand-driven. The en-
vironmental commitment ensures competitive advan-
tage and improved business performance that leads
to reduced costs, improved brand image, and future
alignment with customer demand. The hotel busi-
nesses need to move forward to sustain the environ-
ment and to safeguard the future of the industry itself.
The green issues, sustainability, environmentalman-
agement, and corporate social responsibility are the
key issues of future research in the field of hospitality.
Responding to the call for research in these key areas,
the results of the current study not only help in fill-
ing the research gap by identifying the barriers behind
the implementation of esps in the developing coun-
tries and contributing to theoretical knowledge but
also offer a valued foundation for policymakers and
stakeholders to take suitable actions to mitigate the
barriers related to the implementation of esps and
subsequently promoting the environmental sustain-
ability concept in the hotel businesses.
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86 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Original Scientific Article
Quality of a Rural Destination:
Visitor and Resident Approach
Kateřina Mlejnková
Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic
katerina.mlejnkova@mendelu.cz
Tomáš Dania
Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic
tomas.dania@mendelu.cz
Ida Rašovská
Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic
ida.rasovska@mendelu.cz
Destination quality is a complex set ofmany factors.Methods of evaluating these fac-
tors are subject to continuous research. An evaluation of the visitors’ and locals’ sat-
isfaction and using the results to manage the quality and sustainable development of
the destination is a possible approach. This article applies importance-performance
methodology to analyse a rural region in theCzechRepublic. Using ipa analysis, the
factors that most affect the satisfaction of visitors and residents are identified. The
differences in the perceptions of visitors and residents are statistically significant,
e.g., visitors consider the factors ‘overcrowding’ and ‘friendly acceptance by locals’
to be more important. At the same time, both groups have some awareness of the
importance of sustainable tourism and the quality of services. The results indicate
that in the region there are areas of improvement and performance, furthermore,
they point out opportunities for the improvements mentioned. Moreover, the main
difference between the performance (meaning the perceived level of quality of the
service provided in the destination) and the importance of research factors has been
determined. Based on the results, recommendations for destinationmanagement are
formulated.
Keywords: quality, resident, visitor, rural destination, ipa
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.87-99
Introduction
Tourismplays a big role in industryworldwide and it is
one of the fastest-growing sectors. Usually, it is related
to gnp, employment and other economicmacro indi-
cators (Politis et al., 2009). Travellers can choose from
a wide variety of destinations, which implies that a
destination is easily replaceable. For this reason, com-
petitiveness between destinations is evident and the
importance of tourism grows as well (Ayikoru, 2015).
For tourism destinations, competitiveness is essential,
and each company or destination should find a bet-
ter approach in competing with others by enhancing
its products so that they gain a competitive advantage
(Go & Govers, 2000).
Quality is a factor strengthening competitiveness
(Ennew et al., 1993) and influencing not only a posi-
tive perception of a service but also of an entire des-
tination (Su et al., 2016; Weaver et al., 2007). unwto
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 87
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
(n.d.a) defines quality as the result of a process that
leads to meeting all legitimate needs, requirements
and expectations of a customer concerning a service
product, all this for an acceptable price in compliance
with mutually accepted contract conditions and de-
termining qualitative determinants, such as security,
hygiene, availability of tourist services, transparency,
authenticity and harmony of tourist activities with the
human and natural environment. Determination and
evaluation of destination quality is not easy due to its
complexity, level of subjectivity when evaluating qual-
ity and the specific character of the services (Hudson,
2008). The quality of the destination also encompasses
satisfaction of visitors, residents and other stakehold-
ers. At the same time, emphasis is placed on the qual-
ity of the environment (European Commission, 2003).
According to Ryglová et al. (2017), visitors’ overall sat-
isfaction is influenced by a set of factors constituting
destination quality.
It can be stated that developing and maintaining
the quality of the destination is a long-term process.
Destinationmanagement often does not knowvisitors’
important factors for and what assure their satisfac-
tion in the destination (Rašovská et al., 2020). Accord-
ing to Caber et al. (2012), destination authorities and
managers have to identify those destination attributes
which are the most vital determining factors in cus-
tomers’ satisfaction. It is also advisable to examine the
satisfaction of local residents. Therefore, the aim of
this study is to perform an importance-performance
analysis and provide valuable information for destina-
tion management.
This paper’s objective is to evaluate destination
quality by means of a complex set of factors appli-
cable for destinations using importance-performance
analysis (ipa), in the rural destination of the Mora-
vian Karst in the Czech Republic. The research ques-
tion, whether there is a difference in the perception
of selected factors by destination between a group of
visitors and residents, was formulated based on a liter-
ature review (Herrera et al., 2018). The analysis will be
done separately for both residents and visitors andwill
clarify whether there are any differences between their
perceptions of performance quality factors in the des-
tination. The authors’ aim is to determine differences
in perception between tourists and residents, even in
less-visited destinations that do not suffer from over-
tourism, and whether it is necessary to examine these
groups separately. The outcome will be suggestions
to boost destination quality, integrating both groups’
requirements.
Factors of Destination Quality
The concept of destination is closely outlined as a tar-
get area that offers the attractiveness and infrastruc-
ture of tourism (Zelenka & Pásková, 2012). Ryglová et
al. (2015) indicate that it is appropriate to focus on de-
tailed structure and analyse components which can be
considered as determining for a destination’s success.
Goeldner andRitchie (2014) define the destination as a
geographically delimited area in which the visitor gets
different experiences. For Bieger & Beritelli (2012), the
destinationmeans a space, which is chosen by the vis-
itor as a target of their journey. It must comprise of all
necessary facilities for accommodation, boarding, and
entertainment.
Buhalis (2003) defines five characteristic compo-
nents of destination:
• Attractions (a primary offer of tourism that due
to its amount, quality and attractiveness acti-
vates attendance, for instance, natural, cultural-
historical potential).
• Accessibility and ancillary services (a general in-
frastructure which enables access to the destina-
tion and travelling to the attractions in the desti-
nation; also, services used mainly by local inhab-
itants, such as telecommunication, medical and
banking services).
• Amenities (superstructure and infrastructure of
tourism that enable the stay in the destination
and utilizing its attractions, for example, accom-
modation, sports- recreational, cultural-social fa-
cilities).
• Available packages (prepared products and prod-
uct packages).
• Activities.
Middleton and Clarke (2001) add image and per-
ception of the destination and price. According to
some authors (Dortyol et al., 2014), individual factors
88 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
can be grouped into categories, e.g. employees (friend-
liness, politeness, willingness), room equipment, food
quality, material items, prices, transport, climate, hy-
giene and security. Milošević et al. (2016) add that
within these factors, some others can be allocated,
such as internet coverage, destination information,
transport providers’ quality, activity offer quality,med-
ical assistance, local dwellers, destination cleanliness
or level of pollution. As other authors confirm, a visi-
tor’s satisfaction with a destination is not only elicited
by their experience with tourism services but also by
other endogenous factors such as security, hospitality,
the local population’s friendliness, destination cleanli-
ness, traffic infrastructure or the level of tourismman-
agement (Ashworth & Page, 2011).
A destination is not just a product, but a whole sys-
tem composed of several elements and relationships
(Barrado, 2004). A destination strives for a complex
offer of a service chain. The visitor then purchases and
consumes these services in the destination. Therefore,
it is possible to view a destination as a single product,
consisting of many services offered to satisfy the vis-
itors’ expectations. The need to adopt quality-based
strategies to develop customer service has been high-
lighted in service providers, where customer subjec-
tivity plays a substantial role. It is because everyone
perceives the service provided differently, and there-
fore, services are difficult to standardize (Caruana et
al., 1999). Kotler and Keller (2007) describe service as
an activity offered by one to another.
Marketing plans and promotional strategies (price,
quality, image) are considered as key for destination
competitiveness (Go & Govers, 2000). Therefore, this
planning process should be based on an analysis of a
destination’s competitive factors (Hassan, 2000). One
of the possible approaches to destination quality re-
search is to investigate visitors’ satisfaction. A visitor’s
overall satisfaction is influenced by a set of factors con-
stituting destination quality. These factors represent-
ing quality are the destination’s primary potential (nat-
ural and cultural attractions), services provided, ac-
cessibility, destination management activities, and as-
pects of sustainability. At the same time, it is necessary
to observe not just the functional but also the techni-
cal quality of services (Ryglová et al., 2017). In addition
to determining the satisfaction of visitors, it is also im-
portant to reveal the perception of residents (Herrera
et al., 2018). It is also crucial for the sustainable devel-
opment of a destination to know the requirements of
more than one stakeholder group (Herrera et al., 2018).
Importance-Performance Analysis
ipa is a commonly used research technique, which al-
lows researchers and practitioners alike to understand
customer satisfaction and to formulate strategies for
improvements in products/services (Bi et al., 2019).
This method was first introduced in the work of Mar-
tilla and James (1977) and is a basic diagnostic and
decisive tool (Johns, 2001; Matzler et al., 2003) that
facilitates the identification of factors with the high-
est priority for improvement (Sampson & Showalter,
1999) and, according to Levenburg and Magal (2004),
also the mobilization and development of the most re-
quired resources.
In one of the latest researches, Azzopardi and Nash
(2013) subjected ipa to a critical analysis and, on the
basis of analysingmore than forty authors’ works from
the period of 1977–2007, they claim that despite its cer-
tain deficiencies, ipa is recommended and utilized in
the area of tourist services as a method that is rela-
tively easily applied in empirical studies. ipa and its
use in literature focusing on hospitality and tourism
were also studied by Lai and Hitchcock (2015), who
revised analyzed nearly 60 articles and created a com-
pact survey of the possibilities in applying ipa, with-
out subjecting these utilizations to a critical analysis.
The authors Caber et al. (2012) use ipa for assess-
ing destinations’ attributes. The article shows empir-
ically that market segments differ significantly within
these two dimensions of the analysis, and thus it is sug-
gested that ipa should be conducted on the segment
rather than the aggregate level. Twenty quality factors
have been assessed on a scale of five and a compar-
ison of specific segments has been performed (Ger-
man, British, Dutch and Russian respondents). The
empirical basis of the article is laid by a sample of 821
customers in a Turkish destination. They found that
ipa using an isoline of importance and performance
instead of the traditional quadrant analysis yields bet-
ter results and increases the diagnostic value of ipa.
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Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
Using this tool, it is possible to identify the relative im-
portance and performance of individual factors that
have an impact on the observed quality. There are two
possibilities for using the ipa analysis – data-centred
(Ramakrishnan & Usha, 2016) and scale-centred data
(Tonge&Moore, 2007).Median values which are used
in the scale-centred ipa and are utilized in this arti-
cle, according to some authors, tend to ‘inflate’ the re-
sults (Oh, 2001).When using a data-centred approach,
the attributes are outlined according to their relative
importance-performance (Boley et al., 2017).
