Building responsible and sustainable tourism: The effects of community attitudes and place attachment on the Mississippi Gulf Coast

Abstract

ABSTRACT Environmental sustainability in tourism management continues to be topic that needs investigation. This study advances the understanding of sustainable tourism by providing both new context through the study of a unique population of residents on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and applying a psychological theoretical lens. The argument is made that residents within a tourism area can utilize their sustainable tourism attitudes to facilitate action that is both environmentally responsible and supportive of a greater sustainable tourism development plan. Hypotheses are developed to suggest a mediated relationship between sustainable tourism attitude and these actions through a resident’s place attachment. Data from residents in a coastal tourism area were tested with a regression-based approach and indicate place attachment as a necessary linkage to environmentally responsible behavior and support of sustainable tourism development. These results suggest that it is not enough to have a sustainable attitude toward tourism. There also needs to be the development of identification with the place one lives. This research continues a conversation about attitudes in sustainable tourism by establishing that resident attitudes significantly affect the actions they take toward sustainable tourism. Further, this research expands into previously understudied geographies with complicated ecological, business, and residential dynamics.