Ecological worldview, attitudes, and visitors’ behaviour: a study of front-country campers

Abstract

ABSTRACTTourism and recreation have included attitudes in their pro-environmental behaviour prediction frameworks, though not many have assessed the cognitive and affective dimensions of attitudes in their analyses. In environmental psychology, environmental values are antecedent to attitudes, where ecological worldviews are reflective of environmental values. This study reports the influence of nature-based tourists’ ecological worldviews in combination with the cognitive and affective dimensions of attitudes on pro-environmental behavioural intentions. A sample of 1,009 front-country campers visiting Alberta, Canada’s provincial parks were surveyed. Analysis of data using structural equation modelling revealed that affective-attitudes strongly and positively influenced intentions to engage in nature-protective behaviours while camping; cognitive-attitudes had a non-significant effect on intentions. This is congruent with other studies’ findings that emphasize the importance of affect in influencing intentions and behaviours. Respondents’ New Ecological Paradigm scale scores demonstrated a direct, positive effect on camper’s intention to engage in pro-environmental camping behaviours. They also had a strong indirect effect on intentions through affective-attitudes. These findings suggest an emphasis on affect-based messaging to promote pro-environmental behaviour among nature-based tourists are warranted, especially when communicating to individuals who already possess pro-ecological worldviews.