The influence of tourist values on environmental responsibility behavior—a multi-case study from Guilin

Abstract

Abstract Cultivating tourists’ environmental responsibility behavior is an effective way to relieve the pressure of ecological environment in tourist destinations. Based on the value-attitude-behavior theory, this paper constructs a relationship model of values, ecotourism attitude, social responsibility awareness and environmental responsibility behavior, and explores the mechanism of tourists’ values influence on environmental responsibility behavior. Taking three scenic areas (Mao’er Mountain, Yulong River and Xingping Ancient Town) in the Lijiang River Basin of Guilin, a world-famous tourist destination in China, as a case study, the structural equation model is used to test the theoretical hypotheses of tourists’ environmental responsibility behavior. The results of the three studies show that values have a significant positive impact on tourists’ environmental responsibility behavior, while ecotourism attitude cannot directly affect tourists’ environmental responsibility behavior, but values can indirectly affect tourists’ environmental responsibility behavior through the chain intermediary of ecotourism attitude and social responsibility awareness. The findings of the study can effectively guide tourists’ environmental responsibility behavior, which has far-reaching significance for the sustainable development of tourist destinations.