Sustainable Hospitality in Protected Areas: The Role of Perceived Eco-Social Performance in Fostering Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention Through Community Environmental Attachment

Abstract

This research examines how community support for sustainable tourism development is influenced by sustainable hospitality in protected park areas. This relationship focuses primarily on the effect of perceived eco-social performance (ESP) as an enhancement of the community’s perceived location-specific environmental attachment (CEA), leading to increased pro-sustainable tourism intentions through CEA. Despite the growing focus on sustainability within hospitality industries, there remains very little scholarly research that explores how local communities perceive sustainable hospitality practices and how these perceptions then manifest as emotional attachment, followed by behavioural support. To achieve the stated goal, researchers employed an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design to collect quantitative survey data from residents living in close proximity to a protected area destination, and the quantitative data were used separately to develop qualitative insights into residents’ support for sustainable tourism initiatives. Findings of this study reveal that perceived ESP significantly enhances CEA, providing an impetus for increased PSTI (via direct and indirect pathways) for communities in close proximity to a protected area destination. CEA further enhances PSTI significantly and acts as a significant mediator in the relationship between perception and behavioural support for sustainable tourism. Qualitative findings further indicate that eco-social hospitality practices fulfil the following: develop community pride; increase the sense of environmental responsibility among the community; and create opportunities for actively supporting sustainable tourism. These findings demonstrate that, while sustainable hospitality practices generate observable actions, they also create deeper psychological connections between communities and their environment. The cumulative findings from this study contribute to a greater understanding of how ESP can strategically contribute to growing the number of communities supporting sustainable tourism through the creation of CEA, thereby expanding the overall community’s intention to support sustainable tourism development.

1. Introduction

The concept of sustainable tourism has emerged as a key issue in tourist destinations located in environmentally sensitive regions, particularly in protected areas where there is a direct interface between tourism and communities/ecosystems (Casimiro et al., 2022). Protected areas can function in a dual capacity—on one hand, to serve as areas for conservation and protection of the environment, and on the other, to serve as tourist destinations with consequent economic development (Trišić et al., 2022). Tourism in protected areas can generate development and conservation in local communities, provided the concept of sustainability is correctly applied (Zanchini et al., 2025).

In most cases, sustainable hospitality operations involve various practices that promote environmental protection and conservation, as well as strategies that promote sustainable resource utilization and engagement with local communities. However, these sustainable hospitality operations may be successful depending on how local communities perceive and are willing to support sustainable tourism practices (Chang et al., 2020).

In most cases, sustainable hospitality initiatives will involve environmental protection initiatives, resource management, and community engagement strategies that focus on local livelihoods and conservation. However, success will largely depend on how the local community views the tourism development and their willingness to support sustainable tourism practices (Manojlović et al., 2025).

The perceptions of local communities regarding sustainability measures can also be explained by the concept of perceived eco-social performance (ESP). This is a measure of how residents rate or evaluate the environmental and social stewardship of tourism operators. Thus, when residents perceive that a particular tourism operator is environmentally friendly and socially supportive, they are likely to develop a positive attitude towards supporting tourism development (Gomes & Lopes, 2023; Jeelani et al., 2023). Past studies have established that perceptions of responsible tourism can have a significant impact on the emotional attachment that residents have for their environment and their support for sustainable tourism development (Aytekin et al., 2023; Uslu et al., 2023).

One method to explain this is through the concept of community environmental attachment (CEA), which is the emotional attachment that individuals have for their environment (Nasr et al., 2022). Environmental attachment has been found to have a positive impact on the behavior of the local community in response to tourism and environmental development (Elshaer et al., 2024; Lemy et al., 2026).

Although the importance of sustainability practices in tourism and hospitality has received increased attention, there has been a scarcity of research on the impact of perceived eco-social performance (ESP) on community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI), mediated by community environmental attachment (CEA), in the context of sustainable hospitality in protected areas. Previous research has focused on the significance of community support for the sustainability of tourism, as well as the impact of social and environmental perceptions on such support (Chatkaewnapanon & Lee, 2022; Nasr et al., 2022). Empirical studies on the psychological process between the eco-social performance of hospitality operations and community pro-sustainable tourism intention are limited.

The concept of perceived eco-social performance (ESP) offers an important framework in understanding community perceptions of the environmental and social responsibility of tourism operations (Cui et al., 2022). Perceived eco-social performance reflects the extent to which residents recognize and value the environmental protection efforts and social contributions of tourism operators. Positive perceptions of eco-social performance may strengthen trust between communities and tourism stakeholders and foster supportive attitudes toward tourism development. In the context of protected areas, such perceptions are particularly important because tourism development directly interacts with natural ecosystems and local livelihoods.

Beyond cognitive evaluations of tourism practices, community responses to tourism development are also shaped by emotional and psychological connections with the surrounding environment. One important psychological mechanism that explains this relationship is community environmental attachment (CEA). Community environmental attachment refers to the emotional bond that individuals develop with their natural environment and reflects the degree to which residents feel connected to and identify with their surrounding ecosystems. When tourism activities align with environmental protection and community values, they may strengthen environmental attachment and encourage residents to support sustainable tourism initiatives.

Strong environmental attachment may further influence behavioural intentions related to tourism sustainability (Makhitha, 2025). In tourism research, behavioural support for sustainable tourism development is often conceptualized through community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Saarinen, 2021), which reflects the willingness of residents to support tourism practices that promote environmental protection, responsible resource use, and long-term sustainability (Šerić et al., 2024). Communities with stronger environmental attachment may be more motivated to support tourism initiatives that align with conservation goals and sustainable development principles (Blešić et al., 2022).

Although previous studies have examined residents’ attitudes toward tourism development and environmental sustainability (Zuo et al., 2022), limited research has investigated the psychological mechanisms through which perceptions of tourism sustainability influence community support for sustainable tourism development. In particular, empirical research exploring the role of perceived eco-social performance in shaping community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Panwanitdumrong & Chen, 2022). The mediating influence of community environmental attachment remains limited, especially in the context of sustainable hospitality operations within protected areas. Existing research often focuses on tourists’ pro-environmental behaviour or general community attitudes toward tourism development (Gomes & Lopes, 2023; Y. Wang et al., 2023), while fewer studies explore how residents interpret sustainability practices implemented by tourism businesses and how these perceptions translate into environmental attachment and behavioural support for sustainable tourism (Abushammala & Ghulam, 2023; W. Yan et al., 2023).

Addressing this research gap is particularly important for destinations located within protected areas, where tourism development must simultaneously achieve conservation goals and community well-being (Zavaleta Chavez Arroyo et al., 2023). Understanding how communities perceive eco-social practices implemented by hospitality operators can provide valuable insights into the mechanisms that encourage community support for sustainable tourism development (Thananusak & Suriyankietkaew, 2023).

The significant contribution of this study does not reside in introducing a novel perception–attachment–intention relationship, as such frameworks have been extensively recognised in environmental psychology and sustainable tourism research. The innovation of this study resides in establishing perceived eco-social performance (ESP) as a hospitality-level stewardship signalling mechanism that functions at the intersection of accommodation-based sustainability practices and protected-area community systems (Gössling, 2020; Hall, 2025; Hall et al., 2024). The study situates ESP within protected-area buffer zone tourism contexts, differentiates it from traditional CSR and ESG perception frameworks by its place-embedded sustainability interpretation, and combines quantitative structural modelling with qualitative insights to elucidate the mechanism by which observable eco-social hospitality practices enhance community environmental attachment and promote sustainable tourism intentions (Magnusson et al., 2023; Niewiadomski & Mellon, 2023). Consequently, this study does not aspire to produce universally applicable conclusions across tourism destinations; instead, it seeks to offer context-specific analytical insights into the formation of sustainability support within protected-area buffer zone hospitality systems, where conservation priorities and community–tourism interactions are notably intertwined (Nawawi et al., 2020; Ortiz, 2024).

Therefore, this study aims to examine the role of perceived eco-social performance in fostering community pro-sustainable tourism intention through community environmental attachment within the context of sustainable hospitality in protected areas. By employing an explanatory sequential mixed-method approach that combines quantitative analysis using partial least squares structural equation modelling with qualitative insights from community interviews, this study seeks to provide a deeper understanding of how sustainable hospitality practices influence community perceptions, environmental attachment, and support for sustainable tourism development.

This study advances the sustainable tourism literature by shifting attention from general discussions of sustainability practices toward understanding how local communities interpret the eco-social performance of hospitality operations in protected areas. While previous studies have primarily examined sustainability from the perspectives of tourists or destination management (de Araújo et al., 2022), limited research has explored how community perceptions of hospitality sustainability practices influence psychological attachment to the environment and support for sustainable tourism development (Santos et al., 2020). By integrating perceived eco-social performance, community environmental attachment, and community pro-sustainable tourism intention within a single framework, this study provides a novel perspective on the socio-psychological mechanisms through which sustainable hospitality practices foster community support for sustainable tourism.

To strengthen the identification of this conceptual gap, a keyword co-occurrence bibliometric mapping analysis was conducted using VOSviewer to examine thematic relationships among sustainability perception, hospitality responsibility practices, and community attachment constructs within protected-area tourism research.

A bibliometric mapping analysis was performed utilising VOSviewer (version 1.6.20) to discern prevailing thematic structures within the sustainable tourism literature and to facilitate the identification of conceptual gaps pertinent to this study. The keyword co-occurrence network was created using author keywords from Scopus-indexed publications, with a minimum occurrence threshold of five keyword appearances to make sure the analysis was useful and the themes were consistent. VOSviewer uses a clustering algorithm to group related ideas based on how often they happen together. This makes it possible to see how closely related research streams on sustainability governance, community-based tourism, corporate responsibility, and environmental attachment are.

