Residents’ perception toward tourism development: a pre-development perspective

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the positive and negative perceptions of residents towards tourism development in Bujang Valley (Lembah Bujang), an underdeveloped rural area that is targeted for world heritage site inscription because of its archaeological value. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data among residents and 143 questionnaire were returned. Findings The results demonstrated that the residents of Bujang Valley have generally positive perceptions towards tourism development and are agreeable with supporting tourism development. Moreover, these results were highly correlated with one another, with residents’ positive perceptions having a positive effect on their support for tourism development, and negative perceptions have a negative effect on their support for tourism development. Practical implications The findings of this study can assist the Bujang Valley local authorities to improve the support and participation of residents in tourism planning and conservation programmes, thereby contributing to sustainable development. Originality/value This study contributes to the resident perception literature by examining the effects of residents’ perceptions on their support for tourism in an underdeveloped rural area in the developing world.