Coastal tourism development in Sinop as an emerging rural destination: A preliminary study from the residents’ perspective

Abstract

This study proposes to explore the economic, sociocultural, and environmental effects of coastal tourism development in a Turkish context. It adopts a quantitative approach and performed a random sampling technique. The survey data was collected from a sample of local people in Sinop/Turkey and total number of 252 utilizable questionnaires was gathered and analyzed through descriptive statistics. ANOVA test was also applied in order to compute the perceptional differences among demographical groups. The findings demonstrate that while majority of residents have positive perceptions in general, some agree with negative economic, sociocultural, and environmental effects of coastal tourism in the area. Specifically, they perceive that tourism raises the cost of products and services and as a result of an increase in living costs. ANOVA test shows that there were differences between educational groups in negative environmental impacts and age groups in positive economic impacts. In terms of sustainable coastal tourism, the present work procures further addition to tourism literature and also offers beneficial implications to industry practitioners.

Impact of Rural Tourism Development on Residents’ Satisfaction with the Local Environment, Socio-Economy and Quality of Life in Al-Ahsa Region, Saudi Arabia

“…For example, focusing on the social effects of tourism development, a recent study carried out in Besalú, Catalonia, Spain [ 41 ] revealed that the greatest consensus disagree was related to the negative effects on higher crime rates and the tourism-related noise, while the greatest consensus on positive statements was relevant to the fact that tourism brings jobs and preserve the cultural heritage. Similarly, although Daskin and co-authors [ 15 ] showed that residents had positive attitudes and perceptions towards the role of tourism on improving many sociocultural aspects, the authors underlined distinct negative impacts on the destination, such as the increase in travel accidents, illegal gambling and vandalism. Other studies showed that tourism in rural regions can support the participation of under-represented groups, such as the indigenous individuals and women [ 42 , 43 ].…”

“…Additionally, it helps support the protection of the environment and wildlife [ 13 , 14 ]. For instance, Daskin et al [ 15 ] investigated the impact of rural tourism development in the coastal city Sinop in Turkey. Out of a five-point Likert scale score (1 to 5), the research group found the average value for positive environmental effects was 3.93 and for negative environmental effects was 2.58, which reflects the benefits of tourism to the renovation of the environment locally and the minimal negative impacts, respectively [ 15 ].…”

“…For instance, Daskin et al [ 15 ] investigated the impact of rural tourism development in the coastal city Sinop in Turkey. Out of a five-point Likert scale score (1 to 5), the research group found the average value for positive environmental effects was 3.93 and for negative environmental effects was 2.58, which reflects the benefits of tourism to the renovation of the environment locally and the minimal negative impacts, respectively [ 15 ]. In a rural-based study in six regions in Romania [ 5 ], rural residents have perceived tourism as an important developmental factor from multiple points of view, including the natural, infrastructural and environmental spheres.…”

“…Actually, many studies have underscored the importance of tourism as an important tool for preserving local cultural heritage, conserving natural resources, and replenishing the traditional activities for the sustainable development [ 22 , 23 , 24 ]. In Sinop city, Turkey, survey domains which are related to sociocultural and economic effects showed a tendency towards positive impacts [ 15 ]. However, residents were undecided with two items in the economic domain, including the rise in services and product prices and the rise in living costs.…”

“…However, residents were undecided with two items in the economic domain, including the rise in services and product prices and the rise in living costs. Additionally, concerning the sociocultural domain, residents were undecided about the rise in robbery rates, rise of traffic accidents, increased of illegal gambling practices, and issues related to the co-existence between tourists and local residents [ 15 ].…”