Other
DOCTORAL DISSERTATION SUMMARY: THE INTERDEPENDENCE OF TOURIST EXPERIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR OF TOURISTS IN CAMPSITES
Tihana Cegur Radović
; The University of Rijeka Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Croatia
Abstract
Purpose
Camping tourism is a form of special-interest nature tourism (Mikulić, et al., 2017). It
has been recognised as a growing segment of the tourism industry. Camping industry
trends have shifted from standard camps, involving only tents and campfires, to new and
innovative types of accommodation, i.e., mobile houses and glamping tents of different
sizes and designs. As a result, the ecological awareness of camping tourists is on the
rise. Camping tourists like to be in nature, socialise and look for new experiences, and
be involved in various recreational activities, provided they can enjoy all the comforts
of home.
This doctoral dissertation focuses on environmental responsibility from the aspect
of tourist behaviour in campsites. When staying in campsites, tourists have various
experiences and show either satisfaction or dissatisfaction with their stay. Thus, the
issue is whether the tourists’ campsite experience can influence their environmentally
responsible behaviour in the campsite.
There is insufficient research to prove the relationship between different tourist experience
dimensions, such as entertainment, aesthetics, education, and escapism (according
to Pine and Gilmore, 1998) acquired in a specific destination and environmentally
responsible behaviour. There is even less research on the specific context of camping tourism, which is defined as a research problem. Thus, this doctoral dissertation
investigates the interdependence of the tourist experience, tourists’ satisfaction with
their stay in campsites, their environmentally responsible behaviour in campsites, and
the influence that the tourists’ environmental attitudes have on the relationship between
the tourist experience and environmentally responsible behaviour. The assumption is
that the various dimensions of the tourist experience have a positive impact on tourist
satisfaction with the stay in a campsite and the environmentally responsible behaviour
of tourists. The relationship between the tourist experience and environmentally
responsible behaviour is also affected by the mediatory influence of the tourists’
attitudes towards the environment. The research investigates entertainment, aesthetics,
education and escapism as the dimensions of the tourist experience and explores specific
environmentally responsible behaviour.
The purpose of the research was to investigate the relationship between different tourist
experience dimensions of campsite visitors, satisfaction with the stay in a campsite,
tourists’ environmental attitudes, and their specific environmentally responsible
behaviour. To achieve the purposes of this research, the scientific objectives of the
research were to: 1) scientifically define the basic concepts: tourist experience, tourist
satisfaction with the stay in a campsite, environmental attitude, and environmentally
responsible behaviour; 2) develop a conceptual model of the interdependence of the
tourist experience, tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite, environmental attitude,
and tourists’ environmentally responsible behaviour; and 3) test a conceptual model and
determine the relationship between the basic constructs and the mediatory influence of
tourists’ environmental attitude. In terms of applying research findings, the dissertation
aims to identify the dimensions of the tourist experience that have the most significant
effect on tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite and on the environmentally
responsible behaviour of tourists.
Following the research objectives, the primary scientific hypothesis was defined: Based
on theoretical and empirical findings, a positive relationship can be established between
the dimensions of the tourist experience of campsite visitors, their satisfaction with their
stay in a campsite, and their environmentally responsible behaviour. In addition, four
auxiliary hypotheses, incorporated into the conceptual model, were developed to prove
the primary hypothesis.
Methodology
In this thesis, several scientific methods were applied: inductive and deductive method,
method of analysis and synthesis, method of generalisation and specialisation, methods
of description, classification and compilation, method of proof and refutation, method
of abstraction and concretisation, comparative method, survey method, and statistical
method.
Empirical research was conducted to test the auxiliary hypotheses and the conceptual
model. First, a highly structured questionnaire was designed, using scales from relevant
and previously published research. A total of 54 variables were used in the questionnaire to measure the constructs “tourist experience” (14 variables), “tourist satisfaction
with the stay in a campsite” (3 variables), “environmental attitude” (9 variables) and
“environmentally responsible behaviour” (28 variables). The attitudes of the examinees
were measured using a 7-point Likert scale (1 – I completely disagree; 7- I completely
agree). The questionnaire also consisted of questions referring to the socio-demographic
profile of the respondents, travel characteristics, and characteristics of the stay in the
campsite. The developed questionnaire was subjected to content validation by experts
and students and adjusted in compliance with their reviews. Upon validation, a second
version of the questionnaire was created and tested. The pilot test was conducted using
the paper and pencil method on a convenience sample (N=140). Following the pilot
test, six variables, which proved less significant for conducting the main research, were
eliminated from the construct “environmentally responsible behaviour”. Therefore, the
final survey questionnaire comprised 48 variables, which measured the constructs.
The main research was conducted using the paper and pencil method on a sample of
campsite tourists. The data were collected in 17 continental campsites and 41 coastal
campsites in Croatia from 1 May 2019 to 31 October 2019. A total of 1500 surveys were
handed out. After verifying they were filled out with readable data, a total of 932 were
retained, making a return rate of 62.13%.