Methodology
In this study, the quality of the rural area Moravian
Karst in the Czech Republic and differences between
the perception of visitors and residents are being in-
vestigated. The dominant attractions of this region are
their interesting and valuable natural resources and
scenery, caves and rock structures. Yearly, this region
with fourteen caves welcomes about 360 thousand vis-
itors (Ekolist, 2018). Since the 90s, the Moravian Karst
has implemented some restrictions and only a cer-
tain number of visitors can enter. Therefore, it is not
an overcrowded place. Additionally, according to the
marketing strategy (Centrála cestovního ruchu – Jižní
Morava, 2019), the Moravian Karst has the lowest vis-
itor turnout and overnight stays in South Moravia.
The forms of tourism are the following: natural-
oriented tourism, ecotourism, bicycle touring, hiking
etc. (Pásková, 2009). The 20 factors of quality (Ap-
pendix 1) which were used in the questionnaire were
formulated based on the previous researches about the
quality components of the destination (Buhalis, 2003;
Middleton&Clarke, 2001; Ashworth& Page, 2011; Ry-
glová et al., 2015; Milošević et al., 2016).
A questionnaire was self-administered in the re-
gion of theMoravian Karst and its surroundings in the
CzechRepublic using the tool quota sampling (gender,
age) from August to October 2017. The data were con-
ducted electronically on the internet and social net-
works, as well as through personal examination at the
destination and placement at the information centres.
The questionnaire was developed to understand the
visitors’ and residents’ evaluation of the destination’s
quality. A range from 1 = ‘not at all important/satisfied’
to 5 = ‘extremely important/satisfied’ was used for the
questions for importance/performance characteris-
tics.
To ensure the representativeness of the question-
naire, it was necessary to determine the appropriate
number of respondents. A statistical approach based
on the following formula was used to determine the
minimum number of respondents:
n ≥ z
2 × p × q
Δ2
.
In this formula, n is the minimum number of re-
spondents, z is the reliability coefficient, p and q are
the numbers of respondents and the maximum per-
missible error (Kozel, 2006):
278 ≥ 2
2 × 0.5 × 0.5
0, 062
.
In the case of this questionnaire survey, the relia-
bility coefficient was set at 2, which corresponds to a
95 probability of assertion. According to the calcu-
lation, the minimum number of respondents is 278.
Thus, two quotas were set in advance for the selection
of respondents and age and gender. According to data
from the Czech Statistical Office on the age composi-
tion of the population as at 31 December 2016, a quota
sample for age and sex was set.
A total of 408 respondents covering these charac-
teristics (such as gender, age, education, and employ-
ment) were obtained, of which 50.3 were visitors and
49.7 residents. Nevertheless, a total of 94 failed to ap-
propriately respond, leading to a total of 314 usable re-
sponses. The sample included an equal number of visi-
tors (50.3) and residents (49.7). The detailed struc-
ture of respondents is shown in Table 1.
The data is equally distributed and accurately re-
flects the demographic development. Based on this,
some parametric statistical methods can be used (t-
test). The testing was conducted at a 5 level of sig-
nificance and different perceptions of factors between
visitors and residents have been examined. The results
in Table 2 show only statistically significant values and
p-values.
To analyse data, Importance-performance analysis
(ipa) was utilized. The analyses divide the attributes’
performance and importance dimensions into four
90 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
Table 1 Sample Characteristics
Category Item Visitor Resident
Gender Male . .
Female . .
Age – . .
– . .
– . .
– . .
– . .
– . .
> . .
Education Trade school . .
High school  .
College graduate . .
Notes In percent.
Table 2 Statistically Significant Differences
in the Perception of Factors between Residents
and Visitors
Factors () ()
f Cultural and social attractions Importance .
Performance .
f Accommodation Importance .
Performance .
f Friendly acceptance
by the locals
Importance .
Performance .
f Overcrowding of the desti-
nation
Importance .
Performance .
f Additional infrastructure Importance .
Performance .
f Certification of accommo-
dation and food services
Importance .
Performance .
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) perception of
factors, (2) p-value (sig. 2-tailed).
quadrants which are easy to interpret and for acquir-
ing practical suggestions (Dwyer et al., 2016). The
four quadrants dividing quality factors are the follow-
ing: ‘Key Features/KeepUp the GoodWork,’ ‘Concen-
trate here/Shortfalls,’ ‘Low priority factors’ and ‘Strate-
gic/Possible Overkill.’ The results of the ipa analysis
are thus presented utilizing a two-dimensional graph
with the average value of importance on the vertical
axis and the average performance on the horizontal
axis (Wong et al., 2011).
Factors represented in ‘Key Features’ have a very
positive evaluation by clients and they have immense
importance. Thus, destination management and lo-
cal enterprises should keep delivering high-quality
products. Factors representing ‘Concentrate here’ are
characterized by very high importance but low perfor-
mance. This means that even though the factors are
important to the clients, the level of performance does
not meet their requirements. Hence, it is crucial to pay
more attention to these factors. Factors in ‘Low prior-
ity’ both show low importance and do not have a lot of
impact on the performance of the destination under
research. There is no need to invest either money or
effort in improving these factors. The last quadrant,
‘Possible overkill,’ characterizes the factors with low
importance but high performance, which highlights
the fact of excessive importance; however, visitors ‘do
not care’ about the factor.
Results
The research aims to propose measures that will sup-
port the development of quality concerning the dif-
ferences between the two groups. The suggestions are
based on the ipa analysis and statistical data testing.
The ipa analysis was compiled based on the average
values of performance and importance of the research
quality factors among visitors and residents. Perfor-
mance, which was evaluated using respondents’ satis-
faction, has the average value of 3.97 for visitors and
3.79 for residents.Meanwhile, the significance of qual-
ity factors for the destination’s visitors/residents is rep-
resented by the medium value of 3.91 and 3.72, respec-
tively. These two values create the centre of the coor-
dinates that set up the four quadrants of ipa graph.
Figure 1 captures the perception of 20 factors for the
visitors (50.3 of respondents), Figure 2 for residents
(49.7 of respondents).
The results show that the factors in quadrant q1
(Key features) are not very different. Both visitors and
residents consider f13 Level of personnel quality in
tourism services, f14 Sense of security, f15 Destina-
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 91
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
Figure 1 ipa Analysis from the Point of View of Visitors
Figure 2 IPA Analysis from the Point of View of Residents
tion cleanliness and f17 Uniqueness of destination as
factors with a high significance, while their qualitative
level is positive enough. It is important to carry on im-
proving the factors so that the performance does not
decrease. f1 Natural attractions have the highest sig-
nificance and highest performance for both groups of
respondents. At the same time, f2 Cultural and social
attractions are evaluated with greater importance and
perception for visitors. The only difference is within
the f8 placement, Availability and quality of the in-
formation, which visitors placed in q3, but residents
in q1.
The second quadrant, q2 (Concentrate here), con-
tains factors with low performance and great impor-
tance. This means that for visitors of the destination,
factors such as f10 Friendly acceptance by the locals,
f11 Image of the destination, f12 Level of prices of
services and goods at the destination and f16 Over-
crowding of the destination are important, but the
satisfaction of the level of quality is not enough. Thus,
the aforementioned factors should be improved and
receive priority attention. Both residents and visitors
placed equally factors f10 and f11.
Another quadrant (q3) consists of factors with low
priority and low significance for visitors. It is not so
important to pay too much attention to these factors,
but the destination should keep inmind that some fac-
tors are changing, specifically those depending on de-
mand, and therefore it is recommended not to under-
estimate them. Losing the level of quality of factorswill
lead to a negative overall satisfaction with the destina-
tion.
The last quadrant, q4, is clarified as excess care of
the factors which are less important for visitors/resi-
dents. As we can see in Figure 1 and Figure 2, only f4
Food was placed by both categories of respondents to
this quadrant, ‘Possible Overkill.’
The biggest difference between visitors and resi-
dents is within factor f12 Level of prices of services
and goods at the destination – while visitors consider
this factor very important and place it in the quad-
rant q2 – Concentrate here, for residents it belongs to
the quadrant Possible Overkill. This detection makes
sense as prices are a key factor in a decision whether
to visit a destination or not.
An interesting finding is connected with factor
f16 Overcrowding of the destination, where the res-
idents consider this factor to have less importance and
a lower level of perception, while for visitors, f16 is
more important and perception of the quality level is
higher. Nowadays, there are occurrences where mass-
tourism is not perceived in the same way by the resi-
dents (for example, in Venice, Paris or Rome). In 1950,
only 25 million tourists were travelling, in 2018 the
number was 1.4 billion (Matulik, 2019). Rural areas are
not particularly tourist-sought places and their resi-
dents do not meet the visitors as often as in cities. Vis-
itors do visit the countryside and they may not even
stop by in the village, or, theymake one-day trips from
major cities to rural destinations. This is confirmed
by the questionnaire, where visitor-respondents state
making mostly one-day (over 66), or weekend trips
(2–3 days, over 22).
In addition to ipa analysis, independent t-tests
92 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
were also conducted to verify the factors’ perceptions
of importance and performance. The Independent
Samples t test is a commonly used test that deter-
mines whether there is a statistically significant dif-
ference between the means in two unrelated groups
(Kim, 2015). Based on this it is possible to conclude
whether differences in ipa analysis are statistically
significant. Specifically, whether the position of fac-
tors in ipa graphs differs statistically in both axes (y-
axis for importance and x-axis for performance). Sta-
tistically significant factors are listed in Table 2. Con-
cerning ipa analysis, it can be said that the perception
of factors included in quadrant q1 does not differ re-
markably between visitors and residents. The factor
Cultural and social attractions (f2) is rated by visitors
as more important (m = 4.20 vs. m = 3.94) and more
efficient (m = 4.18 vs. m = 3.97).
The factors in quadrant q2 statistically differ in
both axes. Especially, the factors Friendly acceptance
by the locals (f10) and Overcrowding of the destina-
tion (f16) are rated more important by visitors. There
is a significant difference in the factor Accommoda-
tion (f3) in quadrant q3 and also inAdditional infras-
tructure (f18), Respecting sustainable development of
the destination (f19) and Certification of accommo-
dation (f20) in quadrant q4. While factors f18 and
f20, at a significance level of 0.1, are evaluated with
a very low score, the differences between visitors and
residents are significant. On average, visitors awarded
the scale importance of the factor Certification of ac-
commodation (f20) with 3.61 points and residents
with 3.21 points. The same occurs with the factor Sus-
tainable development (f19) – visitors rated it with
3.86 points and residents 3.43 points. Table 3 shows
the differences in perceptions, where in general visi-
tors rate more significantly than residents. The results
show that the factors Natural attractiveness, Destina-
tion safety, Accessibility, and Quality and availability
of information are important for both groups. Signif-
icant differences in the factors are cultural and social
attractiveness, as well as accommodation, overcrowd-
ing, acceptance by locals, and social and experiential
activities. Perceiving the importance of safety in the
destination is most important for people aged 41–50,
as well as its cleanliness.