The findings depicted in Figure 1 illustrate that while sustainable tourism serves as a pivotal integrative theme across various clusters, hospitality-level sustainability signalling mechanisms—especially those about eco-social performance—and their correlation with community environmental attachment remain tenuously linked within the current knowledge framework. This fragmentation indicates that previous research has predominantly analysed sustainability through governance-oriented or community-participation frameworks, failing to adequately explore how observable accommodation-level stewardship practices affect psychological attachment mechanisms among residents in protected-area tourism systems. Consequently, the bibliometric mapping substantiates the establishment of perceived eco-social performance (ESP) as a context-dependent sustainability perception construct that connects hospitality practices with the cultivation of community support for conservation-focused tourism development. This integrative perspective directly addresses the structural gap identified in the bibliometric mapping and enhances the mechanism-based comprehension of sustainability support formation within protected-area tourism systems.

This study integrates eco-social hospitality performance with community environmental attachment within a protected-area tourism framework, thereby connecting previously isolated sustainability research streams and offering a mechanism-based explanation of how accommodation-level stewardship practices influence community support for conservation-oriented tourism development.

Based on the identified gaps in research on sustainable hospitality and community engagement in protected areas, this study seeks to explore how local communities interpret and respond to sustainability practices implemented by hospitality operators. Specifically, the study examines how residents perceive the eco-social performance of sustainable hospitality practices within protected tourism areas and how these perceptions influence their relationship with the surrounding environment. Furthermore, this study investigates the extent to which perceived eco-social performance (ESP) shapes community environmental attachment (CEA) and subsequently fosters community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) among residents, thereby providing a deeper understanding of the psychological mechanisms underlying community support for sustainable tourism development.

While prior research has explored residents’ perceptions regarding tourism sustainability and environmental stewardship, there is a paucity of studies that have analysed the psychological mechanisms by which perceived eco-social hospitality practices foster community environmental attachment and behavioural support in protected-area tourism settings. Specifically, there has been insufficient empirical focus on how sustainability practices adopted by accommodation providers serve as locally interpreted stewardship signals that influence community involvement in conservation-oriented tourism development. This study enhances existing sustainability perception models by incorporating perceived eco-social performance, community environmental attachment, and community pro-sustainable tourism intention into a unified explanatory framework, facilitating a mechanism-based comprehension of community support development in protected-area destinations.

Previous research has investigated the perception–attachment–behavioral intention pathway within tourism sustainability frameworks. This study enhances this mechanism by framing perceived eco-social hospitality performance as a locally interpreted stewardship signal at the intersection of conservation-focused accommodation systems and protected-area communities. The study contextualises sustainability perception mechanisms within buffer zone hospitality environments, refines the conceptual positioning of eco-social performance beyond generic CSR or ESG perception constructs, and employs an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design to elucidate how these perceptions translate into environmental attachment and community support behaviour.

The current study is expected to make an original contribution to the literature on sustainable tourism by developing a conceptual framework of perceived eco-social performance, community environmental attachment, and community pro-sustainable tourism intention, with an emphasis on the psychological process by which eco-social practices promote support for sustainable tourism. The current study is also expected to provide new empirical findings on the importance of the community’s perception of sustainable hospitality within protected areas, with the use of the Rimba Ecolodge, Tanjung Puting National Park, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, as an example of how eco-social practices improve the relationship between the community and the environment. From a methodological perspective, the current study follows an explanatory sequential mixed method approach by combining PLS-SEM with community interviews to provide deeper explanations of the relationships between the key constructs.

Recent advancements in sustainable tourism research increasingly underscore the significance of analysing tourism development in protected areas through socio-ecological systems frameworks rather than through fragmented perception-based behavioural models. Protected-area destinations exemplify complex adaptive systems wherein environmental conservation, community livelihoods, and tourism operations interact dynamically across various governance scales (Baggio, 2020a, 2020b; Hall, 2025). In this context, sustainable hospitality practices serve as both operational sustainability initiatives and locally interpreted stewardship signals that shape community responses to conservation-oriented tourism development. Combining socio-ecological systems thinking with sustainability transition perspectives elucidates how community perceptions of eco-social hospitality performance foster environmental attachment and sustained support for protected-area tourism resilience pathways (Gössling, 2020; Saarinen & Gill, 2018). By situating perceived eco-social performance within this broader systems-based framework, the present study enhances comprehension of how accommodation-level sustainability practices influence community engagement mechanisms in conservation-sensitive tourism environments. This study situates perceived eco-social hospitality performance within a socio-ecological systems and sustainability transition framework, thereby extending traditional perception–attachment–intention models to a mechanism-based interpretation of community support formation in protected-area tourism environments.

Protected-area tourism destinations operate as complex socio-ecological systems in which sustainability outcomes emerge through interactions among conservation objectives, tourism operators, governance institutions, and local communities rather than through isolated behavioral responses alone (Baggio, 2020a, 2020b; Hall, 2025). Within such systems, accommodation providers implementing eco-social hospitality practices may function as intermediary sustainability actors translating conservation priorities into locally observable stewardship actions that influence community support for sustainable tourism development.

2. Literature Review and Conceptual Framework

2.1. Sustainable Hospitality in Protected Areas

Sustainable tourism has emerged as a critical tool for managing tourism activities in environmentally sensitive areas, particularly in protected areas where the development of tourism directly impacts the ecosystem and the communities (B. Wang et al., 2022; Trišić et al., 2022). Protected areas such as national parks, conservation lands, and biodiversity areas have both environmental and socio-economic benefits and can offer opportunities for nature-based tourism while at the same time requiring strict environmental protection (Andrianambinina et al., 2023). As the need for tourism keeps growing, the balancing act between tourism development and environmental protection has become a major concern for tourism policymakers (Baloch et al., 2023; Salazar-Sepúlveda et al., 2022).

In this context, hospitality operations emerge as one of the most significant features of tourism systems in protected areas, given that these facilities usually function as a primary interface between visitors and both natural environments and local communities (Štrba et al., 2022). Sustainable hospitality practices generally focus on reducing the impact on the environment while enhancing the social and economic outcomes of the host community (Preziosi et al., 2022). Sustainable hospitality practices generally include the management of resources, biodiversity conservation programs, the reduction in waste, and local community engagement programs (Rivas-Aceves & Schmidt, 2022).

There is a growing consensus among researchers to highlight the need to understand how local communities receive or perceive sustainability practices, as local residents are considered key stakeholders of hospitality operations (Gannon et al., 2021). Community perceptions of tourism practices can shape levels of trust, cooperation, and support for tourism development, particularly in destinations where conservation objectives and local livelihoods are closely interconnected (Gogitidze et al., 2023).

From a socio-ecological systems perspective, tourism development in protected areas cannot be understood solely through economic or behavioural lenses but must be interpreted as an interaction between ecological integrity, institutional governance structures, and community participation processes operating across multiple spatial scales (Baggio, 2020a, 2020b; Hall, 2025). In these kinds of systems, sustainable hospitality operators are important middlemen because they turn conservation goals into real-world actions that local communities can see and feel. These observable practices serve as place-based stewardship signals that help shape how people in the community think about the legitimacy of sustainability and affect support for tourism development that is focused on conservation (Papatheodorou et al., 2025; Wilkinson & Coles, 2023).

Recent literature on sustainability transitions indicates that accommodation-level sustainability initiatives can serve as micro-level catalysts, facilitating broader resilience transformations within protected-area tourism (Gössling, 2020; Saarinen & Gill, 2018). Consequently, analysing perceived eco-social hospitality performance in protected-area contexts presents a significant opportunity to comprehend how localised sustainability practices foster community attachment and pro-sustainability behavioural intentions within developing conservation-tourism governance frameworks.

Community participation represents a central dimension of sustainable tourism governance, particularly in protected-area contexts where residents function as key stakeholders influencing conservation legitimacy and long-term destination resilience (de Araújo et al., 2022; Song & Kang, 2023). In such environments, observable sustainability practices implemented by hospitality operators may strengthen trust and value alignment between tourism actors and host communities, thereby supporting collaborative stewardship relationships that reinforce conservation-oriented tourism development pathways (Abbasian et al., 2020; Blázquez-Salom et al., 2023; Camatti et al., 2020; Damnjanović, 2020).

2.2. Perceived Eco-Social Performance

Sustainability has become a significant concern in tourism and hospitality research, particularly in relation to the function of tourism businesses in addressing environmental concerns and social responsibilities in host communities. In this respect, the effectiveness of sustainability initiatives is no longer measured based on operational performance but also on the reception of such performance by local stakeholders (Potting et al., 2022; Quintana-García et al., 2022).

This has led to the concept of perceived eco-social performance, which refers to the evaluation of community members in relation to the environmental and social contributions of tourism businesses (Potting et al., 2022). From the general literature on corporate social responsibility, eco-social performance transcends managerial efforts such as energy saving, waste management, and environmental certification (Pabian & Pabian, 2022; Ahmad et al., 2024). Instead, it emphasizes the reception of environmental accountability and social engagement by stakeholders. As a complex concept, perceived eco-social performance encompasses environmental responsibility, social responsibility, and contributions to the local community (Becchetti et al., 2022; Ahmad et al., 2024).

