Sustainability of Heritage Tourism: A Structural Perspective from Cultural Identity and Consumption Intention

Gege Zhang,Rob Law,Xiaoyuan Chen,Mu Zhang

doi:10.3390/su12219199

Abstract

Intangible cultural heritage can provide cultural value content for product development and marketing of tourism destinations, enabling these areas to obtain economic benefits. This study selects cultural identity as an antecedent variable, and applies the theory of planned behavior to construct the influence mechanism of cultural identity on tourists’ consumption intention in heritage tourism. In tourism development, visitors and local residents have reached a common cognitive basis for Kunqu Opera through cultural identity, thereby guiding consumer behavior and promoting the continuous development of Kunqu Opera tourism. This study takes Suzhou Kunqu Opera as a research object, designs a questionnaire for local residents and tourists, establishes a structural equation model, and explores the relationship between various impact factors. The results of the study show that cultural identity has a positive effect on consumption intentions in heritage tourism activities, confirming that cultural identity is an effective driving force to promote tourists’ consumption intention. Behavioral attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control have a positive effect on consumption intentions. This study supplements the existing knowledge on tourists’ consumption intention in intangible cultural heritage destinations. The study also provides new insights to enhance the consumption intention and achieve long-term sustainable development of the destination.

Highlights

Intangible cultural heritage refers to oral traditions and forms of expression, performing arts, social practices, rituals and festivals, knowledge and practice concerning nature and the universe, and traditional handicraft [1]
The present study aims to explore the impact of perceived behavioral control, behavioral attitudes, and subjective norms on the consumption intentions toward intangible cultural heritage
Taking Suzhou Kunqu Opera as an example, this study selected cultural identity as the antecedent variable and combined it with the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in consumer behavior to explore the impact of cultural identity on the tourism consumption intention of intangible cultural heritage

Summary

Introduction

Intangible cultural heritage refers to oral traditions and forms of expression, performing arts, social practices, rituals and festivals, knowledge and practice concerning nature and the universe, and traditional handicraft [1]. It embodies historical and cultural values and aesthetic habits of tourist destinations, and is naturally compatible with tourism development. Travelers have sought to experience a variety of performing arts, handicrafts, food, and traditional rituals, and intangible cultural heritage has become one of the main driving forces of tourism. Intangible cultural heritage can provide a cultural travel experience to attract tourists, create economic value for the destination, and achieve sustainable development

Results

Discussion

Conclusion