The mediating effect of community participation on tourism impacts and community attitudes towards tourism development in Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya

Abstract

The success and sustainability of tourism development in a destination community heavily rely on how the local residents perceive it. Meaningful engagement with residents, especially in emerging destinations, is crucial to address their concerns throughout all phases of tourism planning. While existing research extensively explores how tourism directly impacts host communities and their attitudes, a notable gap remains in understanding how community participation influences these dynamics. Therefore, this study aims to examine the mediating effect of community participation on the relationship between tourism impacts and community attitudes towards tourism development in Rimoi National Reserve, Kenya. Specifically, the study explored residents’ perception of tourism impacts and community participation on community attitudes towards tourism development, determined the relationship between tourism's economic, environmental, and socio-cultural impacts on community attitudes toward tourism development, assessed the mediating effect of community participation on this relationship. Guided by the Social Exchange Theory and the Normative Model of Community Participation in Tourism Development, this mixed-methods study adopted a pragmatic paradigm and employed a convergent design. The target population for the quantitative strand consisted of 548 household heads in the Rimoi community, while the qualitative strand comprised youth residents aged 18-34. The sample size included 231 household heads selected using systematic random sampling, and 10 resident youths selected through purposive sampling. Data collection methods included a survey questionnaire for quantitative data and focus group discussions for qualitative data. Quantitative data was analyzed using frequency tables, percentages, means, standard deviations, hierarchical multiple linear regression and bootstrapping using Hayes PROCESS Macro, while qualitative data was analyzed thematically. Quantitative results showed the following: There was a relationship between tourism economic impacts and community attitudes towards tourism development (F (4,226) = 11.45, p<0.05) with a significant positive effect (β=.304, p<0.05); there was a relationship between tourism environmental impacts and community attitudes towards tourism development (F (4,226) = 9.194, p<0.05) with a significant negative effect (β= -.246, p<0.05) and there was a relationship between tourism socio-cultural impacts and community attitudes towards tourism development (F (4,226) = 30.306, p<0.05) with a significant positive effect (β=.540, p<0.05). Results also indicated that Community participation partially mediates the relationship between tourism impacts and community attitudes, with significant indirect effects for economic (B =.2006, Boot CI [.1212, .2894]), environmental (B = -.0780, Boot CI [-.1271, -.0304]), and socio- cultural impacts (B =.2442, Boot CI [.1617, .3311]). The qualitative findings showed that Rimoi residents are willing to participate in local tourism development, and involvement in tourism decision-making. They acknowledged the positive economic and socio-cultural impacts of tourism but expressed worries about potential environmental degradation. The study concluded that community participation mediates the relationship between tourism impacts and community attitudes. The study recommends promoting sustainable tourism through prioritizing economic benefits, environmental conservation, socio-cultural exchange, community engagement, and ongoing monitoring residents’ attitudes.