Residents’ quality of life and visitors’ quality of experience: Revisiting tourism carrying capacity in Macao

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to propose a destination-level framework incorporating subjective and overall assessments of residents’ quality of life (QOL) and visitors’ quality of experience (QOE) as a means for managing optimum levels of visitor volume at destinations.

Design

The proposed framework is empirically tested and applied using a large-scale survey of residents and visitors across a four-year time span in Macao, a Special Administrative Region of China that counts among the smallest and densest city-states in the world and which has borne the full force of extraordinary rapid tourism growth in recent years.

Findings

The study’s findings suggest that subjective assessments of residents’ QOL and visitors’ QOE interact and must be considered together when assessing sustainable levels of tourism at the level of a destination.

Originality

The study’s value lies in its use of a large-scale survey across a four-year time span to empirically validate theorized maximal values of QOL assessments from the point of view of residents as well as quality of visiting experience from the point of view of visitors. This finding lays future groundwork for more robust management of tourism growth in destinations.

Citation

Dioko, L.(D).A.N. and So, A.S.I. (2017), "Residents’ quality of life and visitors’ quality of experience: Revisiting tourism carrying capacity in Macao", Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, Vol. 9 No. 3, pp. 349-360. https://doi.org/10.1108/WHATT-02-2017-0006