The collected data were analysed using univariate, bivariate and multivariate statistical
methods. The reliability of the measuring instrument was analysed using the Cronbach
alpha coefficient of internal consistency, and the dimensionality of the measuring scales
was analysed using exploratory factor analysis. Structural modelling, using partial least
square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), was applied to test the conceptual
model on empirical data.
Findings
The conceptual model was tested using the PLS-SEM methodology. The structural
model (internal) consists of three exogenous latent variables: “tourist experience”,
“environmental attitude”, “tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite”, and one
endogenous latent variable named “environmentally responsible behaviour”. The
measurement model consists of six exogenous reflective variables: “education”,
“aesthetics”, “entertainment”, “tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite”, “real
growth limits”, “natural balance vulnerability”, and two endogenous reflective variables
“influence on other tourists in the campsite” and “sustainable behaviour in the campsite”.
The reflective variables in the measurement model were designed as linear composites
based on previously performed analyses.
The evaluation of the model was performed in two steps: first, the measurement
model was evaluated, and then the structural model. Finally, the hypotheses were
tested. Evaluation of a measurement model includes external saturation estimation,
composite reliability (CR), indicator reliability and average variance extracted (AVE).
The Fornell-Larcker criterion, cross-loadings and the Heterotrait-Monotrait correlation
ratio (HTMT) are used to assess discriminant validity (Hair et al., 2017). Based on the conducted analyses, the dimension “escapism” was excluded from the construct “tourist
experience” as well as the dimension “responsible behaviour towards flora and fauna”,
as the external saturations were below 0.708 (Hair et al., 2017). The external saturations
of other constructs range from 0.749 to 1.000. Using the Bootstrapping method, it was
assessed that all the constructs in the model are significant at the level of 0.001. Internal
composite reliability was confirmed as all values of composite reliability range between
0.820 and 1.000 and are above 0.70, as recommended by Hair et al. (2017). The Cronbach
alpha coefficient ranges from 0.575 to 1.000. The AVE index ranges from 0.657 to 1.000.
The values of the Fornell-Larcker criteria range from 0.811 to 1.000 and exceed all the
correlations with other constructs.
After assessing the measurement model, the structural model was evaluated, and
the hypotheses were tested. An analysis of the relationships in the structural model
shows that all the models’ relationships are significant and relevant, except for the
relationship between the construct “tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite”
and “environmentally responsible behaviour”. Therefore, three of the four auxiliary
hypotheses are confirmed. The determination coefficient (R2
) point to a moderate
effect for the construct “tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite” (0.496) and
a weak effect for the constructs “environmentally responsible behaviour” (0.198) and
“environmental attitude” (0.030). The f2 indicator of effect size points to the strong effect
of the construct “tourist satisfaction with the stay in a campsite” and the weak effect
of other constructs. The model is predictively relevant since all the values are Q2 > 0,
pointing to a satisfactory level of the predictive meaning of the path model.
The research has certain limitations which should be considered when generalising the
results. The limitations refer to the research sample, the period of the empirical research,
the questionnaire and the measurement scales, and the partial inability to compare the
research results with previous research. Thus, future research will require a more detailed
investigation of the relationship between tourist satisfaction and environmentally
responsible behaviour in campsites, as this research did not confirm this relationship.
Furthermore, other constructs, such as place attachment, tourist involvement in activities,
experience co-creation, environmental training, and others, could also be included in the
model. Moreover, it would be necessary to investigate why “aesthetics”, as a dimension
of the tourist experience, does not influence the environmentally responsible behaviour
of tourists in campsites. The research presented in this doctoral dissertation could be a
starting point for future research.
The originality of the research
The research conducted has theoretical, methodological and managerial implications.
The scientific contribution of the research is the development of theory concerning
the relationship between “tourist experience”, “tourist satisfaction with the stay in a
campsite”, “environmental attitude”, and “environmentally responsible behaviour”,
considering the relatively small number of papers dealing with these relationships.
Another contribution is a review and the critical analysis of previous conceptual and
empirical research on the research subject and the construction of a conceptual model for measuring the relationships between the mentioned constructs. A measurement instrument
was designed for this research and adapted to a specific context. The adaptation and
testing of the metric characteristics of the research instruments can also be considered a
scientific contribution in a theoretical sense. Testing the conceptual model and proving
the hypothesis confirmed the interdependency of the dimensions “tourist experience”
and “environmentally responsible behaviour” of tourists in campsites. Thus, this research
represents a starting point for future scientific research. The methodological contribution
of the research is the verification of the set hypotheses and the testing of the conceptual
model using the empirical data and the partial least square structural equation modelling
(PLS-SEM). A notable contribution is that it proves the indirect influence of the mediator
variable “environmental attitude”, which mediates the relationship between “tourist
experience” and “environmentally responsible behaviour”. In the applicability sense, the
contribution is based on the proposals to help managers improve and enhance the tourist
experience and the environmentally responsible behaviour of tourists in campsites.
Keywords
tourist experience; tourist satisfaction; environmental attitude; environmentally responsible behaviour; campsite
Hrčak ID:
269575
URI
Publication date:
4.10.2021.
Visits: 948 *