Sense of place and tourism business development

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis study is to investigate the role of sense of place on residents' participation in tourism-related businesses. Emphasis was placed on understanding whether and how sense of place influenced people's decisions to operate a tourism-related business. Thus, this framework and the empirical validation presented are the result of triangulating quantitative survey data (n = 118) tourism business operators and follow-up with qualitative interviews (n = 72) respondents in Tai O, Hong Kong, the linkages between sense of place and small and medium business enterprises (SMTEs) were explored. The findings revealed that sense of place played an important role in encouraging move-out residents and their descendants to return and participate in a tourism-related business. Sense of place also influenced some people's decisions regarding the type of business they were involved in and the manner in which they operated their business. The findings suggested that operators of tourism-related businesses who have a strong sense of place, whether local residents or outsiders, can contribute to preserving a community's culture and for sustainable tourism development.