Social Sciences

Abstract: A single paragraph of about 200 words maximum. Ecotourism has the potential to support biodiversity conservation and community development, particularly in biologically rich regions such as the Amazon. The Área de Conservación Regional Comunal Tamshiyacu Tahuayo (ACRCTT), located in the Loreto region of Peru, provides a case study in which local communities collaborate with ecotourism initiatives and researchers to protect biodiversity. This study examined whether varying levels of community involvement in ecotourism were associated with differences in conservation attitudes, knowledge, and self-reported conservation behavior. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with one adult from nearly every household in three adjacent villages within the ACRCTT between November and December 2019. The villages differed in ecotourism participation, allowing comparative analysis within a shared environmental and governance context. Findings indicated that villages with greater ecotourism involvement demonstrated significantly higher levels of self-reported conservation-oriented behavior. Employment in ecotourism was also positively associated with greater conservation awareness and knowledge, although conservation knowledge was more strongly associated with formal education. Qualitative responses suggested that residents perceived ecotourism as an alternative to hunting, logging, and other extractive activities. While the study design does not allow causal inference, the findings suggest that community-based ecotourism may contribute to conservation-oriented attitudes and behaviors by increasing environmental awareness and diversifying local livelihoods.

Abstract: Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming tourism information creation by enabling AI systems to generate travel recommendations and destination narratives. However, limited research has examined whether AI-generated and human-created travel guides influence tourists’ decision-making through distinct psychological mechanisms. Drawing upon source credibility theory and the stimulus–organism–response framework, this study develops a cognitive–emotional framework to investigate how travel guide creators shape tourists’ decision-making and when AI-generated tourism content is more likely to be accepted. A pre-study and three experimental studies were conducted with 300 participants across two tourism contexts, including the Mount Tai Scenic Area and Shanghai Disneyland. The results demonstrate that the effectiveness of travel guide creators depends on destination characteristics, with a significant interaction effect between creator type and destination type (F(1,296)=14.56, p<0.001). Further analyses reveal that AI-generated travel guides influence tourists’ decision-making through information credibility (β=0.41, p<0.001), whereas human-created travel guides operate through perceived authenticity (β=0.29, p<0.001). Moreover, AI literacy strengthens the relationship between AI-generated travel guides and information credibility (β=0.18, p<0.01), enhancing the cognitive pathway through which AI-generated content affects tourists’ decisions. These findings extend generative AI research in tourism beyond technology adoption by demonstrating that AI and human creators generate complementary value through distinct cognitive and emotional mechanisms.

Abstract: Purpose: This study aimed to compare the effects of velocity-based resistance training (VBT) and traditional percentage-based training (PBT) on boxing-specific performance in collegiate boxers. Methods: Twenty-eight male collegiate boxers were randomly assigned to either the VBT group (n = 14) or the PBT group (n = 14) for an 8-week program. Both groups performed four sets of back squat, Bulgarian split-squat, and deadlift at 70% of their one-repetition maximum (1RM). VBT group performed repetitions until mean velocity decreased by more than 10% from the fastest repetition of the set, whereas PBT group performed five repetitions per set. The pre- and post-tests included the lead and rear straight punch (LSP, RSP) force and 10s, 30s, and 1min continuous punch (CP) frequency. Results: Except for the 1min-CP frequency (p = 0.293), all variables showed significant main effects of “time” (p ≤ 0.023; averaged Hedges’ g = 0.57 for the VBT group and 0.18 for the PBT group). Significant “time” × “group” interactions were observed for LSP, RSP, 10s-CP, and 30s-CP (p ≤ 0.043). VBT group exhibited small-to-moderate greater improvements in LSP force (g = 0.42), RSP force (g = 0.48), 10s-CP frequency (g = 0.68), and 30s-CP frequency (g = 0.38). Conclusion: VBT was more effective than PBT in enhancing high-velocity performance tasks.

Abstract: Though, the prevalent attitude-behavior inconsistency is still one of the critical issues in sustainable tourism, whereby positive environmental attitudes do not necessarily result in green tourism behavior. This paper explores the factors influencing green tourism behavioral intention as well as the potential mediating effect of willingness to pay (WTP). Environmental awareness, green destination attributes, attitude, willingness to pay, and behavioral intention have been incorporated into the cross-cultural perspective. This study has adopted a quantitative research design involving a cross-sectional survey among domestic and foreign tourists. The findings reveals destination greenness is found to be more influential in attitude formation, followed by environmental awareness. In turn, attitudes have strong impact on both WTP and behavioral intentions, with WTP being a partial mediator between attitude and behavioral intention, thus indicating the presence of attitude-behavior gap. Furthermore, Multi-group analysis has shown significant cross-cultural differences in behavioral conversion mechanism for domestic and international tourists.

