Skiers’ perception of climate change in China: The role of activity involvement and place loyalty

Abstract

This study presents a multidimensional framework that defines skiers' perception of climate change and examines the role that activity involvement and place loyalty play in shaping their perceptions. Between December 2022 and February 2023, 886 Chinese skiers were invited to participate in an online survey, and this survey data was then analyzed using a hierarchical regression model. Results show that Chinese skiers generally have low climate change perception, with the western region exhibiting lower levels of perception compared to the eastern coastal region. There are regional disparities in the different dimensions of climate change perception among Chinese skiers, with consequence perception being the weakest dimension. Importantly, while involvement and loyalty significantly influence Chinese skiers' experience and knowledge perception of climate change, they do not have a significant impact on consequence perception. A series of managerial implications and recommendations for further studies and industry are provided.

Management implications

The perception of climate change among Chinese skiers appears to be relatively low when compared to existing research conducted in countries like Norway and Finland. This highlights the importance of understanding the impact of this low perception on their skiing behaviors, which is significant in predicting the increasing demand for emerging ski tourism destinations in the context of climate change. Additionally, ski industry stakeholders in China should strive to improve skiers' perception of climate change and actively promote environmental awareness and low-carbon behavior among them. For example, considering the significant mismatch between the supply and demand of ski tourism in China, attention should be paid to the issue of carbon emissions resulting from skiers' transportation.