Discussion
The research focuses on the differences in the percep-
tion of factors in a rura destination among visitors and
residents. Based on the research question being con-
firmed, there are statistically significant differences in
the perceptions of selected factors between the group
of visitors and residents. According to our research re-
sults it is important to analyse visitors and residents
separately even for destinations not yet suffering from
over-tourism and irritation of local people. In most
cases, visitors rate the factors higher on both axes (im-
portance and performance) than residents. In addi-
tion, visitors may be more sensitive (Mok et al., 2001;
Ryglová et al., 2017). Many aspects are ordinary for
a resident, and after a while, they may stop perceiv-
ing them at all. However, knowledge of the aspects
mentioned is very important, yet they create differ-
ent perceptions (Stylidis et al., 2016). Hussain et al.
(2019) pointed out that those residents who evalu-
ate the environmental effects of tourism positively,
give more noticeable support to tourism. Tourism can
signify both positive and negative effects on environ-
mental, socio-cultural and economic components for
the locals. Puczko and Ratz (2000) append that al-
though local people perceive some unfavourable im-
pacts of tourism, they still support it. Considering the
diverse impacts on the support of residents, Hussain
et al. (2019) have found that perceived economic im-
pact has the highest effect, after the socio-cultural and,
lastly, the environmental effect. In this way, it is possi-
ble to increase visitors’ satisfaction while not disturb-
ing the lives of local inhabitants. When focusing on
q2 – Concentrate here, some perception differs more
than in other quadrants. The factors Friendly accep-
tance by the locals (f10), Image of the destination (f11)
and Overcrowding of the destination (f16) that be-
long to the second quadrant according to visitors, are
linked with sustainable developments, which is a cur-
rent topic (unwto, n.d.b).
One of the problems is mass tourism and over-
crowding of a destination (Matulik, 2019). Nowadays,
some tourist destinations are overcrowded and huge
concentrations of visitors disrupt the lives of local peo-
ple. Overcrowding is starting to be a hot topic of inter-
national tourism discussions. Furthermore, attitudes
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 93
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
Table 3 Differences in Perception and Comparison between ipa and Statistical Testing
Differences in perception of factors
between visitors and residents
Comparison of differences in perception of factors
between ipa and statistical testing
Destination cleanliness (p = 0.001) and the overall image of
the destination (p = 0.05) are more important for visitors.
Cultural and social attractions, Friendly acceptance by the
locals (p = 0.05) and Overcrowding of the destination (p
= 0.001) are perceived more significantly by visitors (p =
0.05).
Certification of accommodation facilities (p = 0.001) and
Respecting sustainable development (p = 0.001) are not
paid much attention to, they are relatively scored overall,
however, visitors still give more points to these factors.
Residents emphasize more the uniqueness of the destina-
tion, but this difference is not statistically significant (p >
0.05).
In the ipa analysis, there is a difference in the factor f8
Availability and quality of destination information. This
factor belongs, according to the residents, to q1, for visitors
to q2 (on the line q2&q3).
Factors f9 Information and communication prior to ar-
rival (visitors on the line q2&q3 and residents q3) and f12
Level of prices of services (visitors q2 and residents q4)
also differ in the ipa analysis.
There is a further difference in f5 Social and experimental
events (q4 visitors and q3 residents).
The aforementioned factors are not statistically signifi-
cantly different, but in ipa analysis these factors belong to
different quadrants.
of local people to visitors are not very welcoming in
overcrowded destinations. Nevertheless, the percep-
tion of mass tourism varies according to the type of
destination, while this factor is perceived more in ur-
ban destinations. It also depends on the country and
location (Kuščer & Mihalič, 2019; Rasoolimanesh et
al., 2017). A high concentration of people can cause
pressure on infrastructure, changes of lifestyle, dis-
turbance of overall well-being, price increase on the
property market, growth of crime, noise, riots, etc.
(Kuščer & Mihalič, 2019; Milano et al., 2018). Simi-
larly, in research focused on the centre of Prague, vis-
itors and residents agreed that mass tourism changes
the historical centre of the city (Simpson, 1999). The
regional tourism organizations should deal with this
kind of problem (Puczko & Ratzs, 2000). In rural des-
tinations, this problem is not so critical, which is also
highlighted by the outcome of the present research.
The reasons for visiting a rural destination are dif-
ferent from those for an urban destination (García-
Hernández et al., 2017 Namberger et al., 2019; Ryglová
et al., 2017). Visitors mostly travel with their families
or friends and stay there for more than a day – usu-
ally a weekend, i.e. about 2–3 days, sometimes longer.
It can therefore be assumed that visitors are not as
concentrated in one place as in city centres. On the
other hand, overcrowding can have a negative impact
on factors in quadrant q1 where it can negatively af-
fect nature, the cultural environment and others (Hall,
2019).
Price rises are also related to tourism and high de-
mand (Milano et al., 2018). According to the research,
visitors rate prices as a more important factor than
the locals do. The reason may be that the locals of
the Moravian Karst do not visit tourist attractions.
Due to the great interest, these attractions are often
more expensive. Another reason may be that visitors
travel to the destination with children, and the one-off
expenses may therefore increase. A visitor-oriented
factor, Friendly acceptance (f10) by the locals, is also
worth mentioning. It was expected that the difference
between the two groups would be large and it has been
proven that the visitors evaluated the factor of friendly
acceptance by locals much more significantly. Under-
standably, it is more difficult for a resident to value the
environment in which they live. On the other hand,
this factor belongs to the more important ones, which
creates overall perception and positive emotions of
destinations (Ashworth & Page, 2011). Besides this,
overcrowding of a destination is connected with these
factors – a massive crowd of tourists creates a nega-
tive perception of tourism, which afterwards leads to
residents’ unfriendly behaviour, and the perception
of safety or danger in the destination. Overcrowding
and friendly acceptance by the locals are factors that
are closely related to the overall quality of destina-
94 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
tion (Ashworth&Page, 2011). According to the results,
people stay longer and they return to the countryside
often. This gradually builds loyalty to the place and to
the service provider, who apparently could be a local
inhabitant.
Sustainability is a relatively common topic nowa-
days andmany authors talk about it (Boley et al., 2017;
Hall, 2019; Hassan, 2000). Yet, respondents do not pay
too much attention according to the factor Respect-
ing sustainable development. As mentioned above,
sustainability is connected to the most important fac-
tors, such as protection of natural and cultural heritage
or cleanliness in the destination (Hall, 2019). Puczko
and Ratz (2000) determined that due to the tourism’s
development characteristics in the region, only some
form of mass tourism can be maintained. The clean-
liness of the destination is also significant for the visi-
tors. The results show that the most important factor
is natural and cultural attractions. Rural tourism is a
certain escape from the big city. Following this, re-
search shows that untouched scenery and cleanliness
in a destination are crucial for respondents and that
people look for a clean and undisturbed landscape. On
the other hand, sustainability in tourism helps avoid
overloading the destination, and aids in maintaining
its quality (Hall, 2019; Hassan, 2000).
Nevertheless, certain regions in theCzechRepublic
are not so frequently visited, thus this factor is irrele-
vant for both visitors and residents. And perhaps the
missing information about tourism and its negative
consequences might influence this as well. The fac-
tor Certification of accommodation and food (f20)
can also be influenced by lack of information as the
respondents do not consider this factor important,
either. At the same time, there is growing pressure
for quality and certification in the Czech Republic
(Jakšová, 2018). Although some factors are located
in the same quadrant of the ipa graph, some statis-
tically significant differences between visitor and res-
ident ratings and vice versa have been proved. It is,
therefore, appropriate to carry out additional testing
to correctly interpret the ipa results. The t-test was
chosen for this research because they revealed signifi-
cant differences in ipa that are not so obvious at first
sight. Nevertheless, it would not be necessary if two
groups are not compared with each other. The advan-
tage of this method is its simplicity and quick feasi-
bility. When comparing multiple variables, it would
make sense to also use manova or anova analysis.
Conclusion
The research aims to propose measures that will sup-
port the development of destination quality around
the differences between the aforementioned groups.
Based on individual ipa analyses, it can be stated that
the most significant difference in perception lies in
quadrant q2 – Concentrate here. It is necessary to
pay particular attention to the factor Overcrowding
of the destination, as it may negatively affect other as-
pects of the destination. At the same time, there is
little awareness of the linkages of sustainable tourism
and the quality of services. It is, therefore, necessary
to involve destination organizations and create a link
between service providers and potential customers.
Nonetheless, the local population should not be for-
gotten, as the attitude of the locals can determine the
overall perception of the destination, and their atti-
tude to tourism is directly related to overall visitors’
satisfaction.
Considering the previous, we can conclude that
there is space just for destination organizations, which
could take a certain responsibility for quality and
awareness (Dania et al., 2019; Go & Govers, 2000).
According to the research, destination management
should analyse visitors and residents separately. If only
the ipa analysis is used, the factors seem to be simi-
lar. Adding the t-test, it is shown that the differences
are significant. Since tourism is a dynamically devel-
oping industry and visitors constantly increase their
demands, it is, therefore, necessary to further create
andmaintain the attractiveness of the destination. It is
necessary to proceed comprehensively and develop all
the essential parameters of tourism (accommodation,
catering, transport accessibility, cleanliness, etc.). Des-
tination management should evolve tourism accord-
ing to the principles of sustainable development and
protect the negative impact of tourism on the environ-
ment as well as a negative impact on local people and
on their cultural identity. Primarily, it is important to
focus on the factors in quadrant q2 because they can
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 95
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
have both negative and positive effects on all other
quadrants. Regarding this, it would be advisable to fo-
cus on tourism sustainability. Moreover, there should
be a permanent dialogue between destination organi-
zations, city authorities and local people. Speaking of
sustainability, it is important to maintain the integrity
of parks, the local economy and public transport (Mi-
lano et al., 2018). Nowadays, it is also possible to con-
sider the involvement of smart technologies as it can
facilitate communication with stakeholders as well as
help maintain dialogue and education (Wang et al.,
2016).
The present research was followed by an equal
number of visitors (50.3 of the total sample) and res-
idents (49,7 of the total sample). Based on this it was
possible to compare the perception of factors between
visitors and residents. Regarding this, there should be
some limits. It can be expected that people interested
in this issue were more likely to participate in the re-
search and their positive interest may subsequently
cause a slight overestimation of the results. It is also
advisable to point out the results of ipa analysis itself.
Although the development of two separate ipa anal-
yses has brought some new information, the results
need to be treated with caution and analysed statis-
tically as the individual analysis points out a higher
difference. Only then can one claim that there is in-
deed a difference in perception. However, how appar-
ent this difference is under real conditions is difficult
to evaluate.
For any future research, it is advisable to conduct a
similar survey in another rural destination and com-
pare it with our results. At the moment, the results of
the present study cannot be generalized. Moreover, it
may be very difficult for respondents to evaluate the
importance and performance at the same time, posing
yet another potential limitation.