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to validate the identified dimensions of visitor satisfaction and assess their potential as indicators of sustainable event management in the context of Expo Cebú Chone 2024 in Ecuador. The research design is quantitative, cross-sectional, and empirical, based on a Likert-scale questionnaire regarding visitor experience and satisfaction. A total of 962 valid responses were collected and analyzed; exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was applied to 356 of them. The results highlight the two-dimensional nature of satisfaction—across both the event’s main activities and complementary services—grounded in the visitor experience, emphasizing the construct's multidimensionality and its use as an indicator of sustainable event management. It is concluded that the creation of positive experiences constitutes a central component of visitor satisfaction and, in turn, an indirect measure of sustainable event management and the capacity to generate economic, social, and experiential value. This contribution to the literature emphasizes a visitor-centered approach to event sustainability, with practical implications for improving event management in rural livestock-raising areas.

Abstract: Cultural Routes have become important instruments for promoting shared heritage and sustainable tourism across Europe, yet the potential of travel literature to inform their development remains underexplored, particularly in the case of Via Egnatia. This study addresses this gap by developing a theoretical distinction between travel narratives as ideological representation, shaped by colonial and Orientalist discourse, and as corroborable historical-geographical evidence, and applying this framework to nineteenth-century accounts by Byron, Leake, Lear, and Durham (1812–1909). Using a qualitative, theory-informed case-study design, the study combines critical-discourse analysis with thematic coding of 127 narrative references, supported by a documented codebook, an intra-coder reliability check (84% agreement), and cross-author triangulation. The analysis identifies a corroborated mobility corridor along the Shkumbin Valley and recurring intercultural contact points, consistent with independent archaeological scholarship. A site-level cross-check of six heritage assets and associated visitor reviews shows that formal heritage protection already exists along the corridor, but that on-site interpretation rarely presents it as part of a coherent Via Egnatia narrative, a gap confirmed by an analysis of Albania’s national tourism-planning documents. The study’s principal contribution is theoretical: it shows how critically read travel narratives can extend destination-storytelling and heritage-interpretation theory beyond descriptive associations, while offering a transferable, low-cost model for translating narrative and empirical evidence into interpretive practice for the Council of Europe Cultural Routes Programme.

Abstract: Trunk rotator training is important for performance, stability, and injury prevention, but the intensity of anti-rotation exercises is difficult to quantify precisely. Break-tests may provide a practical method to assess maximal anti-rotation strength and its dependence on body posture. This study determined the intra- and inter-session reliability of a break-test for quantifying maximal anti-rotation trunk strength during a cable woodchop exercise, and examined differences and relationships across common postural configurations. Twenty-two physically active men completed two testing sessions separated by one week. Maximal isometric break force was assessed in seated, kneeling, half-kneeling, staggered-stance, and parallel-stance positions. Force was progressively applied by an evaluator within a standardized time window until posture was lost. Reliability was evaluated using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and typical error (TE), while between-position differences and relationships were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA and Pearson’s correlations. The break-test demonstrated excellent intra-session reliability (ICC = 0.90–0.97; TE = 0.4–1.0 kg) and robust inter-session reliability (ICC = 0.78–0.90; TE = 0.8–1.4 kg). Maximal anti-rotation strength was posture-dependent (p < 0.001): half-kneeling produced the highest forces, whereas seated and staggered-stance positions constrained performance. Correlations between positions were moderate to high (r = 0.59–0.84), suggesting shared and position-specific strength characteristics. These findings support the break-test as a reliable and practical method for quantifying maximal anti-rotation trunk strength, helping standardize assessment and guide position-specific load prescription.

Abstract: Heritage tourism plays a central role in Spain’s cultural and territorial development, yet its spatial distribution and intensity remain unevenly understood. This study examines heritage tourism in Spain as a territorially differentiated phenomenon by analyzing provincial differences in tourism intensity, heritage tourism density, and cultural heritage concentration. Using official experimental statistics from the National Institute of Statistics of Spain, the study integrates mobile-phone geolocation data from 181,670,728 devices across 3,214 destinations, tourism expenditure information, and a Heritage Concentration Index constructed for architectural cultural heritage. Four one-way ANOVA models were applied to assess whether significant differences exist among Spain’s 52 provinces in the Internal Tourism Intensity Index, External Tourism Intensity Index, Heritage Tourism Density, and Heritage Concentration. Hochberg-adjusted post hoc comparisons were used to identify specific interprovincial differences while controlling for multiple comparisons. The results show statistically significant territorial differences across all four indicators, confirming that heritage tourism in Spain is not spatially homogeneous. These findings contribute to the literature by offering an integrated, data-driven approach to measuring heritage tourism at the provincial scale. They also provide practical evidence for designing differentiated tourism policies, improving destination management, and supporting more balanced heritage-based territorial planning.

