Introduction
This article investigates how the significant coral bleaching event in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) affected tourists’ attitudes and beliefs regarding climate risk. The study examines tourists’ emotional responses and how they saw the GBR. It discovers how their individual experiences, media coverage, and information-sharing impacted their opinions on climate change and their support for initiatives to lessen its consequences. The study offers a thorough knowledge of the impact of the coral bleaching catastrophe on visitors and their opinions on climate-related concerns by looking at these elements.
Research Model
The research model employed in this study utilized a survey-based approach to collect data on tourists’ perceptions and values of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and their climate change threat awareness and perceptions. The study used a series of statements from an established framework for monitoring human-environment cultural and place values to assess tourists’ sentiments and protective sentiments for the GBR (Curnock et al., 2019). The survey respondents were asked to indicate their level of agreement/disagreement on a 10-point scale and provide ratings for satisfaction and quality of reef-based activities.
Population
The demographic of interest in this study was tourists who had been to or intended to visit the Great Barrier Reef. The research, which addressed domestic and foreign visitors, reflected the interests and values of many stakeholder groups. The population of interest comprised travelers in the GBR region, bounded by Bundaberg in the south, Cape York in the north, and the Great Dividing Range in the west. The poll was intended for domestic and international guests in the GBR region.
Sampling
The study used convenience and quota sampling to reduce possible biases related to gender, age, and nationality. Face-to-face recruitment of tourists occurred in 14 regional population centers along the coast and open spaces like beaches, boat ramps, parks, marketplaces, and GBR tourism vessels (Curnock et al., 2019). The sampling technique aimed to achieve comparable demographics and places of origin between the years of data collection (2013 and 2017).
Sample Size
2013, the study’s sample comprised 1,557 Australians, 1,286 overseas visitors, and 34 individuals who omitted their country of origin (Curnock et al., 2019). In 2017, the sample consisted of 1,804 visitors, including 831 Australians, 805 tourists from other countries, and 168 respondents who did not name their country of origin (Curnock et al., 2019).
Instruments
Face-to-face interviews were used in the study to give a standardized survey questionnaire. The study asked respondents to score a series of statements from a recognized framework for keeping track of place and cultural values on a scale of 1 to 10 (Curnock et al., 2019). Participants were also asked to rate their contentment with and the caliber of reef-based events. Through multiple-choice questions, participants were asked to choose the statement that best expressed their understanding of the threat posed by climate change (Curnock et al., 2019). The three biggest dangers to the GBR, in the respondents’ eyes, were elicited using open-ended questions.
Findings
The researchers found substantial changes in visitors’ attitudes and perceptions of climate risk after the major coral bleaching event. The percentage of visitors who saw the threat of climate change and believed that quick action was required significantly rose. Tourists from both outside and Australia showed a greater awareness of the threat posed by climate change, showing a major shift in normative views on a scale that has not before been documented (Curnock et al., 2019). Due to media coverage that included pictures of bleached corals, tourists’ opinions of the GBR’s visual attractiveness and overall pleasure with the GBR experience deteriorated.
Conclusion
However, assessments of the GBR’s values, especially those related to its biodiversity, scientific and educational value, lifestyle value, and status as a worldwide emblem, saw modest but considerable improvements. The sense of pride and identification that comes with the GBR has also grown. While visitors’ self-efficacy in reducing hazards decreased, protective emotion toward the GBR increased, indicating a change in how governments and businesses are seen to bear responsibility.
Reference
Curnock, M. I., Marshall, N. A., Thiault, L., Heron, S. F., Hoey, J., Williams, G., Taylor, B., Pert, P. L., & Goldberg, J. (2019). Shifts in tourists’ sentiments and climate risk perceptions following mass coral bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef. Nature Climate Change, 9(7), 535–541. Web.