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Appendix
The following factors were researched:
1. Natural attractions (the conditions of natural charac-
ter – for instance, climate, hydrological and morpho-
logical circumstances, flora, fauna, water surfaces,
caves, natural reservations).
2. Cultural and social attractions (for instance, castles,
chateaus, galleries, museums, technical sights, reli-
gious monuments, historical city centres).
3. Accommodation (variety, structure, and level of ac-
commodation facilities).
4. Food (variety, structure, and level of boarding facili-
ties).
5. Social and experiential events (for example, concerts,
festivals, folk, sports and other events, local markets,
seasonal gastronomical events such aswine harvests).
6. Availability of transportation to the destination (the
accessibility of the destination, transport infrastruc-
ture, the frequency of transport links, distances be-
tween stops).
7. Local transportation (the possibilities of motorized
andnon-motorized transport around the destination,
the conditions and equipment of the means of trans-
port, the frequency and distances of stops from at-
tractions, taxis, ski lifts, cableways and so on).
8. Availability and quality of the information in the des-
tination (tourist information centres, maps, promo-
tional materials, orientation boards, internet – Wi-
Fi).
9. Information and communication prior to arrival (the
promotion and distribution of the destination offer,
available and user-friendly unified web portal with
topical destination offer that enables online reserva-
tions, links to related websites, information on social
networks and so on).
10. Friendly acceptance by the locals (atmosphere at the
destination, friendly relationships with visitors).
11. Image of the destination.
12. Level of prices of services and goods at the destina-
tion (the prices of consumer goods and services at the
destination).
13. Level of personnel quality in tourism services –which
means in accommodation and boarding services, in-
formation centres, transportation, guides and so on
(their professionalism, empathy, willingness, reliabil-
ity, credibility, opening hours, the effort to meet indi-
vidual requirements of a client).
14. Sense of security (crime, terrorism, natural disas-
ters, diseases, rescue and health system, the security
98 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Kateina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania, and Ida Rašovská Quality of a Rural Destination
of sights, the security of pedestrians or cyclists, safe
background/attractions for children).
15. Destination cleanliness (natural environment, air,
water for swimming, public toilets, enough waste
bins, the cleanliness and maintenance of sights, the
cleanliness of hospitality facilities).
16. Overcrowding of the destination (high concentration
of visitors decreasing the quality of their stay, the ca-
pacity congestion of infrastructure, for example, car
parks).
17. The uniqueness of the destination (the uniqueness
of the destination, local products, the differentiation
of competitive offers, pre-prepared service packets,
products of the destination for various target seg-
ments, service certification).
18. Additional infrastructure (for example, sports equip-
ment rental shops, cycle paths, cross country ski
trails, hippo trails, aqua parks, playgrounds, enter-
tainment centres, climbing centres, cash dispensers,
background for motorists, cyclists, children).
19. Respecting sustainable development of the destina-
tion (the concordance of infrastructure construction
with the natural environment of the destination, cul-
tural heritage protection – for instance, protection
of historical buildings, folklore and regional cuisine,
natural environment protection, ecological economy,
local inhabitants and business involvement).
20. Certification of accommodation and food services.
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 99

Original Scientific Article
Willingness to Pay More: The Quest for Superstar
Museums
Nuria Recuero Virto
Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain
nrecuero@ucm.es
María Francisca Blasco López
Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain
fblasco@ucm.es
Juan Antonio Mondejar
Universidad Castilla-La Mancha, Spain
juanantonio.mondejar@uclm.es
Museummanagers constantly focus their efforts on gaining economic viability. This
has become a key challenge as the offer of ‘experience economy’ attractions is increas-
ingly rising and visitors are searching for experiences that are competitive. Although
it has been stated that a picture paints a thousand words, the main objective of this
research is determining if the relationship between museum image and visitors’ sat-
isfaction significantly and positively influences their willingness to pay more. Par-
tial least analysis was used to conduct the multi-group comparison by including the
recently developed measurement invariance of composites (micom) and new per-
mutation methods. A total of 529 valid responses of museum visitors were obtained.
Interestingly, the findings showed that there were no significant differences between
the two museum samples, and that all the relationships analysed were positive and
significant. Interestingly, Henseler’s mga identified a slight difference between the
twomuseum visitor samples in the linkage between visitors’ satisfaction and visitors’
word of mouth. This research proposes a multi-group comparison study examining
two different samples of visitors to two superstar Mexican museums so that findings
provide useful generalizations that imply academic andmanagerial contributions for
the tourism industry.
Keywords: multi-group, satisfaction, image, willingness to pay more, word of mouth
https://doi.org/10.26493/2335-4194.14.101-114
A museum’s function is not only to operate as an eco-
nomic development engine but also as a destination
icon (Carey et al., 2012; Moreno-Gil & Ritchie, 2009;
Sheng & Lo, 2010; Vu et al., 2018). In this context, mu-
seummanagers are constantly focusing their efforts on
maintaining and raising visitor numbers by fostering
their satisfaction in a gradually more saturated ‘expe-
rience economy’ marketplace (Evrard & Krebs, 2017;
Harrison & Shaw, 2004; Han & Hyun, 2017; McLean,
1994; Ober-Heilig et al., 2014). Meanwhile, govern-
ments are expecting that certain places increase vis-
itor numbers, so these gain economic viability, and
visitors are demanding experiences that are ‘value for
money’ (Ferrari et al., 2018; Gázquez-Abad et al., 2014;
Mondéjar-Jimenez et al., 2010; Pop & Borza, 2016; Re-
cuero et al., 2017).
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 101
Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
The importance of word of mouth (wom) advo-
cacy has been acknowledged, as it is one of the key
reasons for museum visiting (Hausmann, 2012). wom
is considered one of the most effective tourism com-
munication channels as those customers that spread
the word among their family and friends are far more
credible and trustworthy thanmarket-oriented strate-
gies (Confente, 2015; Wang et al., 2017). Likewise,
museum pricing has generated substantial attention
among many scholars as entry profits have always
been considered a fundamental source of income (e.g.
Rentschler et al., 2007; Sharifi-Tehrani et al., 2013;
Steiner, 1997; Frey & Steiner, 2012).
Throsby and Withers (1979), in the context of the
arts, introduced willingness to pay (wtp) and contin-
gent valuation (cvm) concepts, with some particular-
ities regarding people’s willingness to pay (Kim et al.,
2010). The intrinsic value of art implies that people
may lack the level of information required to make a
decision, and have difficulties in measuring it quan-
titatively (Throsby, 2003). Due to this situation, other
scholars have suggested choice modelling to approach
museum pricing strategies as this methodology takes
into account the attractiveness of the features’ charac-
teristics (e.g. Burton et al., 2009; Choi et al., 2010). Al-
though scholars have analysed wtp in museums (e.g.
Plaza, 2010; Tohmo, 2004), scant literature has been
found that analyses the impact of satisfaction on will-
ingness to pay more (wpm) in the museum context
(Bigné et al., 2008).
Tourism scholars have described image as a combi-
nation of perceptions, impressions and feelings, which
in essence comprises cognitive – pondering beliefs
– and affective – feelings – components (Chi & Qu,
2008; Min et al., 2013; Moreno-Gil & Ritchie, 2009;
Stylos et al., 2016; Whang et al., 2016; Wu, 2015). In
this regard, no research has been found that analyses
museum image effect on satisfaction.
This study aims to determine the positive and sig-
nificant relationship between museum satisfaction on
wom and wpm, and between museum image and
satisfaction. The research setting has been the Frida
Kahlo and Anahuacalli museums. As far as we know,
this is the first attempt to employ partial least multi-
group analysis to test the aforementioned relation-
ships. The objective is important because museum-
goers’ behavioural outcomes research is scarce and is
in need of empirically verified generalizations.
Theoretical Framework
Museum Satisfaction as a Driver of WOM
andWillingness to Pay More
Since the beginning of the decade, museums have
become market-oriented; focusing ever more on the
needs of their visitors as these provide an income
source that enhances the social and economic wel-
fare of local communities (Moreno-Gil & Ritchie,
2009; Stylianou-Lambert, 2011; Yamada & Fu, 2012).
In the tourism paradigm, satisfaction is commonly
employed as a critical ratio for the assessment of the
cognitive and affective elements of travel experiences
(Camarero&Garrido, 2011; Han&Hyun, 2017;Mason
& Paggiaro, 2012; Wang & Wu, 2011) that visitors al-
ways associate against their expectations (Agyeiwaah
et al., 2016) to generate a subjective reference frame-
work that helps them create comparative judgments
(Campón-Cerro et al., 2017).
Museum visitors demand participation, learning
options, and enjoyment from the museum experi-
ence (Del Chiappa et al., 2013; McIntyre, 2009; Trinh
& Ryan, 2013; Yamada & Fu, 2012). Museumgoers, to
evaluate their perceived overall performance, take into
account the functional features the tourist resource of-
fers – staff attention, facilities and convenience – and
the affective components – emotional, epistemic and
social elements (Bigné et al., 2008; Del Chiappa et al.,
2014). Hence, it is reasonable that satisfaction has been
considered a key predictor of consumers’ behaviour
(Kuikka & Laukkanen, 2012) and, consequently, an
imperative requisite for long-term museum success
(Brida et al., 2016; Kim et al., 2012).
Scholars have suggested as reasons for the appear-
ance of a positive wom intention altruistic motives –
the aspiration to help others, instrumentalmotivations
– the need to show wisdom, and cognitive dissonance
reduction purposes – reaffirming themselves and oth-
ers about the service selection (Simpson & Siguaw,
2008). In the case of museums, this advocacy has been
referred to as a crucial promotional tool thatmerges as
a post-purchase behaviour (Harrison & Shaw, 2004).
102 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
In this respect, since the early 90s it has been noted
that to achieve a positive wom, museum managers
must initially ensure visitors’ satisfaction (e.g. DiMag-
gio, 1985; McLean, 1994; Hume et al., 2007; Brida et
al., 2016). This type of communication has a signifi-
cant role in the museum industry as visitors normally
share their opinions online and offline (Hausmann,
2012).
Scholars have emphasized that visitors unconscious-
ly generate positive and negative behavioural out-
comes after a tourism service experience (Tian-Cole
et al., 2002; Tsai &Wang, 2017), and that those visitors
that feel satisfied are normally predisposed to recom-
mend the place and pay more (Cevdet & Erkut, 2015).
As discussed above, it has been suggested that mu-
seum satisfaction might be a driver of the museum
wom. This linkage has been widely proved to be posi-
tive and significant in different services industries (e.g.
