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Community Groups' Perceptions of and Preferences for Tourism Development: Evidence from Crete

Greek Open University and Technological Educational Institute of Crete

Despite the increasing research on residents'attitudes toward tourism development, there is limited research on other community groups'perceptions of various tourism matters. The literature suggests that it is essential to appreciate community groups' perceptions and preferences because the measurement of these perceptions plays a vital role in the future success of a destination. As a result, this study was conducted to measure the perceptions of tourism development in three Cretan community groups: residents reliant on tourism employment, nonreliant residents, and tourism business people. The aim was to investigate whether, as social exchange theory suggests, tourism business people and reliant residents are more positive toward tourism and further tourism development due to their economic and/or employment dependency on tourism, and to use community perceptions as a guide for the future tourism development of the island. From the findings, it is evident that the three groups expressed a high degree of positivity toward tourism and tourism development, although there were some differences in their agreement for the types of tourists, facilities, and actions considered beneficial for the island.

Key Words: community perceptions • tourism development • social exchange theory • Crete

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