Abstract: This study investigates the impact of sustainable service to customer-related outcomes in the hospitality industry by focusing on environmental awareness, perceived value, customer trust, and revisit intention. Grounded in Stakeholder Theory, the research posits and empirically examines the model with the concept of perceived value and customer trust as mediators and environmental awareness as a moderator. Data was collected from a total of 457 hospitality customers, proportionately drawn from Accra (184), Kumasi (152) and Tamale (121), and analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The results show that sustainable service practises have a significant impact on perceived value, customer trust and environmental awareness in a positive way. In addition, perceived value and customer trust partially mediate the relationship between sustainable service practises and environmental awareness, in which customer trust is the more effective mediating mechanism. Contrary to expectations, environmental awareness does not moderate the association between sustainable service practises and revisit intention to a great extent. Novelty: The outcome of the study accentuates the relevance of incorporating perceived value and customer trust into sustainable service practises offering both theoretical insights via stakeholder theory and practical direction for enhancing guest revisit intention in the hospitality sector. On the whole, the findings emphasize the strategic necessity of incorporating the concept of sustainability into the core service delivery and achieving better customer perceptions and relational outcomes.

Abstract: This study examines the role of smart digital systems in shaping the tourist experience, with a particular focus on perceived safety, comfort, and convenience, and their relationship with satisfaction and future intention to use digital services. The research was conducted on a sample of 104 respondents using a questionnaire and a quantitative approach. The results show that perceived comfort and convenience have the strongest impact on satisfaction with the tourist experience, while perceived safety, although significant, has a weaker effect. Satisfaction, perceived usefulness, and comfort significantly influence the intention to use smart digital services. The findings also indicate that experience with digital technologies positively affects perceived safety and comfort, while gender differences were not statistically significant. The results highlight the importance of developing simple, intuitive, and user-oriented digital solutions in tourism.

Abstract: The Golden Triangle circuit (Delhi–Agra–Jaipur) is India’s most iconic tourism product, yet it faces mounting pressure from overtourism, environmental degradation, and economic leakage. We argue that strategic management of visitor satisfaction can play a key role in transforming this high-volume circuit into a sustainable destination that delivers long-term economic growth. Drawing on expectancy disconfirmation theory (EDT), SERVQUAL, perceived value theory, social exchange theory (SET), destination competitiveness models, and a systematic classification of destination attributes, this study evaluates destination attributes and visitor satisfaction. The study assesses the importance of visitor satisfaction with the Golden Triangle and proposes a comprehensive framework for its measurement and application with destination attributes. It identifies key attributes driving tourist satisfaction in the Triangle and assesses the overall current state of the circuit. Furthermore, it identifies major challenges (harassment, congestion, leakage), and proposes actionable improvements through smart technology, community-based tourism, and real-time feedback. A comprehensive evaluation of visitor satisfaction with various destination attributes of the Golden Triangle reveals that it performs well as the outcome shows high overall satisfaction. The study also highlights that visitor satisfaction is an indirect economic lever that impacts the local economic activity by creating jobs and earning foreign currency. The Golden Triangle can serve as a replicable model for other heritage circuits in the Global South.

Abstract: The bilateral deficit (BLD) is traditionally defined as the reduced capacity to produce force during simultaneous bilateral contractions compared with the summed output of unilateral actions. However, in applied sport settings, BLD is frequently estimated from countermovement jump (CMJ) height, representing a functional rather than a direct mechanical measure of force production. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the association between a CMJ-derived functional BLD index and multidirectional performance in soccer players. Forty male university soccer players (age: 23 ± 1 years) performed unilateral and bilateral CMJs using a contact platform system, followed by the 505 change-of-direction (CoD) test analyzed through two-dimensional video-based motion analysis. Participants were classified into low, moderate, and high BLD groups according to deficit magnitude. Group differences were analyzed using the Kruskal–Walli’s test with Bonferroni-adjusted post hoc comparisons. Significant between-group differences were observed across all temporal phases of the 505 test (ε² = 0.34–0.59; p < 0.001), with the largest effects found for total CoD time and CoD deficit (ε² = 0.74–0.75; p < 0.001). Players with lower BLD values demonstrated superior acceleration, deceleration, reacceleration, and overall multidirectional performance. These findings suggest that CMJ-derived functional BLD may represent a practical indicator of movement efficiency and neuromuscular performance in soccer players.