Babin et al., 2005; Ladhari et al., 2008) and more pre-
cisely in tourism (Simpson & Siguaw, 2008; Kim et
al., 2009; Prebensen et al., 2010). In the study con-
text, Harrison and Shaw (2004) found a positive re-
lationship between these two dimensions in a small
metropolitan museum in Australia. Also, Camarero
and Garrido (2011) proved this relationship to be pos-
itive and significant in a research conducted in Patio
Herreriano Contemporary Spanish Art Museum with
133 valid answers. However, Trinh and Ryan (2013)
could not support that highly satisfied visitors tend to
recommend a specific museum to others in a research
conducted in the ChamMuseum of Vietnam. Despite
this controversy, it seems rational to expect that vis-
itors that feel satisfied will have the behavioural out-
come of spreading the word among their friends and
relatives.
Although wpm has been recognized as a signif-
icant matter in museums, and in tourism services
in general, limited studies have analysed the drivers
of this behavioural attitude (Ladhari et al., 2008).
Tourism scholars have concluded that satisfaction has
a positive and significant effect on wpm. In this re-
gard, several researchers have proved this linkage to be
positive and significant in the hotel industry (Barsky
&Nash, 2002; Lee et al., 2010; Lin, 2016) and in restau-
rants (Ladhari et al., 2008; Heung & Gu, 2012). In ad-
dition, it has been found that this relationship has only
been studied once in the museum industry. Bigné et
al. (2005) found this linkage insignificant in a theme
park, but Bigné et al. (2008) revealed that satisfaction
has a positive and significant effect on wpm in a mu-
seum context, while it was again found to be negative
in the theme park setting. It seems likely that if mu-
seumgoers are satisfied they will likely be predisposed
to pay more. Based on the previous discussion, the
following hypotheses were developed.
h1 Museum satisfaction has a positive and signifi-
cant effect on (a) museum wom and (b) wpm.
Museum Image Impact on Satisfaction
Museum image has been considered as a perceptual
phenomenon difficult to define as it is determined by
subjectivity, and both aspects, cognitive and affective,
provide a global image of the tourism service (Beerli
& Martín-Santana, 2004; Martínez & Pina, 2009; Wu,
2016). However, in tourism literature, there is an ab-
sence of a universal definition or an accepted scale
to define image, due to lack of homogeneity of the
attributes that define this concept (Beerli & Martín-
Santana, 2004). Additionally, it has been asserted that
image has been affected with the proliferation of on-
line information (Molinillo et al., 2018), which has de-
noted the relevance of adequate management of this
dimension. In addition, it has been stated that heritage
has been used in cultural tourism to promote positive
images of a place or site (Secondi et al., 2011).
Museum image has also been considered as a com-
ponent of brand personality (Liu et al., 2013). Scant
literature has extensively analysed the dynamics of
museum image. In reference to residents’ perceptions,
several researchers concluded that residents normally
generate positive images concerning the localmuseum
(Rosenberg et al., 1960; Vaughan, 2001). Also analysed
have been visitors’ impressions showing that foreign
visitors were influenced by the destination images of
Hawaii and expected a learning experience of Native
Hawaiian culture from the museum visit (Harrison,
1997). In addition, Moreno-Gil and Ritchie (2009) ex-
amined the image formation process from both per-
spectives. They pointed out that overall image has a
positive effect on satisfaction in both cases.
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Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
Incidentally, it has been indicated that a positive
preconceived image of a place has a favourable im-
pact on the individual’s expectations of the upcoming
experience (Chi & Qu, 2008; del Bosque & San Mar-
tin, 2008). It has been specified that image is a rele-
vant indicator of satisfaction (Leung et al., 2011), which
has been supported by numerous tourism studies that
have examined this effect (Assaker et al., 2011; Chi &
Qu, 2008; Loi et al., 2017; Prayag, 2009; Wang & Hsu,
2010). In general, past findings have proved that image
is a direct antecedent of satisfaction.
h2 Museum image has a positive and significant ef-
fect on museum satisfaction.
Methodology
Data Collection Procedure and Sample Profile
The study was conducted in the Frida Kahlo and
Anahuacalli museums. The Frida Kahlo museum can
be considered a superstarmuseumdue to theMexican
cultural icon, whereas Anahuacalli is a more modest
and traditional museum. The management of both
museums is assigned to the same team. Since a high
response rate was desired, and the research involved a
population that visits the museums, the personal sur-
vey method was selected (Lee, 2013; Xu & Fox, 2014).
Trained interviewers gathered data outside the muse-
ums from those visitors that had already visited them,
either in English or Spanish depending on the origin of
participants, from the 18th ofMarch to the 16th of June
2016. Several precautions were taken to reduce com-
mon method variance (cmv), following Podsakoff et
al.’s (2003) recommendations. For instance, to mini-
mize evaluation apprehension, respondents were in-
formed about the purpose of the study and were as-
sured confidentiality and anonymity. In addition, to
avoid field researchers’ selection bias, the interviewers
were instructed to look for a similar portion of male
and female participants in various age groups (Kim et
al., 2006).
G*Power 3 was used to perform power analysis
(Faul et al., 2007) and both sample sizes guaranteed
power for the R2 deviation from zero test as the results
in both cases were above 95 per cent for the model
proposed in Figure 1 (Cohen, 1988). Therefore, the
Museum
Image
Museum
Satisfaction
Museum
word-of-
mouth
Willingness
to pay more
H2
H1a
H1b
Figure 1 Theoretical Model and Hypotheses
statistical power of 325 and 204 for the two groups ex-
amined in this research are acceptable sample sizes. In
addition, Harman’s single-factor test was conducted
to check cmv (Podsakoff et al., 2003) using principal
components without rotation in spps, and the anal-
ysis returned that a single factor explained 36.8 per
cent of the variance in the Frida Museum sample case
and 48.7 per cent of variance in Anahuacalli Museum
sample, which implies a low level of common method
bias in the research design.
Convenience samplingwas used as it permits reach-
ing a substantial number of respondents that are will-
ing to participate in the study, and saves costs and time
in collecting data (Sinclair-Maragh, 2017). Of the 345
Frida Kahlo visitors and 216 Anahuacalli visitors that
were invited to participate, 325 and 204, respectively,
provided usable questionnaires for the research. The
rate of response of 94 per cent in both cases (325/345
and 204/216) points out that sample bias would not
be an issue (Fowler, 1984; Yuksel et al., 2010). Respon-
dents were mainly national, female, aged from 26 to 35
and undergraduates or graduates that have only vis-
ited the museums once (Table 1). Table 2 shows the
measurement model and the descriptive analysis. In
brief, the mean values indicate that Frida Kahlo Mu-
seum visitors value slightly better all the dimensions
of the proposedmodel than Anahuacalli Museum vis-
itors. In addition, willingness to pay more seems to be
the least valued factors in both samples.
Measurement Model
A seven-point Likert scale measured all items. Mu-
seum image was adapted from Wu (2015). Four items
from the scale developed by Kuikka and Laukkanen
(2012) were used to operationalize museum satisfac-
104 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
Table 1 Sample Profile
Characteristics Frequency Percentage
() () () ()
Gender Female   . .
Male   . .
Age <   . .
–   . .
–   . .
–   . .
–   . .
–   . .
>   . .
Education Postgraduate   . .
Undergrad./grad.   . .
Secondary   . .
Primary   .
No. of
times
visited
   . .
–   . .
–   . .
>   . .
Origin Asia   . .
Europe   . .
Latinoamerica   . .
National   . .
Oceania   . .
usa   . .
Notes Columnheadings are as follows: (1) FridaKahloMu-
seum, (2) Anahuacalli Museum.
tion. Museum wom was captured using Sirakaya-
Turk et al.’s (2015) scale. Willingness to pay more was
measured using Bigné et al.’s (2008) scale.
Data Analysis
Smartpls (version 3.2.7; Ringle et al., 2015) was em-
ployed to accomplish the Partial Least Squares Struc-
tural Equation Modelling (pls-sem) and multi-group
(mga) analyses, as this nonparametric sem method is
very suitable for mga (Hair et al., 2014;Henseler et al.,
2016; Sarstedt et al., 2011). Also, pls-sem has a mini-
mum requirement concerning sample size as this tech-
nique is based in ols regressions and it is less severe
when it operationalizes with non-normal data (Hair et
al., 2014).
Results
Assessment of the Measurement Model
and Invariance Measurement Across Groups
Table 3 presents the results of the measurement model
reliability and convergent validity test for both sam-
ples. All loading factors were above 0.7, except for
three (mi3, mw2 and mw4). mi3 was dropped and
mw2 and mw4 were retained as the cronbach alpha
and ave values were not altered, ensuing from Hair
et al.’s (2014) recommendations. The internal consis-
tency of the study was determined through construct
reliability, where the cronbach’s alpha coefficients were
higher than 0.60. Composite reliability coefficients
were higher than the recommended value of 0.60,
specifying the shared variance among a set of observed
items measured qpazimeasuring each construct (For-
nell & Larcker, 1981). The examination of convergent
validity and discriminant validity confirms the validity
of the results (Hair et al., 2011). Consistently, conver-
gent validity was proved, as the average variance ex-
tracted (ave) coefficient for each construct was above
0.50 (Fornell & Larcker, 1981).
In addition, discriminant validity was confirmed
by examining the shared variance between pairs of
constructs and verifying it is lower than the corre-
sponding ave (Fornell & Larcker, 1981), which de-
termined the extent to which each construct differs
from other latent variables in the measurement model
(Hair et al., 2016) (Tables 4 and 5). In addition, the
heterotrait-monotrait (htmt) ratio method was im-
plemented (Henseler et al., 2015) and all values were
lower than 0.90 (Teo et al., 2008).
The acceptability of measurements models and
measurement invariance were verified before exam-
ining mga (Hair et al., 2016; Henseler et al., 2016; Ra-
soolimanesh et al., 2016; Rasoolimanesh et al., 2017;
Sarstedt et al., 2011). The measurement invariance of
composites (micom) assesses the measurement in-
variance so as to compare and deduce mga’s group-
specific differences of pls-sem results (Henseler et
al., 2016). The evaluation of micom entails three steps:
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Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
Table 2 Descriptive Analysis
Construct/Associated Items Frida Kahlo Anahuacalli
() () () ()
Museum image (mi)
. The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum has something special . . . .
. The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum has a unique identity . . . .
. The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum is very famous.* . . . .
. The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum is attractive . . . .
Museum satisfaction (ms)
. I am pleased with the service received from the museum’s employees . . . .
. I am happy with the panels, installations and the atmosphere created for the museum
visit
. . . .
. I am content with the educational experience received in the visit to this museum . . . .
. Overall, I am satisfied with this museum . . . .
Museum wom (mw)
. I will mention The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum as a tourist attrac-
tion of Mexico City to others quite frequently
. . . .
. I will tell more people to visit The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum
before other tourist attractions of Mexico City
. . . .
. I will seldom miss an opportunity to tell others about The Frida Kahlo Museum/The
Anahuacalli Museum
. . . .
. When I tell others about The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum, I will
also talk about the city in detail
. . . .
