Environmental attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioural control in responsible tourism practices

A case of residents in Redang Island, Malaysia

Abstract

This study explores the relationship between the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) components and responsible tourism practices, incorporating perceived benefits as a mediator and environmental regulations as a moderator. Utilizing 237 responses collected via face-to-face surveys, the study employed Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) for hypotheses testing. The study finds that environmental awareness does not significantly impact perceived benefits, challenging prior assumptions. Subjective norms and perceived behavioral control positively influence environmentally responsible behavioral intentions and responsible tourism practices. Surprisingly, perceived benefit is not a significant mediator, while environmentally responsible behavioral intentions mediate key relationships, and environmental regulations significantly moderate environmentally responsible behavioral intentions’ impact on responsible tourism practices. This study contributes to the responsible tourism literature by extending TPB with emerging constructs and underscores the importance of environmental regulations in influencing tourism practices. The findings also highlight the need for tourism policymakers and stakeholders to enhance awareness and foster environmentally responsible behavior to align with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study innovatively challenges the traditional TPB by questioning the direct impact of environmental awareness on perceived benefits in responsible tourism settings. It introduces environmental regulations as a key moderating factor and highlights the critical mediating role of environmentally responsible behavioral intentions in translating attitudes into sustainable actions.