| Author | Montakan Chubchuwong |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.SM-14-07 |
| Subject(s) | Tourism--Thailand--Environmental aspect
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| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Dissertation ; no. SM-14-07 |
| Abstract | The tourism industry has a great impact on the host destination in economic, social, and environmental dimensions. As tourist destination cities try to maintain a high level of environmental sustainability, it is important to know how visitors could become pro - environment and to determine the barriers that hinder them from being so. This dissertation examines whether international visitors’ pro - environmental attitude s can be influenced by their nature - based tourism experience, attachment to the destination, and ownership of a property at the destination. The researcher also examine d whether their pro - environment attitudes influence their pro - environment behaviors. Several i n - dept h interviews with industry experts and visitors were conducted to assess the validity of the research instrument.After refinement, the questionnaire was pilot - tested both qualitatively and quantitatively o n two separate occasions. Factor loading and Cronbach’s alpha tests found that results were satisfactory. Two seaside cities in Thailand, Hua Hin and Pattaya, were selected as location s for this survey research. R esults from the main survey of 300 respondents (156 respondents in Hua Hin and 144 respondents in Pattaya ) indicate that destination attachment and a nature - based tourism experience positively influence visitors’ pro - environment attitudes, whereas ownership of property at the destination enhances their sense of attachment to the destination. Barriers such as visitors’ “ vacation mindset ” and different social norms have negative impact on their pro - environment attitu des , while the lack of availability of “green” infrastructure, products and information negatively impact their attitudes as well as behaviors . Based on these findings, visitor s ’ pro - environment attitudes may be enhanced with stronger feeling s of attachmen t to the destination and more frequent experience of nature - based tourism, while their pro - environment behaviors may be enhanced by greater provision of environ mental friendly tourism products, infrastructure, and information . |
| Year | 2014 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology. Dissertation ; no. SM-14-07 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Management (SOM) |
| Department | Other Field of Studies (No Department) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Master of Business Administration (MBA) (Publication code=SM) |
| Examination Committee(s) | Igel, Barbara ;Doneys, Philippe ;Beise-Zee, Rian ;Sununta Siengthai ;Speece, Mark W. |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Dhurakij Pundit University, Thailand |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2014 |