. I am proud to tell others that I visited The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli
Museum
. . . .
Willingness to pay more (wpm)
. I will come back to The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum even if the
entrance fee increases
. . . .
. I would pay more to visit The Frida Kahlo Museum/The Anahuacalli Museum than I
would pay to visit other tourist attractions of Mexico City
. . . .
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) mean, (2) standard deviation. *Dropped during the estimation of the measure-
ment model.
(1) the process of the invariance assessment, (2) the
specification of compositional invariance assessment,
and (3) the evaluation of equal means and variances
(Rasoolimanesh et al., 2017) (Table 6).
Structural Model and Multi-Group Evaluation
R2 was evaluated to measure the model’s explanatory
power (Hair et al., 2014) and all dependent constructs
were higher than 0.10 (Falk & Miller, 1992), reporting
substantial and moderate coefficients (Cohen, 1988).
Likewise, positive Stone-Geisser’s q2 were obtained
using blindfolding (Henseler et al., 2009), presenting
moderate values (Table 7).
Table 8 presents the three following different results
regarding: (1) the structural model and hypotheses
analyses (5,000 bootstrap resamples and 5,000 permu-
tations), (2) Henseler’s mga (Henseler et al., 2009),
and (3) the permutation test (Chin & Dibbern, 2010).
Henseler’s mga compares group bootstrap estimates
from each bootstrap sample, where the p-value that is
106 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
Table 3 Reliability and Convergent Validity of the Final Measurement Model
Factor Indic. Frida Kahlo Museum Anahuacalli Museum
() () () () () () () () () () () ()
Museum image mi . , . . . . . , . . . .
mi . , . ,
mi . , . . . . . ,
Museum
satisfaction
ms . , . , . . . .
ms . , . ,
ms . , . ,
ms . , . ,
Museum wom mw . , . . . . . , . . . .
mw . , . ,
mw . , . ,
mw . , . ,
mw . , . ,
Willingness
to pay more
wpm . , . . . . . , . . . .
wpm . , . ,
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) standardized loading, (2) t-value (bootstrap), (3) ca, (4) rhoA, (5) cr, (6) ave.
Table 4 Measurement Model Discriminant Validity:
Frida Kahlo Museum
Factor    
 Museum Image . . . .
 Museum Satisfaction . . . .
 Museum wom . . . .
 Willing. to pay more . . . .
Notes Diagonal values are ave square root, values below
the diagonal are latent variable correlations, values above the
diagonal are htmt ratios.
less than0.05 or above 0.95 indicates at the 5 level sig-
nificant differences between specific path coefficients
across two groups (Henseler et al., 2009; Sarstedt et
al., 2011). The permutation test identifies differences
at the 5 level of significance if the p-value is less than
0.05.
The findings show that museum satisfaction has
a positive and significant effect on museum wom in
both museums (h1a; Frida Kahlo Museum β = 0.587,
p < 0.01; Anahuacalli Museum β = 0.739, p < 0.01) and
on visitors’ willingness to pay more (h1b; Frida Kahlo
Table 5 Measurement Model Discriminant Validity:
Anahuacalli Museum
Factor    
 Museum Image . . . .
 Museum Satisfaction . . . .
 Museum wom . . . .
 Willing. to pay more . . . .
Notes Diagonal values are ave square root, values below
the diagonal are latent variable correlations, values above the
diagonal are htmt ratios.
Museum β = 0.465, p < 0.01; Anahuacalli Museum β =
0.495, p < 0.01). In addition, the results present a pos-
itive and significant effect of museum image on mu-
seum satisfaction in both samples (h1b; Frida Kahlo
Museum β = 0.535, p < 0.01; Anahuacalli Museum β =
0.631, p < 0.01).
The permutation method results reveal that there
are no significant differences between the Frida Kahlo
Museum and Anahuacalli Museum regarding the ef-
fects of museum satisfaction on museum wom and
willingness to pay more (h1a and h1b), and museum
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Table 6 Results of Invariance Measurement Testing Using Permutation
Constructs () () () () Equal mean assessment Equal variance assessment
() () () () () () () ()
Museum Image Yes . . Yes . –. . No –, –. . Yes
Museum Satisfaction Yes . . Yes . –. . No –. –. . No
Museum wom Yes . . Yes . –. . No –. –. . No
Willing. to pay more Yes , . Yes . –. . Yes . –. . Yes
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) configural invariance (same algorithms for both groups), (2–3) compositional
invariance (correlation = 1), (2) c = 1, (3) 5 quantile, (4) partial measurement invariance established, (5) differences, (6)
lower confidence interval, (7) upper confidence interval, (8) equal.
Table 7 Evaluation of the Estimated Models
Concept Frida Kahlo Anahuacalli
R2 Q2 R2 Q2
Museum Satisfaction . . . .
Museum wom . . . .
Willigness to pay more . . . .
image on museum satisfaction (h2). However, Hen-
seler’s mga spots a slight difference between the two
museums in the relationship between museum satis-
faction and museum wom (h1a) (p-value = 0.958, p
< 0.05). Henseler’s mga and the permutationmethod
techniques relatedly endorse the significance and non-
significance of the differences, posing a multi-method
confirmation of the findings.
Discussion and Implications
This research adds value to prior tourism studies by
examining the direct impacts of: (1) museum satis-
faction onmuseum wom and wpm, and (2) museum
image onmuseum satisfaction in two samples, namely
Anahuacalli and Frida Kahlo visitors. In this way, this
study has examined these different linkages in the two
museums in order to pinpoint interesting generaliza-
tions in this industry.
The empirical findings show thatmuseum satisfac-
tion has a meaningful and positive effect on museum
wom (h1a), as we expected. Although a controversy
appeared recently when Trinh and Ryan (2013) con-
cluded that therewas an insignificant effect ofmuseum
satisfaction on museum wom in the case of a Viet-
namese museum, the results of this study corroborate
previous findings (Camarero & Garrido, 2011; Harri-
son & Shaw, 2004). In addition, we compared these
linkages between the Frida Kahlo and Anahuacalli
museums. Interestingly, Henseler’s mga results pre-
sented a difference between the two museums in this
relationship. Although the effect sizes of both linkages
are significant, the Anahuacalli museum case presents
a higher influence of museum satisfaction onmuseum
wom. As Table 2 presents, Frida Kahlo respondents
valued to a slightly higher extent museum satisfaction
and museum wom than Anahuacalli visitors.
The result of this linkage is not due to respondents’
evaluation of these dimensions. This difference could
be explained by the fact that Anahuacalli respondents
might be considering that the museum is not so well-
known and aremore willing to spread theword among
their relatives and friends than in the other case, as
Frida Kahlo has worldwide popularity as a Mexican
cultural icon (Aragón, 2014; Dosamantes-Beaudry,
2002; Franco, 1991).
The results confirm the conclusionsmade by Bigné
et al. (2008) that museum satisfaction can positively
impact museum wpm (h1b), and confirms the results
conducted in hospitality studies (Barsky&Nash, 2002;
Ladhari et al., 2008; Lee et al., 2010; Lin, 2016; Heung
& Gu, 2012). The findings of the mga confirm there
are no significant differences between the two muse-
ums, revealing the same size effects in both cases. Be-
sides, as expected, museum image has a positive and
significant effect on museum satisfaction (h2), which
has been confirmed for the first time in the museum
108 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
Table 8 Hypotheses Testing
() Relationship Path coefficients Confidence interval () () p-value difference†
() () () () () ()
Lower Upper Lower Upper
ha Museum Satisfaction→
Museum wom
.*** .*** . . . . –. .** .
hb Museum Satisfaction→
Willingness to pay more
.*** .*** . . . . –. . .
h Museum Image→
Museum Satisfaction
.*** .*** . . . . –. . .
Notes Column headings are as follows: (1) hypothesis, (2) path coefficient difference, (3) Frida KahloMuseum, (4) Anahua-
calli Museum, (5) Henseler’s mga, (6) permutation test. *** p < 0.01, ** p < 0.05, * p < 0.10. † two-tailed.
industry but was already concluded in tourism studies
(Assaker et al., 2011; Chi & Qu, 2008; Loi et al., 2017;
Prayag, 2009; Wang & Hsu, 2010). The mga findings
also confirm there are no significant differences be-
tween the two museums, and the results present the
same size effects in both samples.
This study provides several theoretical implica-
tions related tomuseum satisfaction, wom, wpm and
image. First, few museum scholars have examined the
impacts of visitors’ satisfaction on their behavioural
outcomes, wom and wtp (Bigné et al., 2008; Ca-
marero&Garrido, 2011; Harrison& Shaw, 2004; Trinh
& Ryan, 2013). Hence, the present research has pro-
posed a model to assess these relationships and the
effect of museum image on satisfaction, which has
been analysed for the first time in the museum indus-
try. Second, the mga results have proved that there
are no significant differences between museum sat-
isfaction and museum wpm, and between museum
image and museum satisfaction, which are interesting
findings for the future generalization of the results. In
addition, Henseler’s mga results present a difference
in the relationship between museum satisfaction and
museum wom, but the pls-sem results present both
linkages as significant and positive. Hence, these find-
ings extend the generalization of the results. Third,
this research contributes not only to museum man-
agement literature, but also to tourism research, as it
has examined these effects also considering two sam-
ples in an mga approach.
The present study also draws managerial attention
to numerous aspects for marketingmanagers and staff
responsible for measuring visitors’ satisfaction in mu-
seums. First, it has been concluded that visitors’ sat-
isfaction positively and significantly influences wom.
As wom has been stated as a driver of museum visit-
ing (Hausmann, 2012), it would be interesting to pro-
mote communication actions that boost this wom
while visitors enjoy the museum experience. Muse-
ums could use ambient marketing strategies that are
focused on increasing the number of photos shared by
visitors in social media, following some of the actions
developed by the Museum of Art of Sao Paolo or the
Museum of Ice Cream.
Second, it has been proved that satisfaction has a
positive and significant effect on wpm. Event though it
has been suggested that visitors tend to perceivemuse-
ums as free of charge or inexpensive entertainment op-
tions, especiallywhen these organizations receive pub-
lic support, it has been concluded that satisfied visitors
are predisposed to pay more (Brida et al., 2016; Bigné
et al., 2008). Hence, investment in the creation of a hi-
tech edutainment service experience could make mu-
seums more competitive in the current Candy Crush
andNetflixmarketplace. For instance,museums could
benefit from the Pokémon Go fever by positioning a
market-adjusted image, and increasing their efforts to
fulfil the needs of this segment (by placing poskètops,
promoting a photocall event, etc.), which would likely
improve their wpm.
Third, it has been pinpointed that a well-managed
positive image will lead to visitors’ satisfaction. In the
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 109
Nuria Recuero Virto et al. Willingness to Pay More
light of the results, it is suggested that managers con-
duct a specific study for their museums to discover
the different components that motivate a positive im-
age for each of their market segments. This will help
them improve their promotion strategies by selecting
the adequate actions for each segment (Moreno-Gil &
Ritchie, 2009).
