THEORY OF PLANNED BEHAVIOUR: PREDICTING TOURISTS’ PRO-ENVIRONMENTAL INTENTIONS AFTER A HUMPBACK WHALE ENCOUNTER

Nature-based experiences can contribute to individuals’ connection to nature and intentions toward sustainable environmental behaviours. Conservation psychology can use tourism as a platform to modify tourists’ intentions and behaviours regarding key marine threats such as single-use plastics. This study examined changes to pro-environmental intentions, particularly regarding plastic use, in 267 nature-based tourists from Australia and Tonga who completed a whale watching/swim experience. A theory of planned behaviour (TPB) framework was used incorporating moral norms and environmental identity, which have been previously implicated in explaining pro-environmental actions. This study found that including moral norms in the TPB model significantly increased the ability to predict pro-environmental intentions. Further, when controlling for the TPB and moral norm variables, environmental identity explained a further 15% of tourists’ pro-environmental intentions. The findings suggest the original TPB model may be less suitable within a marine conservation context. Collectively, positive nature-based experiences, environmental identity, and moral norms are important in understanding tourist’s intentions to engage in sustainable environmental behaviours.

Format

Journal article

Geographic Coverage

Australia-wide

Journal citation

Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 27:5, 649-667

Notes

Abstract included in PLA’s Research Connections article in Parks and Leisure Australia Vol 23.4 Summer 2020, ISSN 1446-5604

Copyright

Due to copyright restrictions, only the abstract is available

Authors

Clark, Eleanor (Author); Mulgrew, Kate (Author); Kannis-Dymand, Lee (Author); Hoberg , Rosie (Author); Schaffer , Vikki (Author)

Source

Taylor and Francis: 2019