Residents’ attitudes towards tourism development in a non-touristy destination: the moderating role of travel experience

ABSTRACT Residents’ perceptions of tourism development largely determine the success of a tourist destination. In recent years, the concept of Emotional Solidarity, that is, the affective bonds that people have with each other, has been used to explain the resident–tourist relationship. Emotional Solidarity encompasses three factors: welcoming nature, sympathetic understanding, and emotional closeness. The objective of this research is to examine residents’ perceptions about tourism development using the theory of Emotional Solidarity in the context of Rotuma, Fiji. Rotuma has little tourism development. We analyse 310 surveys completed by Rotuma residents. Using PLS-SEM model, we find residents’ emotional closeness with tourists and welcoming nature of tourists (but not sympathetic understanding of tourists) explained tourism’s contribution to the community and support for tourism development. Travel by residents strengthens the relationship between emotional closeness and welcoming nature to their perceptions of contribution to the community and support for tourism development.