Sociopsychological Aspects of Butterfly Souvenir Purchasing Behavior at Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park in Indonesia

Yoonjeong Jeong,Fajri Ansari,Seong-Il Kim,Indra Putri

doi:10.3390/su11061789

Yoonjeong Jeong, Fajri Ansari + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su11061789

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Abstract

Utilizing butterflies in souvenirs escalates their exploitation, which occurs even with protected species. Visitors affect both tourism sustainability and butterfly populations. Thus, parks must establish visitor management practices to secure tourism, including butterfly-trading activities to provide social and economic benefits, while still maintaining butterfly populations and environmental sustainability. This research examined the relationships between visitors’ motivations, environmental attitudes (deontological status, legal compliance, and political activism), and preference regarding butterfly souvenirs. Data were collected using an on-site survey of 455 respondents at Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park in Indonesia and analyzed using factor analysis, correlation, and logistic regression. Results showed that visitors’ motivations were divided into four categories: challenge and freedom, nature appreciation, social relationships, and escape from routine. Visitors showed high deontological status, legal compliance, and political activist attitudes, valued the attributes of butterfly souvenirs highly, and strongly preferred souvenirs with authenticity value. Significant correlations existed among motivation, attitude, and preference for butterfly souvenir attributes. Logistic regression results revealed that with more frequent visits, better souvenir quality, and higher education levels, the possibility of visitors purchasing butterfly souvenirs increased. Prior knowledge regarding regulations prohibiting protected butterfly trading diminished this possibility. This study further discusses how visitors’ sociopsychological information can be used to minimize negative impacts caused by overtourism.

Highlights

Rapid growth in tourism in the 21st century transformed the sector into one of the world’s largest industrial and economic sectors and brought about swift development of the souvenir procurement industry
All four motivations—challenge and freedom, nature appreciation, social relationships, and escape from routine—were significantly correlated to deontological status, legal compliance, and political activism
The significant correlations among these variables indicated that visitors of Babul NP with higher deontological status, legal compliance, and political activism preferred butterfly souvenirs more when they possessed various values, including authenticity

Summary

Introduction

Rapid growth in tourism in the 21st century transformed the sector into one of the world’s largest industrial and economic sectors and brought about swift development of the souvenir procurement industry. Souvenirs have become an essential part of the travel industry [2], performing a vital role in tourism development [3]. The growth of tourism contributes to the increased demand for souvenirs [4]. Souvenirs are regarded as representing the identities [5,6], symbols [7], and characteristics [8,9] of a tourism destination, and play an important role in describing its image [10,11]. Souvenirs are an influential factor in tourist visitation [12], as they are essential to evoking memories of travelers’ previous vacations [1] and increasing the attractiveness of a destination [2]

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