This is particularly important in the hospitality industry because hotels, resorts, and ecolodges are frequently the interface between tourists, the environment, and the local community. Sustainability initiatives such as resource conservation, biodiversity conservation, and social engagement may influence the reception of tourism development by residents (Roberts et al., 2022; Nassani et al., 2022).

Perceived eco-social performance is similar to CSR and ESG perception constructs in terms of ideas, but it is different in terms of how it analyses and interprets things. CSR and ESG frameworks usually look at how responsible an organization is from the point of view of institutions or investors. On the other hand, perceived eco-social performance looks at how people in the community see observable environmental stewardship practices and social contributions made by hospitality operators. In protected-area tourism contexts, such perceptions arise from direct engagement with conservation initiatives, livelihood connections, and ecosystem preservation efforts, establishing ESP as a place-based sustainability perception construct rather than a corporate accountability assessment framework.

CSR and ESG perception constructs usually look at how responsible an organization is from the point of view of institutions, investors, or its reputation. In this study, however, perceived eco-social performance (ESP) is defined as a stewardship signal that comes from direct interaction between hospitality practices and protected-area socio-ecological environments (Guerra & Gonçalves, 2024; Hall et al., 2024; Niewiadomski & Brouder, 2024). In buffer zone tourism settings, local residents assess sustainability not chiefly via formal reporting frameworks, but through continual observation of conservation initiatives, livelihood collaboration, and ecosystem protection measures enacted by accommodation providers. So, ESP is a place-based sustainability perception construct that shows how visible environmental stewardship at the hospitality level helps people feel connected to the environment and supports tourism development that is good for the environment (Robina-Ramírez et al., 2021; Saarinen & Gill, 2018; Traskevich & Fontanari, 2021).

In the hospitality industry, sustainability certification programs and eco-friendly business practices have come to be seen as ways for tourism companies to show their commitment to the environment and their social responsibility to stakeholders (Nassani et al., 2022; Song & Kang, 2023). More recent research on sustainability that focuses on governance shows that certification-based and practice-based stewardship approaches help make destination governance systems more legitimate and trustworthy (Becchetti et al., 2022; Nasr et al., 2022). In protected-area tourism settings, such signalling mechanisms are especially crucial as accommodation providers function at the intersection of conservation priorities and community livelihoods.

2.3. Community Environmental Attachment

Community environmental attachment refers to the emotional and psychological bond that individuals or communities develop with the natural environment in which they live (Yoshida et al., 2022; Lennert et al., 2023). The idea is based on environmental psychology and place attachment theory, which describe how individuals are emotionally, cognitively, and behaviorally attached to a particular place and/or landscape. In a tourism-related context, environmental attachment is defined as the degree to which residents report feeling emotionally attached to and identify with their local natural environment (Sierra-Barón et al., 2023).

Previous research studies have pointed out that a high level of attachment to the environment may influence the way in which a community reacts to changes in the environment and tourism development in their community of residence (Lennert et al., 2023). For a community, when there is a high level of attachment to the environment, it is more likely that there will be a high level of environmental concern, and the community may support a conservation program in the environment (Y. Li et al., 2022; Tian & Chen, 2023). When it comes to a tourism destination based on nature, the level of attachment may influence the attitudes of the community towards tourism activities (Blešić et al., 2022).

For environmentally sensitive destinations such as protected areas, community environmental attachment is considered to be of importance, especially because of the long history of relationship that these communities have established with their ecosystem. Therefore, community environmental attachment is considered to have a significant role to play in affecting how these communities might view various sustainability practices, such as those related to tourism development, as well as environmental management (Tian & Chen, 2023).

2.4. Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention

Community pro-sustainable tourism intention refers to the willingness of residents to support and participate in tourism activities that prioritize environmental conservation, social responsibility, and long-term sustainability (Egresi et al., 2021; Q. Wang et al., 2022). In tourism studies, behavioral intention is widely used to explain how individuals or communities express their support for specific tourism policies, practices, or development strategies (Egresi et al., 2021; Gomes & Lopes, 2023). Within the context of sustainable tourism, this concept reflects the extent to which local communities are willing to endorse tourism development that balances economic benefits with environmental protection and community well-being (Gupta et al., 2023; Zárate-Altamirano et al., 2022).

Previous studies have shown that residents’ intentions to support sustainable tourism are influenced by their perceptions of tourism impacts and their evaluations of tourism management practices (Hu et al., 2022). When local communities perceive tourism development as environmentally responsible and socially beneficial, they are more likely to support sustainability-oriented tourism initiatives (Chatkaewnapanon & Lee, 2022; Gogitidze et al., 2023). Such support may manifest through positive attitudes toward conservation policies, participation in sustainable tourism programs, and acceptance of environmentally responsible tourism practices (Zhou et al., 2022).

In destinations characterized by strong ecological values, such as protected areas, community support becomes particularly critical for the long-term success of sustainable tourism initiatives (Kasim et al., 2023). Local communities often serve as key stakeholders whose attitudes and behavioral intentions influence the effectiveness of environmental conservation efforts and tourism governance (Dai, 2022; Ibrahim et al., 2023). Therefore, understanding the factors that shape community pro-sustainable tourism intention is essential for explaining how sustainability initiatives implemented by tourism operators translate into broader community support for sustainable tourism development (Trigo & Silva, 2022).

2.5. Perceived Eco-Social Performance and Community Environmental Attachment

The perception of environmental and social responsibilities that are implemented by tourism businesses also has an essential role to play in influencing the emotional relationships that exist between the local community and their environment (H. Li et al., 2022; Song & Kang, 2023). In terms of the concept of sustainable tourism, perceived eco-social performance can be defined as the perception of the contribution that tourism businesses make to environmental protection, as well as the well-being of society.

In cases where hospitality businesses show obvious signs of commitment to environmental protection, the local community may interpret this as an indication that the development of tourism in their area is in line with their environmental values. The concept of eco-social performance emphasizes the integration of environmental sustainability and social well-being within organizational or policy outcomes. In tourism contexts, eco-social performance can be reflected in hospitality practices that simultaneously protect natural ecosystems and support local community welfare (Hirvilammi & Koch, 2020; Zimmermann & Graziano, 2020).

In terms of the concepts of place attachment and environmental psychology, it has been established that individuals have an enhanced emotional association with their environment in cases where they perceive their environment as being protected (Yoshida et al., 2022; Scannell & Gifford, 2017). In terms of environmental attachment, this occurs in cases where individuals perceive their environment as being an essential part of their identity (Svoray et al., 2022). Previous studies have established that residents who perceive their community’s tourism development as being environmentally friendly are more likely to enhance their emotional attachment to their environment and show positive attitudes towards environmental protection (Zaman et al., 2023).

In protected areas, perceived eco-social performance is more important since tourism activities are more likely to impact sensitive ecosystems and communities (Frossard et al., 2023; Pellaton et al., 2022). If hospitality activities are perceived to support environmental conservation and community welfare, they are more likely to enhance residents’ feelings of belonging and emotional attachment to their environment. Therefore, positive perceptions about eco-social practices in hospitality businesses are more likely to enhance community environmental attachment (Ramesh, 2022; Zárate-Altamirano et al., 2022).

2.6. Community Environmental Attachment and Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention

The responses of the community to tourism development are largely dependent on the level of emotional attachment to the surrounding environment (S. Wang et al., 2021; Hu et al., 2022). Community environmental attachment, as a construct of environmental psychology and place attachment theory, entails the emotional and symbolic ties that individuals develop with the surrounding environment (Nasr et al., 2022). The emotional ties to the environment are significant determinants of the responses of the community to tourism activities within the surrounding environment.

Previous studies showed that when individuals develop a sense of attachment to the surrounding environment, they are more encouraged to show greater responsibility for the environment and to support activities that are oriented towards protecting the environment (Anderson & Krettenauer, 2021; Friesinger et al., 2022). The sense of attachment to the surrounding environment as an extension of individual identity and well-being will encourage the community to support policies and activities oriented towards protecting the environment (Grabowska-Chenczke et al., 2022).

In nature-based tourism destinations like protected areas, the correlation between environmental attachment and the support of the community for sustainability assumes importance (Danielsen et al., 2021; Juliana et al., 2025a). The communities residing in these areas have been observed to have long-term interactions with the surrounding environment, which in turn enhances their sense of responsibility towards preserving the environment (Lecusay et al., 2022). Therefore, residents with higher community environmental attachment tend to have higher community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Blešić et al., 2022; Gogitidze et al., 2023).

2.7. Perceived Eco-Social Performance and Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention

In sustainable tourism research, residents’ behavioral intentions toward tourism development are strongly influenced by how they perceive the environmental and social practices implemented by tourism operators (Hu et al., 2022; Juliana et al., 2022; S. Li et al., 2021). Perceived eco-social performance reflects community evaluations of whether tourism businesses operate in ways that support environmental protection, community well-being, and responsible resource management. When tourism enterprises are perceived as environmentally responsible and socially supportive, these perceptions can strengthen residents’ willingness to support tourism activities that align with sustainability principles (Pasanchay & Schott, 2021; Q. Yan et al., 2024; Nag & Rathore, 2025b).

From the perspective of stakeholder theory and sustainable tourism development, local communities represent key stakeholders whose support is essential for the long-term success of tourism destinations (Đurkin Badurina et al., 2023; Băbăț et al., 2023) Residents tend to evaluate tourism development based on the extent to which tourism activities contribute positively to environmental conservation and community welfare (Salazar-Sepúlveda et al., 2022; Firza et al., 2023). When tourism businesses demonstrate strong eco-social practices, residents may perceive tourism development as beneficial and compatible with local sustainability values. Such positive perceptions can therefore encourage residents to support sustainable tourism initiatives and policies (Hu et al., 2022; Gogitidze et al., 2023).

In environmentally sensitive destinations such as protected areas, this relationship becomes particularly important because tourism activities interact directly with ecological systems and community livelihoods (Frossard et al., 2023; Lauer et al., 2024). When hospitality operators are perceived as actively protecting natural resources and supporting local communities, residents are more likely to express positive attitudes and behavioral intentions toward sustainable tourism development. Therefore, positive perceptions of eco-social practices implemented by tourism businesses are expected to strengthen community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Nowacki et al., 2023; Usmonova et al., 2022).

2.8. Mediating Role of Community Environmental Attachment

Recent studies emphasized the significance of various psychological factors that play a role in linking sustainability perceptions with behavioral intentions (Kokkhangplu et al., 2023). In this regard, community environmental attachment can be a significant factor, as it can play the role of a mediator in the relationship between perceived eco-social performance and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Nasr et al., 2022).

From the perspective of environmental psychology, humans are naturally inclined towards linking their perception of environmental responsibility with support for behavior through emotional attachment to their environment. When people perceive tourism operators as being active in the preservation of environmental resources and the welfare of the community, it can lead to increased emotional attachment towards the environment, which in turn can lead to increased feelings of responsibility towards the environment, as well as towards supporting tourism activities in the environment (Omoyajowo et al., 2024; Čapienė et al., 2022).

Communities are likely to maintain strong symbolic and functional links with their ecosystems. The positive perceptions of the eco-social activities carried out by hospitality businesses may strengthen the emotional links that the members of the community maintain with their ecosystems, and this may translate into support for sustainable tourism activities (Nassani et al., 2022; Jeelani et al., 2023).

Thus, community environmental attachment may be an important psychological mediator through which perceived eco-social performance influences community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Nasr et al., 2022).

The conceptual framework (Figure 1) describes the way local communities perceive sustainability as long-term support for tourism development (Egresi et al., 2021). As depicted by the figure, Perceived Eco social Performance (ESP) is the initial stimulus as the local community assesses the level of contribution of tourism activities towards the conservation of the environment (Sarnacchiaro & Ariante, 2025). Perceptions of eco-social performance positively enhance the level of community environmental attachment (CEA), as the local community develops emotional and symbolic connections with the environment (Guo et al., 2024). This attachment then leads to community pro-sustainable tourism intentions (PSTI), as the local community develops a stronger intention to support and advocate sustainable tourism development (Chatkaewnapanon & Lee, 2022). The conceptual framework, in essence, illustrates a sustainability-oriented model in which perceived eco-social performance generates the development of community environmental attachment, which in turn generates pro-sustainable tourism intentions, with emphasis on the role of the local community in sustainable tourism development.

The research presented here seeks to determine how the sustainable practices of hotels affect an entire community’s response through both cognitive and emotional channels. The community evaluates how the tourism operators’ eco-social performance (ESP) has affected its culture and the environment, which encourages the community to develop emotional bonds with its environment (community environmental attachment or CEA) and these emotional bonds encourage the community’s intention to support sustainable tourism (Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention or PSTI) because they feel a bond with their environment. In addition to the indirect pathway through which ESP generates PSTI, the community may directly support tourism operators who provide ESP by signalling responsible behaviour and that their values are aligned with those of the community. The following hypotheses have been developed to investigate both the direct and mediating relationships.

H1. 

Perceived eco-social performance positively influences community environmental attachment.

H2. 

Community environmental attachment positively influences community pro-sustainable tourism intention.

H3. 

Perceived eco-social performance positively influences community pro-sustainable tourism intention.

H4. 

Community environmental attachment mediates the relationship between perceived eco-social performance and community pro-sustainable tourism intention.

Based on the theoretical relationships established in the literature review, the hypotheses of this study were formulated to empirically test the proposed structural relationships among perceived eco-social performance (ESP), community environmental attachment (CEA), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI). These hypotheses guided the specification of the structural model evaluated using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Figure 2 presents the conceptual model tested in this study.

3. Methodology

3.1. Research Design

The study makes use of the explanatory sequential mixed design (Hair et al., 2022) in the exploration of the relationships that exist between perceived eco-social performance, community environmental attachment, and community pro-sustainable tourism intention in the sustainable hospitality industry in protected areas. The study can be classified as quantitative in nature, although it makes use of the qualitative aspect in the quest to obtain a deeper understanding of the findings that were established through the use of statistics.

The quantitative phase of the study forms the major aspect of the study, whereby the study makes use of the cross-sectional survey as the research design (Trišić et al., 2022). The quantitative phase of the study aims to validate the conceptual model that has been established in the study through the use of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) (Hair et al., 2022). The study makes use of the research tool because of its ability to examine the complex relationships that exist between the study variables, as well as its ability to be applied in prediction-based studies in the field of tourism.

The qualitative phase is then conducted subsequently through the administration of semi-structured interviews with local residents from the area of interest. This phase is intended to provide explanations on the relationships established within the quantitative model, particularly in terms of understanding the ways in which the community perceives eco-social practices implemented by hospitality businesses (Molina et al., 2025). The explanatory sequential mixed-method design further strengthens the study’s contribution by enabling structural relationships identified through PLS-SEM analysis to be interpreted through community narratives describing how eco-social hospitality practices are experienced as stewardship signals within protected-area environments.

3.2. Study Setting

The study location was around the Rimba Ecolodge area, located in Sekonyer village. The ecolodge supports sustainable ecotourism and serves as a vital buffer zone for Tanjung Puting National Park in the province of Central Kalimantan, Indonesia (Figure 3). It was established following the 1991 International Conference on the Great Apes (Orangutan), which promoted conservation and research of Asian and African great apes. This location was deliberately selected due to its unique position at the intersection of sustainable hospitality operations, conservation priorities, and community livelihoods. As a buffer zone, the area represents a critical interface where tourism activities directly interact with ecologically sensitive environments and local communities, making it a relevant setting for examining the dynamics between sustainability practices and community responses.

Rimba Ecolodge itself operates as a model of eco-social hospitality, integrating environmental conservation initiatives with community-based economic engagement. These characteristics make the site particularly suitable for investigating how sustainable hospitality practices are perceived and internalized by local residents. Beyond its local context, this setting reflects broader conditions commonly found in protected areas worldwide, where tourism development must balance ecological preservation with community well-being.

Many nature-based destinations face similar challenges in aligning conservation efforts with local support, particularly in buffer zones where human–environment interactions are most pronounced. Therefore, insights derived from this study offer broader relevance by contributing to the understanding of how eco-social performance can foster community attachment and support for sustainable tourism across protected areas globally. Tanjung Puting National Park is an important location for nature-based tourism, focusing on the preservation of wildlife in the area (Pangarso et al., 2024).

Rimba Ecolodge provides various tourism experiences catering to an array of interests; however, the focus is particularly on those who want to enjoy and learn about the environment (nature-based tourism & conservation tourism) through the activities offered by Rimba Ecolodge. The operations of Rimba Ecolodge largely reinforce environmentally sustainable practices while enhancing and contributing to the economic vitality of the surrounding community. In this regard, Rimba Ecolodge embodies a real-world application of eco-social hospitality principles in relation to sustainable tourism more broadly. Figure 1 shows the relative location of Rimba Ecolodge to Tanjung Puting National Park, indicating that Rimba Ecolodge’s location is found within the buffer zone area where the interactions between tourism activities and local communities, as well as protected ecosystems, are at the greatest level. This spatial context is crucial for understanding how eco-social practices are perceived and evaluated by local residents who live in close proximity to Rimba Ecolodge.

3.3. Sampling and Data Collection Procedures

3.3.1. Quantitative Data Collection

The study design in this study is structured in such a way that it attempts to obtain the perceptions of local communities that are in close proximity to the operation of the sustainable hospitality operation in the protected area. The target population in this study refers to the local communities that are within a 5–10 km radius of the Rimba Ecolodge in the Tanjung Puting National Park, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. These local communities are the ones that are directly exposed to the operation of the tourism industry. In selecting the sample, the study applies purposive sampling in such a way that all the members of the sample are aware of the operation of the tourism industry. Purposive sampling was selected to ensure that respondents had direct exposure to tourism activities within the protected-area buffer zone, which is consistent with sustainability perception studies examining community responses to conservation-oriented tourism environments where experiential familiarity with hospitality practices is required for valid evaluation (Hair et al., 2022). The sampling strategy was designed to capture perceptions of residents directly exposed to conservation-oriented hospitality practices within the buffer zone context rather than to represent broader tourism populations beyond protected-area environments (Nag & Rathore, 2025a; Nag & Mishra, 2023, 2024).

The data was collected through the administration of a structured survey instrument to local residents within the area, conducted from September to November 2025. The respondents were approached in residential areas and local public gathering spots, ensuring that they were local residents within the defined radius. Before proceeding with the administration of the instrument, the respondents were educated on the purpose of the study, and they were given an option to participate voluntarily in the study before the instrument was administered to them. The instrument had an estimated time of 15–20 min to be completed by the respondents. Before full data collection, the questionnaire items were reviewed through a contextual adaptation process involving local respondents familiar with tourism activities in the protected-area buffer zone. The pre-test focused on ensuring semantic clarity, contextual relevance, and interpretability of sustainability-related terminology within the community setting. Minor wording adjustments were introduced to improve comprehension while maintaining consistency with validated measurement scales used in previous tourism sustainability research.

We used G*Power 3.1.9.4 to check if the sample size was big enough for this study. We did this by running an a priori power analysis under the linear multiple regression: fixed model (R² deviation from zero) setting. The analysis, which used a medium effect size (f² = 0.15), a significance level of α = 0.05, statistical power of 0.95, and three predictors, showed that at least 119 people needed to respond in order to have enough statistical power to find meaningful relationships between the study variables. The dataset utilised in this research comprised 195 valid responses, surpassing the recommended minimum threshold, thereby affirming that the sample size is sufficient to guarantee reliable parameter estimation and robust predictive capacity of the structural model. This outcome corroborates the robustness of the empirical analysis and enhances confidence in the validity of the hypothesis testing executed through the PLS-SEM methodology.

A total of 195 valid data was collected and used for the purpose of conducting the data analysis. The participants were selected based on the factor of age, from 17 years upwards to more than 55 years. This includes all the demographic groups of the community. The genders of the participants were also identified, and it was found that the proportion of males was 65%, while the proportion of females was 35%. It was also ensured that all the participants were local individuals, and hence they were able to provide relevant data for the purpose of conducting the study. The amount of data collected was also found to be sufficient for the purpose of conducting the study, as it was more than the minimum required data for conducting PLS-SEM, which is enough for conducting hypothesis testing (Hair et al., 2022).

All ethical considerations for research involving human participants were observed. Participation was voluntary, anonymity was guaranteed, and respondents were informed of their right to withdraw at any time. The collected data were used solely for academic purposes.

3.3.2. Qualitative Data Collection

This phase aimed to provide in-depth contextual information on the associations identified in the quantitative phase. The data collection methods used in this phase included a combination of semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions (FGDs) involving 20 members of the local community from around the areas of the study.

All the participants were directly related to tourism activities in the protected area, such as tour guides in the national park, food vendors, river transportation service providers, and village government staff. This allowed for the collection of various and contextualized perspectives from people who interact closely with both nature and tourism activities. The participants also had different educational qualifications ranging from senior high school to undergraduate levels, which allowed them to communicate effectively.

The FGD sessions were carried out during sessions lasting between 120 and 180 min. This was sufficient to encourage proper interaction among the participants. Such interaction was vital in the revelation of the experiences and perspectives of the community, and the understanding of the community concerning the eco-social practices and sustainable tourism. Moreover, the use of semi-structured interviews was vital in the revelation of deeper understandings, especially concerning matters like personal experiences, nature attachments, and tourism practices.

The interview and discussion guides were structured to obtain specific themes regarding the model, which included eco-social performance, emotional connection with nature, and intention regarding support for sustainable tourism behaviors. Data collection was continued until thematic saturation was achieved, which ensured that no new findings were obtained from the participants.

Thematic analysis was conducted for all the qualitative data collected, and through an iterative coding process, themes were established that help understand the statistical findings obtained through the quantitative study. This helped in building a better mixed-methods design by understanding the statistical findings through the themes established through thematic analysis of the qualitative data collected.

3.4. Measurement of Variables and Instrument Development

Furthermore, the measurement for each variable in this study was based on established scales that were adapted from previous studies in tourism, sustainability, and environmental psychology. The constructs used in this study are perceived eco-social performance (ESP) (Petit et al., 2018; Pukkala, 2021; Kyaw et al., 2022), community environmental attachment (CEA) (Zhang & Wu, 2021), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) (Gomes & Lopes, 2023). The items for each construct were adapted to fit the context of sustainable hospitality in protected areas and were used in measuring each variable using a structured questionnaire.

Perceived eco-social performance (ESP) was used in measuring the perception of residents regarding the environmental responsibility and contribution of tourism operators. Community environmental attachment (CEA) was used in measuring the feelings and emotions of residents regarding their connection and belongingness to nature and their perception of their significance to nature. Community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) was used in measuring the willingness of residents regarding their contribution to tourism activities for the purpose of promoting environmental sustainability and community (Gomes & Lopes, 2023).

All items were measured using a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (“strongly disagree”) to 6 (“strongly agree”). The questionnaire was developed in Bahasa Indonesia to ensure clarity and relevance for local respondents. A pre-test was conducted with a small group of participants to assess item clarity, wording, and contextual appropriateness, resulting in minor revisions before full data collection.

To ensure content validity, the measurement items were reviewed and adapted based on the relevant literature in sustainable tourism and environmental behavior. The final instrument reflects constructs that are theoretically grounded and empirically validated in previous studies, while also being tailored to the specific context of community perceptions in protected area tourism.

To make sure that local respondents understood sustainability-related terms, a contextual semantic adaptation procedure was used to adapt the measurement tool for use in a protected-area buffer zone community context. The questionnaire was translated into Bahasa Indonesia and then reviewed in a series of steps to make sure that the ideas of environmental stewardship and hospitality sustainability were clear and relevant to the situation. A pre-test was done with a small group of people who lived in the study area and were familiar with tourism activities to see how clear the wording was, how easy it was to understand, and how consistent the responses were. Based on the feedback received during this phase, minor modifications were made to enhance terminology accuracy and ensure that the sustainability constructs accurately represented locally relevant interpretations of eco-social hospitality practices. These procedures align with suggested methodologies for modifying perception-based survey instruments in cross-context tourism research (Creswell & Creswell, 2022; Hair et al., 2022).

3.5. Data Analysis Techniques

The data analysis was carried out in a structured and sequential manner to achieve methodological rigor and statistical robustness. Quantitative data obtained from local community participants was subjected to partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis with the help of SmartPLS 4.0 software (Hair et al., 2022). We chose partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) as the main method of analysis because the goal of this study is to make predictions and explain how perceived eco-social hospitality performance affects community pro-sustainable tourism intention through community environmental attachment. PLS-SEM is especially suitable for research that investigates mediation-based structural relationships among perceptual latent constructs and aims to optimise the explained variance of endogenous variables rather than validate a pre-existing covariance structure (Hair et al., 2022). The proposed conceptual model also includes several perception-based sustainability constructs that were measured using reflective indicators. This further shows that variance-based SEM methods are good for estimating structural relationships in new tourism sustainability contexts.

Moreover, the explanatory sequential mixed-methods design employed in this study enhances the utility of PLS-SEM as a mechanism-identification tool by facilitating the interpretation of statistically estimated structural relationships through qualitative insights obtained from community interviews conducted within the protected-area buffer zone context. This combination of quantitative structural modelling and qualitative explanatory interpretation enables the study to progress beyond mere association testing to a more profound comprehension of how hospitality-level eco-social performance serves as a locally interpreted stewardship signal that affects the formation of sustainability support among residents in conservation-sensitive tourism contexts (Hair et al., 2022; Creswell & Creswell, 2022). The explanatory sequential mixed-methods design allows structural relationships identified through PLS-SEM analysis to be interpreted within their socio-ecological tourism context using complementary qualitative evidence.

Following the recommended two-step approach in PLS-SEM analysis, the analysis began with the evaluation of the measurement model, which assessed indicator reliability, internal consistency reliability, and convergent validity of the constructs, namely perceived eco-social performance (ESP), community environmental attachment (CEA), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI). Indicators with outer loadings below the acceptable threshold were removed to improve model quality and ensure construct validity (Hair et al., 2022).

The second stage involved the assessment of the structural model. The second stage aimed to evaluate the hypothesized relationships between the constructs. It also aimed at determining the explanatory ability of the structural model. To evaluate the relationships, the path coefficients (β), the coefficient of determination (R²), and the effect sizes were used. In order to evaluate the significance of the structural paths, as well as the mediating effects, the bootstrapping approach of 5000 resamples of the data was used to compute the t-value and p-value (Hair et al., 2022).

As per the requirements of the explanatory sequential mixed-method design, the quantitative results were further enriched. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews were conducted with local community members to gain more in-depth explanations regarding the quantitative findings (Carvalho et al., 2023). The results obtained from this qualitative study were analyzed using thematic analysis, which helped in finding key themes that support and explain the quantitative results (Creswell & Clark, 2018). This helps in providing more depth to the study by incorporating both quantitative and qualitative results in relation to sustainable hospitality in protected areas.

3.6. Common Method Bias

The study depends on self-reported survey responses from a single respondent group, so potential common method bias (CMB) was checked to make sure the structural model estimates were strong. Initially, Harman’s single-factor test was performed as a preliminary diagnostic method to determine if a singular latent factor explained the majority of covariance among measurement items. The results showed that no one factor stood out, which means that common method variance was not a big problem.

To enhance the evaluation in accordance with current PLS-SEM methodological recommendations, a comprehensive collinearity variance inflation factor (VIF) analysis was conducted, adhering to the protocols established by Hair et al. (2022). The VIF values for all constructs were below the recommended threshold of 3.3, which means that common method bias is not likely to have a big effect on the structural relationships that the model estimates. Using both Harman’s single-factor test and full collinearity VIF assessment together shows that the measurement method used in this study is valid and reliable. Furthermore, a full collinearity VIF assessment was utilised as an adjunct diagnostic tool to assess potential common method bias, in alignment with recent methodological guidelines for PLS-SEM (Hair et al., 2022).

4. Results

A total of 195 valid responses were obtained from local community members aged 17 years and above, ensuring representation across multiple demographic groups within the study area. Male respondents accounted for 65% of the sample, while female respondents represented 35%. This distribution reflects participation patterns commonly observed in tourism-related community engagement within protected-area buffer zone contexts. Because all respondents were local residents living within the operational influence area of the ecolodge, the dataset provides contextually relevant insights into how community members interpret eco-social hospitality practices and their influence on environmental attachment and support for sustainable tourism development.

4.1. Quantitative Results

4.1.1. Measurement Model Assessment

The measurement model was used in the evaluation of the reliability and validity of the constructs, which included perceived eco-social performance (ESP), community environmental attachment (CEA), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI). The reliability of the indicators, as well as the consistency of reliability, was the focus of the validity (

Table 1. Test for validity and reliability.

Construct	Item	Factor Loading	VIF
Perceived eco-social performance (ESP) a = 0.907, rho_a = 0.911, CR = 0.928, AVE = 0.684	ESP 1	0.790	2.19
	ESP 3	0.799	2.78
	ESP 4	0.820	2.46
	ESP 5	0.852	2.28
	ESP 6	0.878	1.78
Community pro-sustainable intention (PSTI) a = 0.794, rho_a = 0.803, CR = 0.880, AVE = 0.712	PSTI 1	0.806	2.03
	PSTI 2	0.715	2.20
	PSTI 3	0.892	2.67
	PSTI 4	0.860	1.63
	PSTI 5	0.743	2.21
	PSTI 6	0.753	2.78
Community environmental attachment (CEA) a = 0.898, rho_a = 0.900, CR = 0.936, AVE = 0.830	CEA 1	0.803	2.35
	CEA 2	0.798	2.26
	CEA 3	0.716	1.97
	CEA 4	0.918	2.77
	CEA 5	0.801	2.87

and Figure 4). Internal consistency reliability was evaluated using Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability (rho_a and rho_c). The results show that all constructs achieved satisfactory reliability levels. Community environmental attachment (CEA) demonstrated high reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.898; CR = 0.936), followed by perceived eco-social performance (ESP) (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.907; CR = 0.928), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.794; CR = 0.880). All values exceed the recommended threshold of 0.70, confirming strong internal consistency. Convergent validity was assessed using the Average Variance Extracted (AVE). The results show that all constructs exceed the recommended threshold of 0.50, with AVE values of 0.684 for ESP, 0.830 for CEA, and 0.712 for PSTI, indicating that each construct explains a substantial proportion of variance in its indicators. Overall, the measurement model demonstrates strong reliability and convergent validity, indicating that the constructs are robust and suitable for subsequent structural model evaluation.

Discriminant validity was assessed using the heterotrait–monotrait ratio (HTMT). The results in

Table 2. Discriminant validity test.

HTMT
	Community Environmental Attachment (CEA)	Community Pro Sustainable Intention (PSTI)	Perceived Eco Social Performance (ESP)
Community Environmental Attachment (CEA)
Community Pro-Sustainable Intention (PSTI)	0.828
Perceived Eco Social Performance (ESP)	0.85	0.85

indicate that the HTMT value between community environmental attachment (CEA) and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) is 0.828, while the HTMT values between perceived eco-social performance (ESP) and community environmental attachment (CEA), as well as between perceived eco-social performance (ESP) and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI), are both 0.85. These results show that all HTMT values are at or below the commonly accepted threshold of 0.85. Specifically, the relationship between CEA and PSTI (HTMT = 0.828) remains clearly below the threshold, indicating adequate discriminant validity. Meanwhile, the HTMT values involving ESP (HTMT = 0.85) reach the upper boundary of the threshold, suggesting that although the constructs are empirically distinct, they exhibit relatively strong conceptual relatedness. Overall, the HTMT results confirm that perceived eco-social performance (ESP), community environmental attachment (CEA), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) are sufficiently differentiated constructs. This indicates that each construct captures a unique aspect of community perception and behavioral intention within the context of sustainable hospitality, and the measurement model is appropriate for subsequent structural model analysis.

4.1.2. Structural Model Assessment

The structural model results demonstrate strong explanatory and predictive performance across the proposed relationships among perceived eco-social performance (ESP), community environmental attachment (CEA), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI).

The coefficient of determination (R²) indicates that perceived eco-social performance (ESP) explains 55.4% of the variance in community environmental attachment (CEA) (R² = 0.554), while ESP and CEA jointly explain 72.3% of the variance in community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) (R² = 0.723). These values indicate substantial explanatory power of the model (

Table 3. Result of R Square and Q Square.

	R2	Q2	Interpretation
Community Environmental Attachment CEA)	0.554	0.546	Moderate-to-strong explanatory power and high predictive relevance
Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention (PSTI)	0.723	0.618	Strong explanatory power and very strong predictive relevance

).

The effect size (f²) analysis shows that all structural relationships exhibit moderate to strong effects. Specifically, the effect of ESP on CEA (f² = 0.275), CEA on PSTI (f² = 0.312), and ESP on PSTI (f² = 0.298) all fall within the medium effect size range, indicating that each path contributes meaningfully to the model.

In terms of predictive relevance, the Q² values further confirm the model’s predictive capability. The Q² value for community environmental attachment (CEA) is 0.546, while for community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI), it is 0.618. These values exceed the threshold of 0.15, indicating moderate to strong predictive relevance for both endogenous constructs (Table 3).

The structural model demonstrates that perceived eco-social performance (ESP) plays a central role in explaining and predicting both community environmental attachment (CEA) and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI), while CEA functions as an important mechanism linking perception to behavioral intention.

4.1.3. Hypothesis Testing

The structural model was evaluated to test the hypothesized relationships among perceived eco-social performance (ESP), community environmental attachment (CEA), and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI). The significance of the relationships was assessed using path coefficients (β), t-statistics, and p-values obtained through bootstrapping (Figure 5 and

Table 4. Outcome of the research hypothesis.

Hypothesis	Original Sample (O)	Sample Mean (M)	Standard Deviation (STDEV)	T Statistics (|O/STDEV|)	p Values
Community Environmental Attachment (CEA) -> Community Pro-Sustainable Intention (PSTI)	0.494	0.494	0.073	6.733	0.000
Perceived Eco Social Performance (ESP) -> Community Environmental Attachment (CEA)	0.744	0.746	0.04	18.485	0.000
Perceived Eco Social Performance (ESP) -> Community Pro-Sustainable Intention (PSTI)	0.414	0.415	0.076	5.412	0.000
Perceived Eco Social Performance (ESP) -> Community Environmental Attachment (CEA) -> Community Pro-Sustainable Intention (PSTI)	0.367	0.368	0.06	6.156	0.000

).

The results indicate that perceived eco-social performance (ESP) shows a strong and significant positive effect on community environmental attachment (CEA) (β = 0.744, t = 18.485, p < 0.001). This result supports H1, demonstrating that positive perceptions of eco-social performance contribute substantially to strengthening community attachment to the environment. Furthermore, community environmental attachment (CEA) has a positive and significant effect on community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) (β = 0.494, t = 6.733, p < 0.001). This finding supports H2, indicating that higher levels of environmental attachment among local communities are associated with stronger intentions to support sustainable tourism. In addition, perceived eco-social performance (ESP) has a direct positive and significant effect on community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) (β = 0.414, t = 5.412, p < 0.001), supporting H3. This suggests that eco-social performance not only influences behavioral intention indirectly through attachment but also exerts a direct influence.

The mediating effect of community environmental attachment (CEA) was also examined. The indirect effect of perceived eco-social performance (ESP) on community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) through CEA is positive and significant (β = 0.367, t = 6.156, p < 0.001), supporting H4. This indicates that CEA partially mediates the relationship between ESP and PSTI.

All hypothesized relationships are supported, and the results confirm that perceived eco-social performance (ESP) plays a critical role in shaping community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) both directly and indirectly through community environmental attachment (CEA). Collectively, the results support the following: Sustainable hospitality practices affect community behavioral intentions (Kokkhangplu et al., 2023) via a two-fold process. First, sustainable hospitality practices have a direct effect on the way the community perceives the performance of sustainability. Second, sustainable hospitality practices have an indirect effect on the way the community attaches itself to the environment.

An importance–performance map analysis (IPMA) was performed to enhance the structural model findings by determining which antecedent constructs most significantly influence the enhancement of community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) and evaluating the current performance of these constructs within the study context.

Figure 6 shows that perceived eco-social performance (ESP) has the highest total effect (0.79) and a high performance score (87.83). This finding suggests that eco-social hospitality practices are the most significant factor in garnering community support for sustainable tourism development in protected areas. The combination of high importance and strong performance suggests that accommodation providers’ visible environmental stewardship practices are already working well as sustainability signals that encourage people to support their community.

Community environmental attachment (CEA), on the other hand, has a moderate level of importance (total effect = 0.47) and a relatively high performance score (83.32). While environmental attachment significantly mediates pro-sustainable tourism intention, its lesser importance relative to eco-social performance indicates that attachment functions mainly as a reinforcing psychological mechanism rather than the principal catalyst for sustainability-supportive behaviour.

4.2. Qualitative Results

The qualitative phase will provide further explanation and understanding of the findings obtained in the statistical analysis. The result provided further insights into the findings in the relationship in the quantitative model. As shown in

Table 5. Summary of Qualitative Findings and Thematic Analysis.

Theme	Description	Community Perspectives
Perceived Eco-Social Performance (Environmental Practices & Community Contribution)	Local residents perceive hospitality operators, particularly Rimba Ecolodge, as actively contributing to environmental conservation within the protected area while providing social and economic benefits, including employment and support for local livelihoods. These contributions are positively recognized and closely associated with expectations of sustained environmental responsibility.	“They take care of the forest and do not damage the environment, which is very important for us.” “Many local people get jobs from this place, and it helps our community.”
Trust toward Hospitality Operators	Consistent eco-social practices implemented by hospitality operators strengthen trust among local residents. This trust develops through repeated observation of responsible environmental actions within the protected area context.	“We trust them because they show real effort in protecting nature and helping the community.”
Community Environmental Attachment (Emotional Bond)	Residents express strong emotional connections to the protected natural environment, which is closely linked to their daily lives and shaped through continuous interaction with the surrounding ecosystem.	“This forest is part of our life; we feel connected to it.”
Community Environmental Attachment (Sense of Responsibility)	Emotional attachment fosters a sense of responsibility to protect the natural environment, particularly as community livelihoods are closely tied to ecological sustainability within the protected area.	“Because we depend on this environment, we feel responsible to protect it.”
Community Environmental Attachment (Place Identity)	The protected natural environment is perceived as a core element of community identity, reinforcing a shared sense of belonging and cultural continuity.	“Our identity is closely related to this forest and river.”
Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention (Support for Sustainable Hospitality Practices)	Residents express support for tourism activities that are guided by environmentally responsible hospitality practices. This support is conditional upon the continued commitment of operators to conservation within the protected area.	“We support tourism as long as it protects nature.”
Community Pro-Sustainable Tourism Intention (Willingness to Participate)	Local communities show willingness to engage in sustainability initiatives led by hospitality operators, particularly when these activities contribute to both environmental protection and local livelihoods.	“We are willing to be involved if these activities help protect the environment.”
Direct Relationship (ESP → PSTI)	Positive perceptions of eco-social performance by hospitality operators directly encourage community support for tourism activities, especially when environmental protection is clearly visible within the protected area.	“If they continue protecting nature, we will support these activities.”
Mediating Mechanism (ESP → CEA)	Eco-social practices implemented by hospitality operators enhance emotional attachment by reinforcing the perceived value of environmental protection in everyday life.	“Seeing them protect the forest makes us appreciate our environment even more.”
Mediating Mechanism (CEA → PSTI)	Emotional attachment to the environment translates into a stronger intention to support sustainable tourism practices led by responsible hospitality operators.	“Because we love this place, we want activities that keep it safe.”
Integrated Mechanism (ESP → CEA → PSTI)	The findings indicate that the eco-social performance of hospitality operators influences community support through emotional attachment, particularly when conservation efforts are consistently demonstrated within the protected area.	“When they take care of nature, we feel closer to it and more willing to support these activities.”

, it was discovered that there are four main themes in this qualitative analysis, namely perceived eco-social performance, community environmental attachment, community pro-sustainable tourism intention, and the mediating mechanism.

The residents generally viewed the hospitality tourism operators (Rimba Ecolodges) as having hospitality practices, especially when it came to the management of the environment or the support of the community. These perceptions were said to have enhanced the emotional attachment towards the natural surroundings, as indicated by the participants’ expressions of pride (Gogitidze et al., 2023).

Moreover, the results show that emotional attachment is of vital significance to community support for sustainable tourism. The willingness of the participants to support hospitality practices that promote environmental conservation is evident (Kokkhangplu et al., 2023). The qualitative results show that there is a clear process through which a positive perception of eco-social practices influences emotional attachment and finally results in pro-sustainable tourism intention (Kim et al., 2023).

The qualitative findings show how local communities interpret sustainable hospitality practices within protected areas. Sustainable hospitality practices generate a sense of trust through their reliability in being environmentally responsible, as they are perceived as specific practices that affect the way the community thinks. The results of the research show that sustainable hospitality generates a sense of community attachment to the environment, which in turn generates a sense of emotional attachment to the environment (Aytekin et al., 2023).

In terms of behavioral outcomes, support for tourism depends on the alignment between sustainable hospitality and environmental values, with communities showing willingness to participate when activities reflect responsible practices. Overall, the evidence suggests that sustainable hospitality, as reflected in eco-social performance, plays a central role in strengthening environmental attachment and encouraging community pro-sustainable tourism intention (Roberts et al., 2022).

This, in essence, means that the population has a notion of how responsible hospitality tourism operators (Rimba Ecolodges) are in ensuring that they protect the environment, especially in matters relating to environmental conservation and the community. This is based on the fact that this notion is uniform in all the responses from the participants. It is also evident from the findings that there is a strong emotional connection that the residents have towards their environment (Lu et al., 2022).

In Figure 4, the integrated thematic framework shows the pathway by which perceived eco-social performance (ESP) influences the intention of a community to support sustainable tourism (PSTI) using a defined psychological mechanism. The perception of eco-social performance is based on the repeated observable act of sustainability practices and is processed through trust, perceived development, repeated exposure and the internalization of value.

Through these avenues of processing, communities develop emotional bonds, develop a sense of responsibility and form a place identity that further develops the attachment between the community and the environment (CEA). These attachments then provide an increased basis of support for sustainable tourism and for involvement in conservation initiatives by community members.

The framework (Figure 7) reflects both direct and indirect pathways for how ESP instills behavioural intentions for sustainable tourism, through the observable act of sustainable practices and through the indirect influence of CEA (the community attachment to the environment). This framework indicates that ESP uses a psychologically embedded process whereby the observable act of sustainable practices is converted to internalized value and respective behavioural support, relative to the community context.

The word cloud in Figure 8 supports the qualitative results through the dominant words that appear, including “community,” “environment,” “nature,” and “support.” This shows that sustainability is mainly viewed through tangible ecological/social experiences (examples include helpful experiences). The theme framework explains how perceptions of sustainability get transformed into the community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI), through a structured process/way (whereby observable eco-social practices are filtered through trust, repeated choice, and value; i.e., there is no value/no trust). The above process leads to community environmental attachment (CEA) being promoted, which leads to increased community support and participation in sustainable tourism. It is shown through the framework that the eco-social performance directly and indirectly influences the intent to act through attachment to the environment, further proving that sustainable hospitality is achieved by attaching environmental values and emotional attachments (feelings) to the community.

5. Discussion

The results of this study are useful for both the psychology of the environment and the literature relating to sustainable travel because they show that practices associated with sustainability work as not only functional or managerial interventions but also are working to shape people’s emotional attachment towards a destination and their intention to visit that destination, through symbolic and experiential cues (Juliana et al., 2025d). Therefore, it is important to view sustainability as a process perceived socially rather than an operational construct. From a community perspective, sustainable hospitality is experienced via observable, repetitive actions that eventually determine how tourism activities will be judged and understood. This is in line with recent research demonstrating that sustainability perceptions are determined by lived experiences and not just through abstract ideas studied in policy research (Nowacki et al., 2023).

The qualitative findings of the research further enhance this understanding in that they reveal that through repeated, interactive processes with eco-social actions, communities eventually develop pride in these actions, responsibility to engage in these actions, and a sense of belonging to these types of actions. This supports and extends previous research (Aytekin et al., 2023). The findings demonstrate how sustainable hospitality affects behavioral intention via two different routes, as follows: Sustainability’s social and environmental initiatives create widespread support by signalling responsibility and by aligning its operations with the community’s value systems, thereby influencing the future behaviour of consumers through both direct and indirect pathways (developing attachments to the environment indirectly) (Lemy et al., 2026). As such, these dual pathways indicate that sustainable hospitality acts as a link between the community’s external activities and the individual’s internalised value system, which further supports the argument that for sustainability outcomes to be achieved requires both visible actions as well as deeper, emotional commitment to the act of sustainability on behalf of consumers (Deshani et al., 2025; Juliana et al., 2022, 2023).

The presence of both direct and indirect effects of ESP on PSTI suggests a dual pathway through which sustainable hospitality shapes community intention. On the one hand, visible eco-social practices directly encourage support by signaling responsibility and fairness. On the other hand, these practices deepen emotional attachment, which further strengthens long-term commitment to sustainability. This dual mechanism reflects a more nuanced understanding of how sustainable hospitality operates in protected areas, where community perception and environmental values are closely intertwined (Trišić et al., 2022; Blanco-Cerradelo et al., 2022).

Most importantly, the results of the qualitative research indicate that the support from the community is not unconditional, as it is actually mediated by the consistency of sustainable hospitality practices in a long-term context. As a result, this actually adds a further dimension of depth to the discussion, as it indicates the importance of sustainable hospitality as a continuous process, as opposed to a single event (Santos et al., 2020). As a result, the findings of the research indicate that sustainable hospitality is a critical factor in the overall success of the sustainability initiatives in the protected area, as they are mediated through the perception of the community (Roberts et al., 2022; Carvalho et al., 2023).

It is important to note that the strength of these relationships may be influenced by the specific characteristics of hospitality-based operations, particularly ecolodges, where sustainability practices are highly visible and directly experienced by local communities. Compared to other tourism sectors such as tour operators, where interactions may be more transient and less observable, hospitality operations provide a more consistent interface through which eco-social performance can be perceived and internalized. This suggests that the observed mechanism may be particularly salient within hospitality contexts in protected areas.

From the standpoint of protected-area tourism systems, eco-social hospitality practices can be viewed as both operational sustainability measures and governance-oriented stewardship strategies that facilitate collaborative conservation efforts between tourism operators and host communities (Brennan et al., 2026; Romero et al., 2025). This interpretation reinforces the role of perceived eco-social performance as a context-specific sustainability interface that connects environmental practices at the accommodation level with the development of community support in conservation-sensitive tourism destinations (Camilleri, 2026; Hoarau-Heemstra et al., 2025).

