Developing a Comprehensive Index for Beaches to Enhance Sustainability and Visitor Experience Through Holistic Monitoring

Estefania Basurto-Cedeno (), Lori Penington-Gray and Xavier Basurto
Additional contact information
Estefania Basurto-Cedeno: School of Hospitality &Turism Management, College of Hospitality, Retail & Sport Management, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA
Lori Penington-Gray: School of Hospitality &Turism Management, College of Hospitality, Retail & Sport Management, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA
Xavier Basurto: School of Hospitality &Turism Management, College of Hospitality, Retail & Sport Management, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 7, 1-24

Abstract: This study presents the development of the Comprehensive Index for Beaches (CIB), a holistic tool designed to address the limitations of traditional beach monitoring systems by integrating social and ecological dimensions within a socio-ecological systems (SES) framework. While existing certification schemes predominantly emphasize physical parameters such as water quality and sand cleanliness, they often overlook critical social factors like safety perceptions, overcrowding, and user behavior. This oversight is significant because these social factors play a vital role in shaping visitor satisfaction, supporting community well-being, and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the destination. The CIB addresses this gap, offering a multidimensional approach that includes environmental, infrastructural, social, and safety-related dimensions. Through a multi-stage methodology, the index was developed and validated using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) with data from over 600 beach visitors across key coastal destinations. Results indicate the robustness of the CIB in capturing both natural and social components, underscoring its theoretical alignment with SES principles and its practical potential to enhance beach management. By prioritizing user perceptions and behaviors alongside ecological parameters, the CIB provides an affordable and adaptable alternative to traditional schemes, fostering improved safety, user satisfaction, and sustainability in diverse beach contexts.

Keywords: beach monitoring; social-ecological system; beach tourism; index creation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/7/3049/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/7/3049/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:7:p:3049-:d:1623712

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().