Using Emotional Solidarity to Explain Residents’ Attitudes about Tourism and Tourism Development

Abstract

Research has neglected to consider the role residents’ feelings toward tourists play in formulating attitudes about tourism and tourism development. Following a two-step process (i.e., establishing a measurement model and structural path model), the Emotional Solidarity Scale (ESS) and its factors were used to predict levels of the Tourism Impact Attitude Scale (TIAS) and its factors. In confirming the factor structure for each scale, both were found to have high internal consistency (through composite reliability and maximal weighted alpha coefficients) and high validity (through convergent and discriminant validity). Collectively, each of the three ESS factors (welcoming nature, emotional closeness, and sympathetic understanding) significantly predicted the two TIAS factors (support for tourism development and contributions tourism makes to the community), with two exceptions. Implications are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided.