Quality interactions give rise to residents' desire to engage with tourists: a cognitive appraisal model

The global tourism industry, a significant contributor to the world economy, often grapples with challenges related to the interactions between resident communities and tourists. This study, testing a cognitive appraisal theoretical model, explores how the quality of interactions (situation) between residents and tourists influences emotional solidarity (appraisal), which explains perceived emotions associated with tourists, and how these, in turn, affect residents' desire to engage in specific behaviors with tourists. Survey data were collected from a sample of Fijian residents (N = 407) in six tourism destinations using a mall-intercept method and analyzed using co-variance-based structural equation modelling. Of the 13 proposed hypotheses, nine were significant, with variances explained ranging from 17 to 48%. These findings make a meaningful contribution to the literature and present crucial insights and actionable strategies for tourist stakeholders.