Resident-tourist value co-creation in the intangible cultural heritage tourism context : the role of residents’ perception of tourism development and emotional solidarity

Abstract

The value co-creation behavior of residents can contribute to the sustainable development of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) tourism. This paper aims to provide a theoretical framework that uses “cognition–affection–behavior” theory to explain how the two variables of tourism development perception and emotional solidarity affect the value co-creation participation behavior of the local residents in the context of intangible cultural heritage tourism while considering the mediating role of emotional solidarity. This study empirically investigates Meizhou Island in Fujian Province, China as an example by using a structural equation model (SEM). Results show that the perception of local residents toward the benefits of tourism development has a significant positive impact on their emotional solidarity and value co-creation participation behavior, whereas their perception toward the costs of tourism development has a significant negative impact. In addition, the emotional solidarity of these residents has a significant positive impact on their value co-crea-tion participation and plays a mediating role in the relationship between the tourism development perceptions of local residents and their value co-creation participation behavior. This study has important theoretical and practical significance for the management of ICH tourist destinations.