Limitations and Future Research Lines
Scholars are encouraged to encompass the results by
bearing in mind the limitations of this research. First,
this study has not considered the control variable of
first-time or repeated visitors, or other educational
or socio-economic factors that would have added in-
teresting insights for the proposed model, as other
scholars have previously proposed in related contexts
(Beerli-Palacio & Martín-Santana, 2017; Del Chiappa
et al., 2013; Han & Hyun, 2017). Second, the samples
of visitors are of two Mexican museums that have
the same management team, which has improved the
sample collection but could have led to bias. Although
the mga comparison has presented similar outcomes
that allow the generalization of the findings, it would
be noteworthy to repeat this study in different muse-
ums.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the Frida Kahlo and
Diego Rivera Anahuacalli museum team for their sup-
port, and especially the Directors of both museums,
Hilda Trujillo, and Ximena Jordán.
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Abstracts in Slovene Povzetki v slovenšini
Sodelovanje skupnosti pri trajnostni valorizaciji kulturne dediščine:
primer občine Vrsar
Kristina Afrić Rakitovac, Nataša Urošević in Nikola Vojnović
Trajnostni turizem predstavlja turizem, ki spoštuje prebivalce in obiskovalce, kul-
turno dediščino in okolje. Ponudi lahko ustrezne modele za trajnostno upravljanje
kulturne dediščine in razvoj lokalnega gospodarstva. Sodelovanje skupnosti je eno
temeljnih načel trajnostnega turizma. To načelo je del študija turizma že več kot
tri desetletja in je bilo utemeljeno z različnimi metodološkimi pristopi in raziska-
vami. Namen tega prispevka je bil izpostaviti perspektive lokalne skupnosti glede
trajnostne valorizacije kulturne in arheološke dediščine. Raziskava je bila izvedena
v okviru ArchaeoCulTour, znanstvenega projekta, katerega glavni cilj je analizirati
razvojni potencial arheološke dediščine skozi trajnostni turizem v Istrski županiji
na Hrvaškem. V raziskavi je kot študija primera vključena občina Vrsar v zahodni
Istri, tipična sredozemska turistična destinacija, za katero sta značilna množični tu-
rizem in velika sezonskost. Raziskava je pokazala, da prebivalci občine Vrsar delno
podpirajo sedanji model razvoja turizma, ki se sooča z različnimi izzivi trajnosti in
s številnimi infrastrukturnimi težavami. Prebivalci si želijo biti bolje informirani in
bolj vključeni v proces načrtovanja turizma termodelov participativnega upravljanja
dediščine. Strinjajo se, da bi se lahko glavna trajnostna vprašanja izboljšala s trajno-
stno valorizacijo lokalnih kulturnih in naravnih virov z ustvarjanjem inovativnih
izkušenj s turizmom, zato so zainteresirani za sodelovanje v tem postopku soustvar-
janja.
Ključne besede: turistične destinacije, kulturna dediščina, trajnostni kulturni
turizem, sodelovanje skupnosti
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 7–22
Trajnostni razvoj otoške turistične destinacije: primer otoka Paga
Aleksandra Krajnović, Ivica Zdrilić in Nikolina Miletić
Namen prispevka je raziskati vprašanje trajnostnega razvoja turizma na otoških de-
stinacijah na primeru otoka Pag na Hrvaškem. Namen je bil ugotoviti obseg trajno-
stnega razvoja turizma na otoku Pag in odkriti dejavnike, ki nanj vplivajo. S prvotno
raziskavo se želi ugotoviti, kakšna so mnenja in pogledi ključnih deležnikov turizma
o trajnostnem turizmu na Pagu. Ključno raziskovalno vprašanje v prispevku je: Ka-
terimodel razvoja turizma je optimalen za trajnostni razvoj otoka Paga kot turistične
destinacije? Uporabljeni sta bili metoda kvalitativne analize ter primarna raziskava,
ki je združevala intervjuje s strokovnjaki in ankete. Poleg tega je bila opravljena pri-
merjalna analiza rezultatov raziskav z uporabo intervjujev in rezultatov anketiranja.
Raziskava je potekala v letu 2019 na otoku Pag. Intervjuji so se izvajali s ključnimi
deležniki turizma na otoku pa tudi z uslužbencem Turistične skupnosti mesta Pag.
Po empirični raziskavi je bilo ugotovljeno, da se trajnostni turizem na otoku Pag
slabo razvija. Trajnostni razvoj turizma vključuje odgovorno upravljanje območja s
poudarkom na naravni in kulturni dediščini, njegov namen pa je zadovoljiti potrebe
turistov ter potrebe sedanjih in prihodnjih lokalnih skupnosti. Trajnost in trajno-
stni razvoj turizma, zlasti na otokih kot izredno krhkih geografskih, gospodarskih
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 115
Abstracts in Slovene Povzetki v slovenšini
in družbeno-kulturnih enotah, sta še posebej pomembna. Pri tem je treba uporabiti
celostni pristop.
Ključne besede: trajnostni turizem, množični turizem, trajnostna turistična
destinacija, sezonskost, trajnostni turizem na otokih, otok Pag
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 23–37
Družbena trajnost destinacije: povezovanje razvoja turizma s kakovostjo
življenja prebivalcev
Emil Juvan, Eva Podovšovnik, Miha Lesjak in Jasmina Jurgec
Turizem pozitivno prispeva h kakovosti življenja (k zadovoljstvu z življenjem in ču-
stvenemu počutju) potujoče populacije, vprašanje pa je, kako lahko prispeva h ka-
kovosti življenja gostiteljske populacije. Kakovost življenja prebivalcev turistične de-
stinacije je ključni cilj trajnostnega razvoja turizma, vsaj v kontekstu družbene traj-
nosti, hkrati pa kakovost življenja predstavlja tudi pomemben trženjski atribut turi-
stične destinacije. Raziskave nakazujejo, da lahko preobsežen stik s turizmom zni-
žuje kakovost življenja gostiteljev. Slaba kakovost življenja, tipično demonstrirana
kot nizka stopnja zadovoljstva z življenjem in slabo čustveno počutje, vodi v razvoj
protiturističnih prepričanj in zmanjša podporo lokalnega prebivalstva za razvoj tu-
rizma. Takšno stanje lahko resno ovira strateški razvoj turizma in njegovo izvajanje.
Visoko razvit turizem predstavlja pomemben vir prihodkov za lokalno okolje, ven-
dar lahko hkrati predstavlja tudi pomemben razlog visokih stroškov zagotavljanja
kakovostnega bivanjskega okolja in dobrega počutja prebivalstva. Prispevek anali-
zira povezavo med zadovoljstvom z življenjem in objektivno (stopnja razvoja tu-
rizma) ter subjektivno (zaznana interakcija s turisti). Rezultati kažejo, da ne stopnja
razvoja turizma niti stopnja interakcije s turisti nista povezani z zadovoljstvom lo-
kalnega prebivalstva z življenjem. Te ugotovitve postavljajo pod vprašaj prevladujočo
predpostavko, da visoka stopnja turizma generično negativno vpliva na zadovoljstvo
lokalnega prebivalstva z življenjem. Razprava vodi v spoznanje, da destinacije potre-
bujejo lastne kvantitativne (npr. obseg turizma) in kvalitativne (npr. narava stika s
turisti) ocene o stopnji razvoja turizma, ki še zagotavlja kakovost življenja in dobro
čustveno počutje lokalnega prebivalstva. To bo turističnim destinacijam omogočilo
učinkovitejše doseganje pozitivnih družbenih učinkov turizma in družbeno trajnost.
Ključne besede: trajnostni turizem, družbena trajnost, kakovost življenja, prebivalci,
destinacija
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 39–52
Stališča managerjev o razmerju med turizmom in podnebnimi spremembami:
primer Republike Hrvaške
Aleksandar Racz, Dora Smolčić Jurdana in Zvonimira Šverko Grdić
Ob predpostavki dvosmernega odnosa med podnebnimi spremembami in turiz-
mom je zelo pomembno poznati prepričanja in stališča managerjev v turizmu. Raz-
iskovanje teh prepričanj in stališč je bila ključna naloga te raziskave. Na prepričanja
116 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Abstracts in Slovene Povzetki v slovenšini
in stališča turističnih managerjev vplivajo različni dejavniki, kot so: sociodemograf-
ske značilnosti, zlasti spol, stopnja izobrazbe, delovna doba v turističnem sektorju,
članstvo v ekoloških nevladnih organizacijah ter prepričanja in stališča o podneb-
nih spremembah. Za preučitev mnenja managerjev so avtorji izvedli raziskavo, ki se
je osredotočila na vse managerje, ki v Republiki Hrvaški upravljajo kategorizirane
objekte glede na njihovo vrsto. Rezultati so pokazali pomembne razlike v prepri-
čanjih in stališčih o medsebojnem vplivu podnebnih sprememb ter turističnih na-
stanitev. Ženske managerke, ki so končale terciarno izobrazbo, so članice ekoloških
nevladnih organizacij in se imajo za aktivistke, ter tiste, ki imajo več let delovnih
izkušenj, so izrazile močnejši prookoljski odnos in izkazale višjo raven ekološke za-
vesti.
Ključne besede: stališča, prepričanja, podnebne spremembe, management, turizem,
destinacije
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 53–70
Študija ovir za okoljsko trajnostne prakse v hotelskih podjetjih v Punjabu
v Indiji: predhodne ugotovitve
Baljit Kaur
Namen te primarne študije je bil raziskati kritične ovire okoljskih trajnostnih praks
in podati predloge, kako jih premagati v kontekstu hotelskih podjetij. V študiji je bil
uporabljen kvantitativni pristop k raziskovanju, vprašalnik pa je bil razvit s pomo-
čjo temeljitega pregleda literature, analize vsebine in pilotne študije. Skupno je bilo
zbranih 221 odgovorovmanagerjev in direktorjev iz skupaj 88 hotelov v Punjabu. Iz-
med poslanih anket je bilo 202 primernih za nadaljno obdelavo s pomočjo opisne
statistike inKendallovimW-testom. Rezultati so pokazali, da začetni stroški izvedbe,
visoki stroški certificiranja, zapleten postopek certificiranja, pomanjkanje ozavešče-
nosti o konceptu, šibka zakonodaja, sprememba rutin in načina vodenja, obstoječa
struktura, ki koncepta ne podpira, ter nizka zavezanost vodstva pomembno vpli-
vajo na sprejetje in izvajanje okoljskih trajnostnih praks. Kendallov W-test je pri
anketirancih pokazal statistično značilno strinjanje z omenjenimi ugotovitvami. Na
podlagi rezultatov podajamo priporočila za premagovanje ovir za izvajanje okoljskih
trajnostnih praks, tako npr. hotelska podjetja lahko začnejo z majhnimi pobudami,
ki zahtevajo nizke začetne naložbe, lobiranje hotelov pri regionalnih hotelskih zdru-
ženjih in vladi, da dobijo finančno podporo in razširjajo okoljsko komunikacijomed
zaposlenimi, prav tako predlagamo metode spremljanja okolja in sheme nagrajeva-
nja s strani vlade. Ta študija se je izvedla na majhnem geografskem območju, ki je
sicer svetovno znana turistična destinacija, rezultati pa so skladni z ugotovitvami
prejšnjih študij, ki so bile izvedene po vsem svetu. Tako predlagamo prihodnje štu-
dije na večjih geografskih območjih s primerjavo dveh ali več držav.