Abstract: This research aims to analyze audiovisual productions in the development of tourism at the Armero ruins, delving into how narratives and audiovisual productions shape perceptions and the tourist experience. The methodology used is qualitative and was carried out in two phases. This research began in August 2023 with interviews of visi-tors to Armero and a content analysis of YouTube videos that recount the Armero tragedy. The impact on collective memory and the sense of belonging among visitors is highlighted. The visitors' personal productions show that the experience in Armero becomes an emotional journey, where history is tangled with the hope of rebuilding the social fabric and honoring the memory of the thousands who lost their lives. This re-search reveals a range of emotions: from awe at the natural beauty to respect and sadness when remembering the tragedy that buried this prosperous Colombian city in 1985. Conclusion: The importance of preserving historical memory is evident, so that tragedies like Armero are not forgotten and can promote reflection on natural risk management and community resilience.

Abstract: Crisis management has become a critical strategic concern in hospitality, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposed vulnerabilities in conventional preparedness and response approaches. This study examines strategic crisis management in Jakarta’s five-star hotel sector, with the aim of developing an integrated understanding of crisis management across pre-crisis, during-crisis, and post-crisis phases. A constructivist grounded theory approach was employed, based on in-depth semi-structured interviews with 25 senior hospitality leaders, including hotel executives, owners, and industry association representatives. The findings suggest that crisis management is best understood as an integrated strategic organizational process rather than a series of isolated emergency responses. Pre-crisis preparedness emerged as continuous strategic readiness characterized by environmental sensemaking, adaptive decision readiness, and financial preparedness. During crisis, effective management depended on integrated strategic response through liquidity discipline, operational adaptation, workforce adaptability, leadership coordination, and cross-functional alignment. Post-crisis management extended beyond operational recovery toward strategic renewal through organizational learning, including the retention of effective crisis practices, strengthened internal capabilities, and managerial reorientation toward ongoing uncertainty. This study contributes to hospitality crisis management scholarship by proposing an Integrated Strategic Crisis Management Framework for Hospitality Organizations, offering a contextually grounded interpretive model that may inform both future research and strategic practice in uncertainty-sensitive service environments.

Abstract: Cape Coast is a prominent tourism destination in Ghana, distinguished by its historical landmarks, coastal ecosystems, and cultural heritage. Yet the city faces mounting threats from environmental hazards such as coastal erosion, flooding, extreme heat, and lagoon degradation, which directly compromise the sustainability of its tourism sector. Guided by the Sustainable Tourism Development Theory (STDT) and the Tourism Resilience and Adaptation Theory (TRAT), this study investigates the impacts of these hazards on tourism development, the effectiveness of current disaster risk reduction (DRR) strategies, and the roles of key stakeholders in building sectoral resilience. Using a qualitative research design, data were collected through in-depth interviews with eighteen stakeholders comprising four policymakers, six community leaders, five tourism business operators, and three representatives from non-governmental organisations, alongside documentary analysis of four institutional reports. The study contributes to the literature by demonstrating that fragmented, reactive DRR strategies and weak stakeholder coordination undermine Cape Coast’s tourism resilience, and by showing how urban natural assets, a dimension largely neglected in existing tourism-DRR scholarship, are central to both hazard exposure and adaptive capacity. The findings call for integrated, ecosystem-based DRR frameworks that align governance mechanisms with sustainable tourism imperatives.

Abstract: This study examines the role of entrepreneurship education quality in shaping students’ tourism development orientation through cognitive and capability-based mechanisms. In the context of developing countries such as Indonesia and Timor-Leste, strengthening entrepreneurial capacity is essential to support sustainable tourism growth. Using a quantitative cross-sectional design, data were collected from 348 university students enrolled in entrepreneurship-related programs across the two countries. The study employs Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), multi-group analysis (PLS-MGA), and fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) to test direct, mediating, and moderating relationships. The findings reveal that entrepreneurship education quality significantly enhances entrepreneurial self-efficacy, which in turn strengthens innovation capability, leading to higher entrepreneurial intention and ultimately tourism development orientation. However, no direct effect of education quality on entrepreneurial intention or tourism orientation was found, indicating full mediation. Entrepreneurship course experience positively moderates the relationship between education quality and self-efficacy, while prior entrepreneurial experience shows no significant moderating effect. Cross-national analysis indicates that the link between entrepreneurial intention and tourism orientation is stronger in Indonesia than in Timor-Leste. Overall, the study highlights the importance of fostering self-efficacy and innovation capability as key pathways through which entrepreneurship education contributes to tourism development.

