Personal norms and pro-environmental binning behaviour of visitors in nationalparks: the development of a conceptual framework

• Kourosh Esfandiar ^[1] ; Joanna Pearce ^[1] ; Ross Dowling ^[1]
  1. [1] Edith Cowan University

     Edith Cowan University

     Australia

     
• Localización: Tourism recreation research, ISSN 0250-8281, Vol. 44, Nº. 2, 2019, págs. 163-177
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • National park tourism is an increasing trend worldwide. Understanding national park visitors’pro-environmental behaviour is crucial as sustainability is a vital issue in the nature-based tourismindustry. The primary objective of this study is to develop a conceptual model for explaininglow-cost pro-environmental behaviour (i.e. behavioural choices involving low personal costs);more specifically, binning behaviour in a national park context. In this sense, we delineate low-cost pro-environmental behaviour (i.e. bin use) from high-cost forms of pro-environmentalbehaviour (e.g. picking up other litter) and further focus on a specific site (i.e. a national park).This study considers pro-environmental binning behaviour as a socially responsible behaviour(e.g. helping others) which is perceived more likely to be morally grounded. By consideringbinning behaviour as a pro-environmental personal norm and acknowledging it as a potentialmediator between attitude, social norms, awareness of consequences, perceived behaviouralcontrol, and pro-environmental binning intention, this study develops a conceptual model ofpro-environmental binning behaviour. The research’s theoretical contributions, its restrictionsand practical implications for national parks are further discussed.