Abstract
The rapid development of tourism in recent years has brought benefits but also detrimental impacts for tourism destinations. Sustainable tourism has become an important choice for tourism development. This study attempted to explore residents' attitudes toward sustainable tourism from the viewpoint of their early-life outdoor experiences based on the study site of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. A survey was conducted using quota sampling from the 11 districts in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, using structured questionnaires. The data were collected from 800 local residents in Kaohsiung city aged between 20 and 60 years with 462 valid questionnaires completed and returned. The findings demonstrated that the more outdoor experiences residents have in early life, the stronger are their positive attitudes towards sustainable tourism. Specifically, witnessing negative environmental events was found to be a particularly strong influential factor on sustainable tourism among residents. Based on the research result, it is suggested that the public and private tourism sectors need to provide good outdoor recreation opportunities for children, adolescents, and families to enhance their connection to outdoor environments. Other managerial applications and recommendations for future research are suggested based on the research results. Management implicationsResidents’ attitudes towards sustainable tourism could be developed from the linkage between the residents themselves and nature. For both the public and private tourism sectors, providing good outdoor recreation opportunities for children, adolescents, and family is necessary. Second, although witnessing the degradation of the environment can arouse residents’ awareness of and concerns about sustainable tourism, they are not willing to see those negative events happen. Good interpretations or guidance may help to transfer the shock caused by witnessing negative environmental events into powerful change. Related associations could therefore play an important role in integrating the power and advocacy required for sustainable development in tourism.
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