The IPMA results show that perceived eco-social performance is the best way to get people to support conservation-oriented tourism development, while community environmental attachment is an important way to turn people’s feelings about sustainability into actions. The IPMA results complement the structural model findings by identifying eco-social performance as the construct with the strongest strategic influence on sustainability support intention, confirming its central role within the proposed protected-area hospitality sustainability framework. The qualitative findings extend the explanatory value of the structural model by demonstrating that eco-social performance is interpreted by residents not merely as observable environmental action but as a symbolic signal of long-term stewardship commitment. This signaling mechanism strengthens trust and reinforces value congruence between hospitality operators and local communities, which in turn enhances environmental attachment (Juliana et al., 2025b).

Similar mechanisms have been identified in recent sustainability perception studies showing that repeated exposure to responsible tourism practices strengthens place-based identity and community support behaviors in protected-area destinations (Anderson & Krettenauer, 2021; Đurkin Badurina et al., 2023; Q. Yan et al., 2024). These findings suggest that eco-social hospitality functions not only as an operational sustainability strategy but also as a socio-psychological legitimacy mechanism that strengthens community engagement with conservation-oriented tourism development.

More significantly, the qualitative phase elucidates the mediating function of community environmental attachment by demonstrating how emotional connections develop through sustained engagement with tangible conservation practices, rather than through mere abstract awareness of sustainability (Silitonga et al., 2025). This corroborates environmental psychology theories positing that attachment is cultivated through direct environmental engagement and recurrent symbolic interactions with place-protective behaviours (Bellato & Cheer, 2021; Gautam, 2020; Wu et al., 2021). The results enhance prior sustainable tourism models by illustrating that eco-social hospitality amplifies behavioural intention via an integrated experiential framework connecting perception, identity development, and stewardship motivation within protected-area communities.

The combination of quantitative and qualitative findings also adds to the methodology by showing how explanatory sequential mixed-methods designs can show how sustainability practices change the way people act in a community. Prior research predominantly analysed residents’ support for sustainable tourism through cross-sectional perception models; this study elucidates that eco-social performance functions via a multi-faceted mechanism encompassing trust development, identity enhancement, and responsibility internalisation (Juliana et al., 2025c; Pramono & Juliana, 2025).

From a governance standpoint, the results indicate that eco-social hospitality operators can serve as intermediary sustainability agents, connecting conservation goals with community involvement in protected-area buffer zones. This shows how important it is to include sustainability initiatives at the accommodation level in larger protected-area management plans that aim to get more people involved in tourism development that is good for the environment. These results can also be understood through the lens of adaptive governance, wherein sustainable hospitality operators serve as intermediary sustainability actors that connect conservation priorities with community engagement processes in protected-area tourism systems (Hall, 2025). Ecolodges and environmentally responsible accommodation facilities do not function as standalone service providers; instead, they enhance resilience-oriented tourism transitions by fostering trust, bolstering environmental identity, and promoting collaborative stewardship relationships between communities and conservation institutions. In this context, perceived eco-social performance serves as both a perception-driven assessment tool and a localised socio-ecological interface through which sustainable practices are integrated into community-environment interactions over time (Baggio, 2020a, 2020b; Becken & Loehr, 2022; Gössling, 2020; Robina-Ramírez et al., 2021; Saarinen & Gill, 2018).

Theoretically, this study expands traditional perception–attachment–behavior frameworks by illustrating how accommodation-level eco-social performance serves as a locally interpreted sustainability interface within protected-area tourism systems (Kencebay & Ertugan, 2025; Khalil et al., 2024). Instead of viewing sustainability perception as a broad attitudinal construct, the results indicate that observable hospitality stewardship practices function as context-specific indicators that enhance environmental identity and promote conservation-oriented tourism development (Dong et al., 2025; Mondol et al., 2025). This mechanism elucidates the influence of micro-level hospitality practices on the formation of community-level sustainability support within protected-area destinations, thereby contributing to the development of socio-ecological interpretations of sustainable tourism transitions (Hall, 2025; Hall et al., 2024; Magnusson et al., 2023; Niewiadomski & Mellon, 2023). These findings enhance current CSR and ESG perception-based sustainability models by illustrating that accommodation-level eco-social performance functions as a place-embedded stewardship signal within protected-area tourism systems, reinforcing environmental attachment through locally interpreted conservation practices rather than solely through institutional responsibility assessments (Hall, 2025; Hall et al., 2024; Saarinen & Gill, 2018). Consequently, the results ought to be regarded as contextually specific analytical insights into the development of sustainability support within protected-area buffer zone tourism systems, rather than as universally applicable conclusions across all tourism destinations (Hall, 2025; Hall et al., 2024).

The results should be understood in the context of the socio-ecological features of tourism environments in protected-area buffer zones, where accommodation providers work at the intersection of conservation goals and community livelihoods. Instead of proposing universal applicability across all tourism contexts, the findings enhance comprehension of how observable eco-social hospitality practices serve as locally interpreted stewardship signals that foster sustainability-support formation in conservation-sensitive destinations. This context-sensitive interpretation corresponds with systems-oriented viewpoints that assert sustainability outcomes in tourism are influenced by destination-specific governance frameworks and stakeholder interaction structures.

6. Conclusions

This study demonstrates that sustainable hospitality plays a central role in shaping community responses toward tourism development within protected areas (Matović et al., 2025). The findings show that community perceptions of eco-social performance are not merely evaluative, but form the basis for deeper psychological and behavioral processes that influence support for sustainability (Santos et al., 2020).

The results support the notion that sustainable hospitality practices, as captured by perceived eco-social performance (ESP), have a positive influence on building community environmental attachment (CEA), which in turn contributes to building community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI). The finding of a direct relationship between perceived eco-social performance (ESP) and community pro-sustainable tourism intention (PSTI) also supports the argument that sustainable hospitality is achieved through both direct and indirect routes. The implication is that sustainability is achieved through both tangible and intangible routes.

The qualitative results add depth to this understanding by indicating that sustainable hospitality is understood through lived experiences, where the positive impacts of environmental protection and the community are directly observed and judged. The support of the community is dependent on the congruence of hospitality practices with environmental values, as well as the consistency of these practices (Uehara et al., 2022).

Collectively, it is suggested by this study that the effectiveness of sustainability initiatives within protected areas is not only dependent on the implementation of environmentally responsible practices, but also on how these practices are perceived, experienced, and internalized by local communities. In this way, sustainable hospitality is seen as a significant driver in linking practices with emotions and intentions (Salama et al., 2022).

The study provides an integrative perspective in the way it identifies sustainable hospitality as a vital link between eco-social performance and community-based sustainability outcomes. These findings lay the foundation upon which future research and strategies could be developed to enhance the position and function of hospitality in supporting sustainable tourism development in protected areas.

From a managerial perspective, the IPMA results suggest that strengthening eco-social performance practices—such as ecosystem-sensitive infrastructure management, biodiversity protection initiatives, and community livelihood collaboration programs—represents the most effective strategy for enhancing community support for sustainable tourism development. Because eco-social performance shows both high importance and high performance, continued investment in visible sustainability practices is likely to generate strong returns in terms of community engagement and conservation-supportive tourism behavior within protected-area destinations.

7. Limitations and Future Research

While this study offers significant insights into the impact of perceived eco-social hospitality performance on community environmental attachment and pro-sustainable tourism intention, it is imperative to recognise several limitations. First, the empirical analysis concentrates on a singular protected-area buffer zone context encircling Rimba Ecolodge in Tanjung Puting National Park, thereby constraining the statistical generalisability of the results to alternative tourism destinations characterised by distinct governance frameworks, ecological sensitivities, and community–tourism dynamics. However, in line with explanatory research employing structural modelling in context-specific sustainability environments, the findings aim to facilitate analytical generalisation rather than statistical generalisation, thereby advancing theory development regarding sustainability perception mechanisms within protected-area tourism systems.

Second, the buffer zone setting is a very important place where tourism activities directly affect conservation goals and the livelihoods of local people. This makes it a good place to look at how eco-social practices at the hospitality level work as locally understood stewardship signals in socio-ecological tourism settings. Nonetheless, subsequent research should examine the proposed model across various protected-area destinations and diverse hospitality environments to further assess the transferability of the identified relationships within different institutional and ecological tourism frameworks.

Third, the use of purposive sampling to gather responses from residents directly affected by tourism activities within the ecolodge’s operational influence area means that the results are based on their actual experiences with conservation-oriented hospitality practices, not on a representative sample of the population as a whole. This approach is suitable for perception-based structural modelling studies in nascent sustainability contexts; however, subsequent research may integrate multi-site sampling strategies to improve comparative analysis across protected-area tourism systems.

Since this study’s empirical context is situated within a protected-area buffer zone hospitality environment adjacent to Tanjung Puting National Park, the results should be regarded as endorsing analytical rather than statistical generalisation regarding sustainability perception mechanisms in conservation-oriented tourism systems. Protected-area destinations exemplify unique socio-ecological governance frameworks, marked by the intricate interplay between environmental conservation goals and community livelihoods, potentially contrasting with the conditions found in urban or mass-tourism locales. Subsequent research should examine the proposed framework in various protected-area environments and different hospitality contexts to assess the transferability of the identified sustainability-support formation mechanisms.