Abstract: This study examines whether and how the perceived effectiveness of GenAI-assisted itinerary recommendations influences tourists’ environmentally responsible behavior in heritage tourism. Drawing on the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework, the study conceptualizes the perceived effectiveness of GenAI-assisted itinerary recommendations as the stimulus, cultural identity as the organism, and tourists’ environmentally responsible behavior as the response. Data were collected from 479 Chinese domestic tourists who had used GenAI tools for itinerary planning when visiting three UNESCO World Heritage sites in Henan Province, China. The data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that the perceived effectiveness of GenAI-assisted itinerary recommendations significantly enhances cultural identity, and cultural identity, in turn, significantly promotes tourists’ environmentally responsible behavior. The indirect effect is also significant, confirming the mediating role of cultural identity. These findings suggest that the importance of GenAI-assisted itinerary recommendations in heritage tourism lies not only in improving trip planning, but also in shaping how tourists engage with the cultural meaning of the destination. This study extends GenAI tourism research beyond adoption-related outcomes, identifies cultural identity as a heritage-specific explanatory mechanism, and refines the application of the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework in AI-enabled heritage tourism contexts.

Abstract: IIce hockey represents a sport with predominantly anaerobic efforts best reflected by repeated sprint ability (RSA) testing (5x5 seconds with 10 seconds recovery). A controversy persists about the usefulness of V̇O2 max laboratory testing for the assessment of ice hockey players. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the relationship between laboratory measured V̇O2 max and RSA simulated on a supine ergometer and tested on ice. Elite male hockey players (n = 64) were tested in the laboratory (V̇O2 max and RSA). RSA was performed by modified Wingate test (5 x 5-seconds sprints with 10 seconds recovery). In 28 athletes RSA were assessed during an on-ice testing (5 maximal skating sprints between the goal and the blue line). The decrease in performance was assessed by fatigue indices. In the laboratory settings the V̇O2 max correlated significantly with maximum workloads of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th bout with increasing correlation strength (r= 0.26, p=0.02; r=0.48, p< 0.001; r=0.57, p< 0.001; and r=0.60, p< 0.001) and with fatigue indices - % workload decrement index (r = 0.44, p< 0.001) and % maximum average workload decrement (%) (r=0.38, p=0.002). In addition, V̇O2 max correlated with lactate levels after 10 minutes of recovery (r=0.31, p=0.01). There was no correlation between V̇O2 max and on-ice testing results. Moreover, the results of RSA measured in laboratory and on ice did not show any correlation. The lack of relationship between laboratory and on-ice testing is further challenging the usefulness of bicycle ergometry laboratory testing in ice hockey.

Abstract: While much of the current research on early specialization focuses on physical outcomes, training models, and policy implications, little is known about how athletes themselves make sense of their developmental experiences. This study aimed to examine how ice-hockey players perceive and experience early specialization, with the goal of gaining a nuanced understanding of the athlete perspective. In this study, a qualitative study design was used where eight current and former ice-hockey players with experience of early specialization participated. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and analysed using qualitative conventional content analysis. Three overarching themes emerged, highlighting experiences of loneliness, pressure, and elevated expectations within elite sport environments, alongside the vital importance of support networks and team community: ‘Thrown into adulthood with premature expectations’, ‘Balancing Support and Pressure in Athlete Development’, and ‘The Struggle Between Dream and Reality’. Players described feeling pressured, isolated, and prematurely professionalized, often at the expense of personal development. The findings highlight the psychological and structural challenges of early specialization in elite ice-hockey. While support systems played a crucial role, they also contributed to performance anxiety and external expectations. These insights underscore the need for youth sport systems that prioritize long-term athlete well-being over short-term success.

Abstract: By integrating the Norm Activation Model (NAM) with cognitive and behavioral variables, the study reveals mechanisms that translate into increased waste reduction intention. Data from 382 domestic tourists in Vientiane, Laos were analyzed using ordinary least squares regression. The results reveal that ascription of responsibility (AR) is the strongest predictor of intention, followed by personal norms (PN) and actual waste management behavior. Environmental knowledge and awareness of consequences show no significant influence. The findings confirm that fostering internalized moral sentiments, such as AR and PN, is more crucial in enhancing tourists’ waste reduction intention than mere cogni-tive awareness. Environmental campaigns and education to increase knowledge and heighten awareness of the negative impacts caused by poorly managed waste at popular destinations cannot guarantee an increase in tourists’ waste reduction intention.