Gaining community support for tourism in rural areas of Portugal

1. Gaining community support for tourism in rural areas of Portugal Lúcia de Jesus Polytechnic Institute of Viseu

2. Outline • Introduction • Literature Review • Methodology • Study Regions • Procedures • Discussion of Results • Descriptive analysis • Test of hypothesis • Conclusions

3. Introduction

4. Introduction Tourism • As a dynamic and exchange process involves a direct relationship between producers and consumers of the tourism product • The interaction component, is often the principal element which characterizes the tourism experience (Brida et al., 2011), can have both positive and negative effects • Tourists • Host Community, since tourism experience is (partly) produced and consumed in the destination

5. Introduction Local community • Are key to the success of tourism development, particularly in rural areas • Knowledge of their perceptions and attitudes helps the process of planning and marketing a destination (Jurowski & Gursoy, 2004) • And to steer present and future tourism development programmes • When residents are involved in planning, developing the destination will tend to be more sustainable in that its effects will be considered more appropriate by the host community (Robson & Robson, 1996)

6. Introduction The Study focus • On perceptions and attitudes toward rural tourism in rural communities of Portugal and how those perceptions influence the support of residents to tourism development • These relationships involves four constructs, namely: • Personal benefits, positive and negative perceptions, satisfaction, support

7. Literature Review

8. Literature reviewCommunity based Tourism Community Based Tourism • Focus on the involvement of the host community, in planning and maintaining tourism development in order to induce the sustainability of the activity (Hall, 1997) • Permit host communities to break away from the power of large and tour companies and the oligopoly of some tour elites at a national level • Seeks develop the industry in harmony with • ‘needs and aspirations of host communities in a way that is acceptable to them, sustains their economies, rather than economies of others, and is not detrimental to their culture, traditions or, their day-to-day convenience’ (Fitton & Price, 1996, p. 173)

9. Literature reviewCommunity based Tourism Local Communities • Integrate the touristic product • Since their culture, traditions, and history serve as tourist attractions • Influence tourists´ experience • Kindness • Apathy

10. Literature reviewCommunity based Tourism Laggard regions • Tourism has generally been controlled by large companies • Which have given little attention to local economic and sociocultural conditions (Timothy & Loannides, 2002) • Many have lack power, making them prone to decision-making beyond their control (Timothy, 2002) • Is the case where local people are simply used for tourism development Gap between discourse and practice

11. Literature reviewModels integrating residents´ perceptions and attitudes Several theoretical models • Since 1990s, have proposed explanations for the variations in perceptions and attitudes toward tourism (e.gAndereck et al., 2005), • Nonetheless, they use similar constructs

12. Proposed Model to study Residents´ Support H1: The personal benefits obtained from rural tourism influence residents’ positive and negative perceptions H2: The personal benefits obtained from rural tourism influence residents’ satisfaction H3: Residents’ perceptions toward rural tourism determine their satisfaction H4: Residents’ satisfaction in relation to rural tourism contributes to the support given to the activity

13. Methodology

14. Methodology Framework • This presentation is the result of • A broader investigation, inserted in a co-financed doctoral project by the Portuguese Fundaçãopara a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) • A larger Research Project - "The overall rural tourism experience (ORTE) and sustainable local community development", financed by the Fundaçãopara a Ciência e Tecnologia (co-financed by COMPETE, QREN e FEDER) (PTDC/CS-GEO/104894/2008) and coordinated by Elisabeth Kastenholz

15. MethodologyStudy Regions and Procedures Study Regions • Dão-Lafões Region and Douro Region • Present symptoms of interiority and poverty, with few job opportunities • Due to their resources, these two regions hold an enormous tourism potential • DLR has the most attractive spas of the country • DR is a World Heritage Site , since 2001

16. MethodologyStudy Regions and Procedures Procedures • The data on residents’ perceptions and support was collected with face to face questionnaires (190) in 2010 • Including open, closed and likert scale questions • In the regions the number of surveys to be conducted was determined by sampling by quotas (which took into account the criteria of residents’ gender and age) • Data was treated with SPSS software • General description of results • Test the hypothesis that affect residents’ support - were tested with Mann-whitney and Spearman rho tests, for  = 0.050

17. Discussion of Results

18. Discussion of ResultsDescriptive Analysis Socio-demographic profile of residents 57,4 22,6 54,2 81,6 98,4

19. Discussion of ResultsDescriptive Analysis Residents´ perceptions 2,16±0,41 2,86±0,80 2,16±0,44 3,77±0,58 1,99±0,14 2,09±0,37

20. Discussion of ResultsDescriptive Analysis Resident´ satisfaction It seems that residents´ attitudes are neutral… Residents´ Support

21. Discussion of ResultsTesting hypothesis Relationship between personal benefits and residents´ perceptions and residents´ satisfaction 0,00 0,02 0,00 0,02 0,04 Relationship between residents´ perceptions and residents´satisfaction

22. Discussion of ResultsTesting hypothesis Relationship between satisfaction and Support ,421 ,000 ,421 ,000

23. Conclusions & Suggestions

24. Conclusions & Suggestions Descriptive Analysis • Results suggest that probably the population has been neglected in the process of tourism development • We observed that residents don´t have a great and positive perceptions toward tourism • Accordingly, it seems that tourism, “benefits only a small number of people”, thereby accentuating differences between rich and poor • Thus, like Cristovão (1999) we argue that tourism is yet an elitist activity, developed by people that belong to higher social groups at a regional or national level • The tourism that exists is not the tourism that local people want (cf. Valente & Figueiredo, 2003)

25. Conclusions & Suggestions Test of Hypothesis • Personal Benefits and positive perceptions are important in predict tourism satisfaction and support – the four hypothesis are confirmed, at least partially • These results are in line with the social-exchange theory • That is, people who receive benefits from the activity develop more positive perceptions than those who do not • It ´s important develop strategies that benefit the community in some way to get their support in order to develop the sector , but also the host community

26. Conclusions & Suggestions • Local entities should • Define a strategy for the tourist development • Integrate stakeholders and thus community in the process of tourism development

27. Conclusions & Suggestions Future Research • Complement Quantitative data with Qualitative Data • With Data Triangulation or a Study case • In order to understand better the feelings of people and interpret their opinions and suggestions Indeed, this is being done in ORTE Project

28. Thankyou for yourattention! ORTE Project Contacts: mljesus@sapo.pt Pleasevisithttp://cms.ua.pt/orte This presentation is part of a larger Research Project - “The overall rural tourism experience and sustainable local community development”, financed by theFundaçãopara a Ciência e Tecnologia (co-financed by COMPETE, QREN e FEDER) (PTDC/CS-GEO/104894/2008) and coordinated by Elisabeth Kastenholz. UNIÃO EUROPEIA Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional