Well-Being and Residents’ Tourism Support – Mature Island Destination Perspective

Rapid tourism development accompanied by exponential increase in the number of tourists and visitors in destinations can disrupt the life of destination residents and negatively affect their support for (future) tourism development. On the other hand, residents economically dependent on tourism might have different attitudes toward tourism in comparison to those who are not economically involved in tourism. Several studies have found that economic dependence on tourism induces more positive perceptions of tourism impacts and higher degree of support than non-dependence. Another potential valuable predictor of tourism support could be residents’ subjective well-being, enhancing our understanding quality of life under the influence of tourism. The purpose of this study is to better understand local residents’ support for tourism development by exploring their well-being, involvement in tourism activities and perceived overall value of tourism development. In order to gain a specific perspective of island tourism destination, a sample of residents living on a small Adriatic island Vir (Croatia) was chosen