Ključne besede: hotelska podjetja, okoljsko trajnostne prakse, ovire, predlogi,
Punjab, Indija
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 71–86
Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021 | 117
Abstracts in Slovene Povzetki v slovenšini
Kakovost podeželske destinacije: pristop obiskovalcev in prebivalcev
Kateřina Mlejnková, Tomáš Dania in Ida Rašovská
Kakovost destinacije opredeljuje sklop številnih dejavnikov. Način vrednotenja teh
dejavnikov je predmet stalnih raziskav. Eden od pristopov temelji na ocenjevanju
zadovoljstva obiskovalcev in domačinov ter uporabi teh rezultatov za upravljanje
kakovosti in trajnostnega razvoja destinacije. Pričujoči članek analizira podeželsko
regijo na Češkem z ipa, tj. analiza pomena – izvedbe (angl. importance-performance
analysis). S to analizo smo ovrednotili dejavnike, ki pomembno vplivajo na zadovolj-
stvo obiskovalcev in lokalnih prebivalcev. Identificirali smo več statistično značilnih
razlik v dojemanju pomena dejavnikov med obiskovalci in domačini. Tako so npr.
obiskovalci dejavnikoma prenatrpanost in prijazen sprejem s strani domačinov pri-
pisali večji pomen kot domačini. Obe skupini se zavedata pomena trajnostnega tu-
rizma in kakovosti storitev. Rezultati kažejo, da v regiji obstajajo področja, potrebna
izboljšav. Identificirana je bila glavna vrzel med zaznano ravnjo kakovosti storitve
destinacije in pomembnostjo dejavnika. Na podlagi rezultatov so oblikovana pripo-
ročila za organizacijo destinacijskega menedžmenta.
Ključne besede: kakovost, domačini, obiskovalci, podeželska destinacija, ipa
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 87–99
Pripravljenost plačati več: iskanje odličnih muzejev
Nuria Recuero Virto, María Francisca Blasco López in Juan Antonio Mondejar
Upravitelji muzejev svoja prizadevanja nenehno usmerjajo v ekonomsko upraviče-
nost. To je postal ključni izziv, saj se ponudba atrakcij »izkustvene ekonomije« po-
večuje, obiskovalci pa iščejo konkurenčne izkušnje. Čeprav se navaja, da slika pove
tisoč besed, je glavni cilj te raziskave ugotoviti, ali razmerje med podobo muzeja
in zadovoljstvom obiskovalcev signifikantno in pozitivno vpliva na njihovo pripra-
vljenost plačati več. Za izvedbo primerjave med več skupinami so bile uporabljene
analiza z nedavno razvitim merjenjem invariantnosti kompozitov (angl. micom)
in nove metode permutacije. Skupno je bilo pridobljenih 529 veljavnih odgovorov
obiskovalcev muzeja. Zanimivo je, da so ugotovitve pokazale, da med obema mu-
zejskima vzorcema ni bilo bistvenih razlik in da so bili vsi analizirani odnosi med
sabo pozitivno povezani ter signifikantni. Podobna Henselerjeva raziskava med več
skupinami je med dvema vzorcema obiskovalcev muzeja ugotovila majhno razliko v
povezavi med zadovoljstvom obiskovalcev in njihovim ustnim oglaševanjem (angl.
word-of-mouth). Ta raziskava predlaga večskupinsko primerjalno študijo, ki preu-
čuje dva različna vzorca obiskovalcev dveh izrazito prepoznavnih mehiških muze-
jev, tako da ugotovitve prinašajo koristne napotke za akademsko in vodstveno sfero
turistične industrije.
Ključne besede: večskupinska analiza, zadovoljstvo, podoba, pripravljenost plačati
več, ustno oglaševanje
Academica Turistica, 14(1), 101–114
118 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Academica Turistica Instructions for Authors
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Academica Turistica Instructions for Authors
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vene language. For foreign authors translation of the
abstract into Slovene will be provided.
The content of the abstract should be structured
into the following sections: purpose, methods, results,
and conclusion. It should only contain the information
that appears in the text as well. It should contain no re-
ference to figures, tables and citations published in the
main text, and should not exceed 250 words.
Beneath the abstract, the authors should supply
appropriate keywords (3–6) in English and in Slovene.
For foreign authors the translation of the abstract into
Slovene will be provided.
The main text should contain a coherent and logi-
cal structure preferably following the imrad format
(Introduction, Methods, Research [and] Discussion).
However, other structures are also welcome (e.g. In-
troduction, Development and Conclusions) as long as
the text maintains its logical structure and focus. Ac-
knowledgments are optional.
The length of the articles should not exceed 9,000
words (including tables, figures, and references), dou-
ble spaced, using Times New Roman font sized 12.
Tables. Each table should be submitted on a sepa-
rate page in a Word document after References. Each
table shall have a brief caption; explanatory matter
should be in the footnotes below the table. The table
shall contain means and the units of variation (sd,
se, etc.) and must be free of nonsignificant decimal
places. Abbreviations used in the tablesmust be consi-
stentwith those used in the text and figures.Definition
symbols should be listed in the order of appearance,
determined by reading horizontally across the table
and should be identified by standard symbols. All ta-
bles should be numbered consecutively (Table 1, Table
2, etc.).
Figures. Captions are required for all Figures and shall
appear on a separate manuscript page, beneath table
captions. Each figure should be saved as a separate
file without captions and named as Figure 1, etc. Files
should be submitted in *.tiff or *.jpeg format. Pho-
tographs should be saved at at least 300 dpi. Line art
images should be saved at 1200 dpi. Lettering (sym-
bols, letters, and numbers) should be between 8 and
9 points, with consistent spacing and alignment. Font
face may be Serif (Minion) or Sans Serif (Myriad).
Line width should be 0.5 point or greater. Any extra
white or black space surrounding the image should be
cropped. Ensure that subject-identifying information
(i.e., faces, names, or any other identifying features)
is cropped out or opaqued. Prior to publication, the
author(s) should obtain all necessary authorizations
for the publication of the illustrative matter and sub-
mit them to the Editorial Board. All figures should be
numbered consecutively (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.). The
journal will be printed in black and white. If the pa-
per contains graphs, we would appreciate that you also
e-mail them in a separate Excel file.
References
References should be formatted according to the Pu-
blication Manual of the American Psychological Associ-
ation (American Psychological Association, 2019).
The list of references should only include works
that are cited in the text. Personal communications
and unpublished works should only be mentioned in
the text. References should be complete and contain all
the authors that have been listed in the title of the ori-
ginal publication. If the author is unknown, start with
the title of the work. If you are citing a work that is in
print but has not yet been published, state all the data
and instead of the publication year write ‘in print.’
Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the
last name of the first author of each work. Do not use
footnotes or endnotes as a substitute for a reference
list. Full titles of journals are required (not their abbre-
viations).
120 | Academica Turistica, Year 14, No. 1, June 2021
Academica Turistica Instructions for Authors
Citing References in Text
One author. Tourism innovation specific is mentioned
(Brooks, 2010). Thomas (1992) had concluded . . .
Two authors. This result was later contradicted (Swar-
brooke &Horner, 2007). Price andMurphy (2000)
pointed out . . .
Three or more authors. Wolchik et al. (1999) or (Wol-
chik et al., 1999).
If two references with three or more authors shor-
ten to the same form, cite the surnames of the first
author and of as many of the subsequent authors as
necessary to distinguish the two references, followed
by a coma and et al.
List several authors for the same thought or idea
with separation by using a semicolon: (Kalthof et al.,
1999; Biegern & Roberts, 2005).
Examples of Reference List
Books
American Psychological Association. (2019). Publica-
tion manual of the American Psychological Associ-
ation (7th ed.).
Swarbrooke, J., &Horner, S. (2007).Consumer behavi-
our in tourism. Butterworth-Heinemann.
Journals
Laroche,M., Bergeron, J., & Barbaro-Forleo, G. (2001).
Targeting consumers who are willing to pay more
for environmentally friendly products. Journal of
Consumer Marketing, 18(6), 503–520.
Wolchik, S. A., West, S. G., Sandler, I. N., Tein, J.–
Y., Coatsworth, D., Lengua, L., . . . Griffin, W. A.
(2000). An experimental evaluation of theory-
basedmother andmother-child programs for chil-
dren of divorce. Journal of Consulting and Clinical
Psychology, 68, 843–856.
Newspapers
Brooks, A. (2010, 7 July). Building craze threatens
to end Lanzarote’s biosphere status. Independent.
http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/
nature/building-craze-threatens-to-end
-lanzarotes-biosphere-status-2020064.html
Chapters in Books
Poirier, R. A. (2001). A dynamic tourism develop-
ment model in Tunisia: Policies and prospects. In
Y. Aposotolopoulos, P. Loukissas, & L. Leontidou
(Eds.), Mediterranean tourism (pp. 197–210). Rou-
tledge.
Conference Proceedings
Price, G., & Murphy, P. (2000). The relationship be-
tween ecotourism and sustainable development: A
critical examination. In M. Ewen (Ed.), cauthe
2000: Peak performance in tourism and hospitality
research; Proceedings of the Tenth Australian Tou-
rism and Hospitality Research Conference (pp. 189–
202). La Trobe University.
Paper Presentation
Thomas, J. (1992, July). Tourism and the environment:
An exploration of the willingness to pay of the ave-
rage visitor [Paper presentation.] Tourism in Eu-
rope, Durham, England.
Theses andDissertations
Sedmak, G. (2006). Pomen avtentičnosti turističnega
proizvoda: primer destinacije Piran [Unpublished
doctoral dissertation]. University of Ljubljana.
Working Papers
Salamon, L. M., Sokolowski, S. W., Haddock, M. A., &
Tice, H. S. (2013). The state of global civil society vo-
lunteering: Latest findings from the implementation
of the un nonprofitt handbook (ComparativeNon-
profit Sector Working Paper No. 49). Johns Hop-
kins University.
Web Pages
Croatian Bureau of Statistics. (2001). Census of popu-
lation, households and dwellings. http://www.dzs
.hr/Eng/censuses/Census2001/census.htm
Manuscript Submission
The main manuscript document should be in Micro-
soft Word document format and the article should be
submitted to http://academica.turistica.si/index.php/
AT-TIJ/about/submissions
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