Do Situations Influence the Environmentally Responsible Behaviors of National Park Visitors? Survey from Shennongjia National Park, Hubei Province, China

Yan Gao, Lilin Zou, Alastair M. Morrison and Fanglin Wu
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Yan Gao: School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Hubei University of Economics, Wuhan 430205, China
Lilin Zou: School of Political Science and Public Administration, Huaqiao University, Quanzhou 362021, China
Alastair M. Morrison: Department of Marketing, Events and Tourism, Greenwich Business School, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9SL, UK
Fanglin Wu: School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Hubei University of Economics, Wuhan 430205, China

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 9, 1-15

Abstract: Natural ecological protection in protected areas involves the restriction of land use patterns and their intensity. Typically, the goal of land use is to balance environmental protection with community development. Nature education and ecological experiences in protected areas encourage visitor environmentally responsible behavior (ERB) which supports the sustainable use of land in national parks and reduces the degradation of natural environments. The existing research literature has a focus on ways of facilitating ERB through rational and external influences. However, individual behaviors are contextual and specific situations affect behavior. This research used environmental knowledge as a rational factor and situations were viewed as a moderator in stimulating ERB based on situational cognition theory. A knowledge-situation-behavior latent variable moderator model was constructed and tested with visitor survey data from Shennongjia National Park, Hubei Province, China. The findings showed that situations had a significant positive moderating effect on the relationship between environmental knowledge and ERB. Books, articles, authors and familiar people had a significant positive moderating effect on ERB, as did environmental interpretation and staff guidance. Precise measures to promote the ERB of national park visitors were proposed.

Keywords: environmentally responsible behavior; altruism; environmental knowledge; situated cognition theory; national parks; moderating effects (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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