The effect of residents’ personality, emotional solidarity, and community commitment on support for tourism development

Abstract

Residents' personality and their perspectives about community and those visiting can play an important role in forming overall support for tourism development. This study examined how residents' personality, emotional solidarity, and community commitment impact perceptions of tourism, which ultimately explain support for tourism development. To test the theoretical framework, survey data were collected from 340 residents living in two Malaysian tourism destinations. Structural equation modelling was utilized to assess the proposed model. Results revealed that sympathetic understanding and welcoming nature were the strongest factors influencing residents' attitudes towards tourism development while the effect was different among males and females with differing personality traits. Further analysis showed that the effect of welcoming nature and emotional closeness on residents’ attitude towards tourism development was different among residents with personalities of high agreeableness and extraversion, while openness to experience, conscientiousness, and neuroticism did not have a significant effect on these relationships.