Natural Science Group, National University Bangladesh, Gazipur, Bangladesh.
Business Studies Group, National University Bangladesh, Gazipur, Bangladesh.
PLoS One. 2022 Aug 29;17(8):e0273294. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0273294. eCollection 2022.
The present study investigates the perception of local communities and obtains the socio-economic impacts of ecotourism development in Terengganu, Malaysia. Two ecotourism places of Terengganu namely Lake Kenyir and Sekayu Recreational Forest had purposively been chosen for study. A non-probability convenience sampling was adopted for sample selection and a structured questionnaire was administered among 310 respondents to investigate the perception of the local communities. Factor analysis was done to identify the latent constructs and a theoretical Structural Equation Model (SEM) was proposed and tested. Results show that employment opportunities, homestay accommodations, and community participation are some positive socio-economic impacts of ecotourism development. Moreover, degradation of natural resources and break-up of religious traditions have been identified as negative socio-economic impacts. To ensure sustainable ecotourism development and endure the maximum benefit to the local communities, these negative impacts should be minimized. Encouragement should be given to local communities to accelerate the positive impacts of ecotourism.
本研究调查了当地社区的看法，并获得了马来西亚登嘉楼生态旅游发展的社会经济影响。登嘉楼的两个生态旅游地——肯逸湖和赛加尤休闲森林被选为研究对象。采用非概率便利抽样选择样本，并对 310 名受访者进行了结构化问卷调查，以调查当地社区的看法。进行了因子分析以确定潜在的结构，并提出和测试了一个理论结构方程模型（SEM）。结果表明，就业机会、民宿住宿和社区参与是生态旅游发展带来的一些积极的社会经济影响。此外，自然资源退化和宗教传统破裂被确定为消极的社会经济影响。为了确保可持续的生态旅游发展并使当地社区获得最大利益，应尽量减少这些负面影响。应鼓励当地社区加速生态旅游的积极影响。
